Should I actively manage a few unit trusts to reap maximum returns?

If by “actively” you mean buying in and out of unit trusts frequently, we would probably not advise investors to do so. For starters, transacting unit trusts often hikes transaction costs thereby creating a bigger hurdle for a typical investor to break even, let alone make profitable net returns. It will also be very dependent on making the right tactical calls that is challenging unless one is a professional investor with close on-the-ground research intelligence to guide them them. Unit trusts by nature are meant to be long-term investments, with a typical investment horizon of 3-5 years. If you’re invested in a well-managed unit trust, with patience, it will certainly make long-term attractive and consistent returns for you. Often, buyers of unit trusts do not make money when they buy in and out of the funds too quickly or are intimidated by volatility. On the contrary, given time and patience, mutual funds will more often than not make steady returns for investors given a longer-term time horizon.

Transaction is not instant and if you want active management why not be in the stock exchange yourself? No middleman to eat your comission and you have way more options