New Delhi, July 15 -- Before investing in a mutual fund scheme, it is vital to examine the past returns of that scheme and compare the same with similar schemes in the same category. For instance, if an investor wants to invest in a large cap mutual fund, it is recommended to compare the past few years' returns delivered by large cap mutual funds.

Although historical returns do not guarantee future returns, they tend to give an indication of how different schemes may perform in future.

Aside from past returns, other factors which are worth considering by themutual fund investors include the reputation of the fund house, macro-economic factors, whether the scheme isactive or passive and past performance of the fund manager (in case of ac...