Process

• You can buy mutual fund shares through most brokerage accounts or, in some cases, directly from the company that offers the fund. While the firm might ask you about your income and employment situation, responding that you are unemployed does not preclude you from opening a mutual fund account, all else being equal.
  
  

Minimums

• Some brokerages require a minimum balance if you wish to open an account. Most mutual funds also have a minimum initial investment requirement. Fund minimums can range from a low of $50 to as high as $500, $1,000, $2,500 or even tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. If you do not have a job, you might have trouble meeting steep minimums. If you have money saved, however, this might not be an issue. Ultimately, a brokerage or mutual fund company will not stop you from investing just because you have no job or weak cash flow.
  
  

Automatic Investing

• Many mutual fund companies and some brokerages waive or reduce minimum initial investment requirements. Generally, you can get a minimum eliminated or lowered if you agree to an automatic savings plan. In most cases, you must commit to at least monthly investments electronically transferred to your brokerage or mutual fund account from a linked checking or savings account. Often, you only need to put up $25 or $50 a month to satisfy a minimum investment amount under an automatic savings plan.
  
  

Account Options

• You can elect to open a mutual fund in a taxable account or in an IRA. If you choose the latter option, your employment status can play a role. For instance, the IRS only allows you to invest in an IRA if you have taxable compensation. Generally, you generate taxable compensation from employment, however, the IRS includes other examples in its definition of taxable compensation. For instance, the IRS considers alimony and nontaxable combat pay taxable compensation for IRA purposes, but not interest, dividend, pension or annuity income.