What if Carmen were to tell you that you could add an extra percentage-point or two to the returns on your investments each year? It’s easy: pay less for the privilege of investing, because the lower the fees you’re forced to fork over, the more value you can get out of your money.

Stephen Horan, head of private wealth for the CFA Institute, said that while you can’t control the market, you can control the fees you pay on your funds. People underestimate the impact of these fees, he said. For example, let’s say you have a $10,000 investment that grows at 8% a year. After 10 years, you may have $22,000 but if there is just a 2% fee associated, the returns are decreased to 6% and you end up with $18,000 – 23% less money. The fees add up.