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GuideStone fields investment questions


DALLAS (BP)–The following Frequently Asked Questions information was released Oct. 14 by GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention.

— Are my investments with GuideStone Funds FDIC insured?
GuideStone is not a bank and therefore your investments with GuideStone Funds are not covered by FDIC insurance. When you invest in mutual funds, you are seeking a potential increase in your investments. In return for the growth of your investments, you realize there is a possibility that the amount of your investment could decrease in value. GuideStone Funds uses diversification to reduce company specific risk. If a company is having problems, its impact on the fund would be minimized since it only amounts to a small percentage of the fund’s total assets.

— What fund is most appropriate for me?
Choosing your funds is an important decision, and factors such as your time horizon and risk tolerance will impact it. To help you make the best decision for your personal situation please view our GuideStone Funds website, www.GuideStoneFunds.org, or learn more about our three approaches to investing at www.GuideStoneRetirement.org/investmentchoices.aspx.

— Should I withdraw or reallocate my funds?
Depending on how your funds are invested — through a 403(b) plan, an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) or a Personal Investment Account (PIA) — there may be tax consequences or plan rules that affect the availability of your funds. Moving to a more conservative fund allocation could cause you to lock in the losses.

Consider:

* You usually can only withdraw money from a 403(b) plan — like your employer-sponsored retirement plan — at termination of employment. If you are below the retirement age set forth in your plan, there can be serious tax consequences that can cost you up to a fourth or more of the assets in the plan.

* While the market is currently volatile, no one can predict with certainty when the market will return to equilibrium. See www.GuideStone.org for the article, “Market swings shouldn’t panic long-term investors,” for an example of how poor market timing — even just a few days — can cost an investor significantly.

* The key to weathering any economic storm is to be diversified and focus on your long-term goals. Your goals probably don’t change, so your strategy usually shouldn’t, even when the market has such volatility.

* GuideStone’s 90 years of service uniquely positions us as a trusted, lifelong partner. Our mutual funds have no commissions, and our fund managers are held to a rigorous selection and monitoring process.

— If I move my money to the Money Market or GuideStone Financial Resources Capital Preservation Fund, can I move it back at any time?
Generally, yes. But please carefully consider the long-term implications to your investments before making any fund exchanges. Financial advisers will generally remind clients that they “lock in their losses” when they sell after a market drop. In essence, an investor may inadvertently find himself selling low and buying high when he attempts to follow the market to avoid short-term losses or capitalize on short-term gains rather than following a more disciplined, long-term investment approach.

Participants are prohibited from exchanging out of the Capital Preservation Fund to a “competing fund” without first investing in a “non-competing fund” for a period of at least 90 days. A “competing fund” is any fund predominantly invested in fixed-income securities whose average duration is generally less than 3 and a half years. For GuideStone Funds, “competing funds” are comprised of the Money Market Fund, the Low-Duration Bond Fund, the Conservative Allocation Fund and the Conservative Allocation I Fund. The definition of a “non-competing fund” is any fund option(s) other than those funds defined as “competing funds.” Also, simultaneous exchanges are not allowed, meaning participants may not exchange from the fund to a “non-competing fund” and simultaneously exchange from a “non-competing fund” to a “competing fund.”

— Who is the adviser to GuideStone Funds?
GuideStone Capital Management serves as the investment adviser to the funds. The adviser is an affiliate of GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Rather than making the day-to-day investment decisions such as buying and selling stocks and bonds for the Select Funds, the adviser retains the services of other investment management firms to do so. GuideStone Capital Management also allocates the Date Target Funds’ and Asset Allocation Funds’ investments among the Select Funds.

— How will the market affect my benefit payments?
GuideStone has never missed a benefit payment to a participant. Although the market has — and will be — volatile, GuideStone has a 90-year heritage of honoring commitments to participants.

— When can I expect the market to go back up?
The market is cyclical, and no one can know tomorrow’s returns. We do believe that the best approach is disciplined investing: a diversified portfolio that is consistent with your investment time horizon.

— What are the advantages — in a Personal Investment Account — to investing in a GuideStone Money Market account vs. an FDIC-insured CD at a local bank?
There are three notable advantages for choosing a GuideStone Money Market account:
1. Money can be withdrawn at any time in a money market account. With a CD, you will be penalized if you try to make a withdrawal prior to the given maturity date.
2. Check-writing privileges that you won’t find with a CD.
3. Ease of transfer of money from the money market fund to other funds in the GuideStone Funds family.

An investment in the Money Market Fund is not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency. Although the fund seeks to maintain a value of $1.00 per share, it is possible to lose money. Unlike a CD, the fund does not offer fixed interest payments.

— How is the Capital Preservation Fund invested?
The fund invests primarily in a diversified portfolio of investment grade fixed-income securities. The fund may also invest to a lesser extent in high yield securities and money market instruments.

The fund seeks to maintain, but does not guarantee, a stable price per share of $10, while paying monthly dividends based on a quarterly announced crediting rate.

— Is my retirement account safe?
Investing for the long term brings with it unavoidable ups and downs along the way. However, by investing in mutual funds, like those offered by GuideStone Funds, investors have the added benefit of investment diversification in a large number of companies that operate in a wide range of industries. In fact, mutual fund regulations limit the amount that a diversified mutual fund can invest in any one company.

While diversification will not eliminate the possibility of investment loss in times like these, it does limit investors’ financial exposure to the performance of any individual company in which the funds invest. GuideStone’s multi-manager investment approach provides an additional level of diversification by providing access to multiple carefully selected world-class investment management firms within a single investment fund.

Read more about our manager-of-managers philosophy by visiting www.GuideStoneCapital.org/overview/philosophy.aspx.

You should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of GuideStone Funds before investing. For a copy of the prospectus with this and other information about the funds, please call 1-888-98-GUIDE (1-888-984-8433) or visit www.GuideStoneFunds.org to view or download a prospectus. You should read the prospectus carefully before investing.

An investment in the Money Market Fund is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency. Although the fund seeks to maintain a value of $1.00 per share, it is possible to lose money.
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