If you could own just four mutual funds, which would they be?

Today's investors rarely adhere to the "less is more" philosophy of the minimalist architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

Unsure of which funds to choose, they buy as many as they can afford from whatever performance and recommendation lists they come across.

This strength-in-numbers approach can produce a mix that over time becomes either Frankenstein's monster or a long row of identical twins.

You shouldn't sleep better just because you own more funds than your neighbor. In addition, owning too many will likely mean you can't keep track.

We asked some fund experts to pick four funds different enough from each other to constitute a diversified portfolio.

This is minimalist investing.

"Most investors are attracted to one area in the marketplace in a given cycle and buy three or even four funds in that particular marketplace," said Jim Lowell, editor of the independent Fidelity Investor newsletter in Watertown, Mass.

After 10 years, it isn't uncommon to find investors with 25 funds so closely correlated that they behave just as a portfolio of four different funds would, he said.

"It is silly to have a lot of funds because it means too much duplication," said Thurman Smith, editor of the Equity Fund Outlook in Boston.

Owning 25 funds is "crazy," he said, with eight funds or less much more realistic because it still permits you to cover most categories and styles.

"For something like this, you'd want to stick with the tried and true," said Christine Benz, director of mutual fund analysis for Morningstar Inc. in Chicago. "My first choice for someone wanting to keep things streamlined is a target-date fund, in which you choose a fund that matches the date you plan to retire."

Smith's choices and rationale:

• Fairholme Fund (FAIRX) owns 22 high-quality, mid- to large-cap stocks with particular emphasis on insurers and energy. It is consistent without much risk, so you needn't watch it every month. Three-year annualized return: 20 percent.

• Kinetics Paradigm (WWNPX) is managed by an imaginative team that tracks developing trends and firms that benefit. It doesn't buy overpriced stocks, has low turnover, and its mid- to large-cap stocks vary from distressed utilities to financial firms. Three-year annualized return: 25 percent.

• Harbor International Fund (HIINX) is a large-cap foreign stock fund that blends growth with reasonable price. This consistent winner has average risk. While favoring Europe, it also has holdings in virtually every global region. Three-year annualized return: 27 percent.

• Manning & Napier Equity (EXEYX) isn't well-known, but is an efficient fund run by a personal money-management firm that can invest in any size stock or exchange-traded fund. It avoids trouble and has below-average risk. Three-year annualized return: 17 percent.