use td ameritrade go to tdameritrade.com/7 to get $7 trades. They'll offer more services and such. Money sitting in cash gets barely anything though.
I'm only recommending them because you mentioned Scottrade and they have been fair to me in the past.
I just opened a Fidelity account to take advantage of the bonus United airlines miles, butyou can get Delta or Starwoods points. Also an option for $100 for opening an account with 10k.
Go in brach and they'll give you 1 year of $8 trades by coding your account as "Gold" status and they might give you free trades too depending on how much you deposit.
Also got a free pen and one of those sack type book bags, which I will use as a small laundry bag.
I don't know how much you are beginning with, but if you're going to make less than 10 trades a month, and don't have any idea of what to expect in an online brokerage then go with Zecco.
If you request the money market sweep (this is for balances above $500) you can get ~4.25% interest on your money which is higher than everything else out there. Sogo is about 2%.
With BoA you get free trades with 25K in a BoA checking/savings account, not in your actual brokerage account.
If you make anything over 10 trades a month, I would go with either SogoElite ($1/trade as long as you are trading less than 250 shares at a time) or Interactive Brokers ($1/trade, 200 shares max, $10 min/month) for the improved customer service/trading platform.
You need to provide more information to get useful answers. There are direct brokers that will charge $1 for 100 share trades.
What is your typical trade size (# shares)? How many trades per month on average? What is your avg account balance?
Have you considered either MBTrading or InteractiveBrokers (IB) - depending on your answers to above they might fit your needs better then a flat-price/trade broker.
rajaijah
Shopaholic Member
posted: Oct. 3, 2007 @ 1:38p
you might also want to consider wellsfargo PMA account in that bunch. for 25K balance in their accounts combined (brokerage+mortgage+checking+savings)you get 100 free trades/year. I have account with scottrade as well but why pay $7 when you get it for free.
if you make more than 100 trades then its a different case.
Consumer Reports Money Lab evaluated about twenty online brokers and firstrade was their first choice earning an excellent rating the next two were E*trade and Tradeking. 50% of the score was based on trading cost, other half of the score includes easy of use, research ability, NTF funds etc. check out the June(?) 07 issue at your local library.
TheGersh said: I don't know how much you are beginning with, but if you're going to make less than 10 trades a month, and don't have any idea of what to expect in an online brokerage then go with Zecco.
If you request the money market sweep (this is for balances above $500) you can get ~4.25% interest on your money which is higher than everything else out there. Sogo is about 2%.
With BoA you get free trades with 25K in a BoA checking/savings account, not in your actual brokerage account.
If you make anything over 10 trades a month, I would go with either SogoElite ($1/trade as long as you are trading less than 250 shares at a time) or Interactive Brokers ($1/trade, 200 shares max, $10 min/month) for the improved customer service/trading platform.
How do I request the money market sweep?
By the way, Zecco Trading will credit an interest rate of .5% annually (.5% APR) on cash balances held in all accounts. 0.5% APR paid monthly based on average monthly cash balance.
Zecco executes fast in my experience. As fast as Ameritrade. You can have Zecco put your cash in a MM Sweep that was paying 4.3% before the rate drop, not sure what it is now. Thinkorswim has the best trading software imo and offers $5.00 trades.
scanchain
Senior Member
posted: Oct. 3, 2007 @ 6:19p
gotsmack said: use td ameritrade go to tdameritrade.com/7 to get $7 trades. They'll offer more services and such. Money sitting in cash gets barely anything though. Offer expires 9/30. Any new link?
scanchain said: gotsmack said: use td ameritrade go to tdameritrade.com/7 to get $7 trades. They'll offer more services and such. Money sitting in cash gets barely anything though. Offer expires 9/30. Any new link?
Nope. Try to push it through anyway. If you don't get the $7 trade then call up to complain and threaten to go somewhere else.
I had an existing account and I called to complain about new customers getting $7 trades, then the rep spoke with his manager and let me have the $7 trades for depositing $2k.
I am an apex client though so you may not have the same outcome if you only have a few $k.
I am not a trader.... I am not going to play with a lot of MONEY! I have a couple of certificates for stocks... which I want to pu into an acoount.... then maybe trade and cashout, or maybe play some more!
I want the cheapest trades, no fee for closing, no hard inQ's for opening , etc.... ALTHOUGH I may want to use the resulting funds in a ROTH.... so that is the last twist I am adding!
I have been researching and I think Zecco may fit the bill.... but others may have other opinions which I welcome!
1) They charge 1/2 a cent per share and never more than 0.2% of the trade. 2) They give you interest at LIBOR - 0.5% (only for cash in excess on $10K) 3) They have the fastest execution platform. This is probably the best feature. Their smart routing will take your order where you get the highest price for selling and lowest price for buying. Ameritrade, ETrade & others route it to a market maker and you will never get the best price as Interactive Brokers. This alone means you save more than your commissions. 4) They are an integrated platform with stocks, options, futures & FOREX , all in one place(and with cheapest commissions). 5) You can trade over 10 different exchanges across the world, all from your browser.
I challenge anyone to find a better broker out there than Interactive Brokers.
NorthStar2020 said: You guys have ignored the best broker in the universe. Interactive Brokers
1) They charge 1/2 a cent per share and never more than 0.2% of the trade. 2) They give you interest at LIBOR - 0.5% (only for cash in excess on $10K) 3) They have the fastest execution platform. This is probably the best feature. Their smart routing will take your order where you get the highest price for selling and lowest price for buying. Ameritrade, ETrade & others route it to a market maker and you will never get the best price as Interactive Brokers. This alone means you save more than your commissions. 4) They are an integrated platform with stocks, options, futures & FOREX , all in one place(and with cheapest commissions). 5) You can trade over 10 different exchanges across the world, all from your browser.
I challenge anyone to find a better broker out there than Interactive Brokers.
I don't disagree that IB may be a great place for traders --- but for a small investor with a small amount of trades --- tradeking is a nice user friendly environment --- the $5 trades are cheap enough --- and the customer service is good
scanchain
Senior Member
posted: Oct. 3, 2007 @ 11:24p
gotsmack said: scanchain said: gotsmack said: use td ameritrade go to tdameritrade.com/7 to get $7 trades. They'll offer more services and such. Money sitting in cash gets barely anything though. Offer expires 9/30. Any new link?
Nope. Try to push it through anyway. If you don't get the $7 trade then call up to complain and threaten to go somewhere else.
I had an existing account and I called to complain about new customers getting $7 trades, then the rep spoke with his manager and let me have the $7 trades for depositing $2k.
I am an apex client though so you may not have the same outcome if you only have a few $k. Good point. I am on their Apex plan too. I shot them an email and will report what they say tomorrow.
I have used Sogo for a while now. I wish it has more features. You can't trader options or OTCBB stocks. It's very very simple and I wish it had more to offer.
jlgrandam
Addicted Member
posted: Oct. 4, 2007 @ 9:54a
welookgoodcom said: No one likes Zecco?
I like Zecco, even now with the reduced offer. I put a certain amount of money in per month and can buy most of my stocks without any trading commissions. I am a bit concerned about the viability of the company though.
spectrablue
New Member
posted: Oct. 4, 2007 @ 6:40p
I have Zecco, Etrade, and TDAmeritrade.
Zecco is good because it's free to trade. However, it's website isn't as polished as Etrade or TDAmeritrade. If you're doing simple buy and sell trades of stocks, I would use Zecco.
Zecco doesn't offer extended hours trading, but I'm assuming you don't care about that.
spectrablue
New Member
posted: Oct. 4, 2007 @ 6:41p
By the way, Zecco charges $40 a year for any IRA account.
Still a great deal if you trade enough times a year.
NorthStar2020 said: You guys have ignored the best broker in the universe. Interactive BrokersActually, it was already mentioned at least twice earlier in this thread.
2) They give you interest at LIBOR - 0.5% (only for cash in excess on $10K)Yes but for people with small balances, earning 0% on that first $10k ruins it. Other brokers pay a slightly lower rate but do so on the entire cash balance. 3) They have the fastest execution platform. This is probably the best feature. Their smart routing will take your order where you get the highest price for selling and lowest price for buying. Ameritrade, ETrade & others route it to a market maker and you will never get the best price as Interactive Brokers. This alone means you save more than your commissions.Errr, a little heavy on the hyberbole. There are other brokers that offer "smart" routing and you will not always get a better price with IB then other brokers (who may sell your order flow). And even assuming you do get a price improvement that may or may not make up for a difference in commission - depends on how many shares you are trading. I challenge anyone to find a better broker out there than Interactive Brokers.If the basis of the comparison is customer service then this is an easy challenge to win. Their customer service is horrible and they don't pretend to cater to people that need hand holding.
You also omitted that there is a minimum monthly commission level you must reach ($30) otherwise you are charged a fee for market data ($10).
Just to be clear, I like IB (and have an account with them) but they are not the best broker for everyone.
I am with IB,Zecco and others. IB charges 10.00 a month for the real time trading system. I poersonally dont think IB works well for small ivenstors not trading frequently. I have found their customer service to be somewhat prickly from time to time. I feel with them you are truly on your own. For what I use them for they are great but not for everyone. On an ACH deposit Zecco and ameritrade posts quickly. IB literally takes forever! It can be more than 5 days to trade money deposited via ACH.
As others have stated, the devil is in the details, depending on how and what you trade different brokers are better for various reasons. If you intend to keep a fair amount of your assets in cash I'll surprise you and suggest Schwab. I have accounts at numerous brokers but have recently moved most of it to Schwab. My trading sometimes involves placing naked put positions, this requires my assets to be moved to the brokers cash accounts which at Aturd earns about 1/2% APY, however at Schwab their cash account still pays 4.5% and they pay 4.85% APY in their MM fund. I also recommend Think or Swim but that broker caters more to option trading. No matter where you go, your trading strategy is key, don't just focus on the cost of a trade. Good luck trading!
BofA requirements vary by state. In GA, you get 30 free trades if you have an Advantage checking account ($5k min balance).
qwik3r
New Member
posted: Oct. 6, 2007 @ 3:32p
i am still torn between firstrade, thinkorswim, tradeking and zecco. I am a young investor who probably will not be trading more then a few times a month if that. I plan on initially throwing in about 2500-3000 grand to the market. I do not a ton of money to play with so I also wish not to be killed with all sorts of fees.
On the downside firstrade has the lowest APY on cash balances, i couldn't find thinkorswim's though. But I have read good things about firstrade.
Zecco and Tradeking despite all of the type seem like great alternatives but there is just something about both that I do not like, i can't put my finger on it. Both seem to offer the highest money sweeps though.
Thinkorswim is recommended by alot of people but I am not too thrilled about the 9.99 per trade which makes me put them further down on my list.
Plainly one would think Zecco is on top because of their high interest rates on cash balances, fast execution and 10 free trades per month but based on some customer reviews I don't konw. I have heard some bad things such as funds taking some time to transfer and that their other fees may be even higher. I couldn't find it but does anyone know if they charge for ACH withdrawl?
Being this is my first time investing I want to pick the right broker and not bounce around, reading some of the FAQ's on Zecco I see that it can take up to 20 business days to transfer an account to another broker, this is pretty crappy.
Can I get some further opinions from you guys?
jcempire
New Member
posted: Oct. 6, 2007 @ 4:19p
Zecco 30 Free stock trades a month Also, 50cents per Contract (option trade)
optionhouse (lowest fee for options all over the world)
That's one with best commission to trade option. $9.99 + 0 per contract.
Tradestation (best tool that I even see)
great tool, but you got to deal with the commission, I got 65 cents per contract. Go to neg. by yourself.
scanchain
Senior Member
posted: Oct. 12, 2007 @ 12:00p
scanchain said: gotsmack said: scanchain said: gotsmack said: use td ameritrade go to tdameritrade.com/7 to get $7 trades. They'll offer more services and such. Money sitting in cash gets barely anything though. Offer expires 9/30. Any new link?
Nope. Try to push it through anyway. If you don't get the $7 trade then call up to complain and threaten to go somewhere else.
I had an existing account and I called to complain about new customers getting $7 trades, then the rep spoke with his manager and let me have the $7 trades for depositing $2k.
I am an apex client though so you may not have the same outcome if you only have a few $k. Good point. I am on their Apex plan too. I shot them an email and will report what they say tomorrow. Success. They put me on the $7-plan after I deposited $2000.
Since you're investing $2500-$3000, I recommend you just go with Zecco. If you pay even $5 per trade, which seems small, it will significantly affect your returns. 30 trades over the year at $5 per trade is $150 in trading fees. If your account is $3000, you would basically waste 5% of your money on fees when you could just go with Zecco and save yourself the $150. I personally use Zecco and don't have any complaints (even 10 free trades a month is a good deal). I also have an account with MB Trading which I pay relatively low fees, and use because of its nice real-time interface and free level 2 (for accounts with 25k). If you don't need a real-time interface and level 2 though, Zecco really can't be beat imo.
scanchain said: scanchain said: gotsmack said: scanchain said: gotsmack said: use td ameritrade go to tdameritrade.com/7 to get $7 trades. They'll offer more services and such. Money sitting in cash gets barely anything though. Offer expires 9/30. Any new link?
Nope. Try to push it through anyway. If you don't get the $7 trade then call up to complain and threaten to go somewhere else.
I had an existing account and I called to complain about new customers getting $7 trades, then the rep spoke with his manager and let me have the $7 trades for depositing $2k.
I am an apex client though so you may not have the same outcome if you only have a few $k. Good point. I am on their Apex plan too. I shot them an email and will report what they say tomorrow. Success. They put me on the $7-plan after I deposited $2000.
Glad to hear it.
But I've been thinking about it recently and I figured that since I trade enough to be an Apex customer, I might as well open an Interactive Brokers account. cheaper trades, more products to trade (like forex and future options), and international stocks (foreign ordinaries).
jmorgans
Member
posted: Oct. 22, 2007 @ 11:01a
btrebor said: however at Schwab their cash account still pays 4.5% and they pay 4.85% APY in their MM fund.
Looks to me like the best you can do with Schwab is 1.82% unless you have $500K to invest.
mikeres
Senior Member - 1K
posted: Oct. 22, 2007 @ 11:24p
jmorgans said: btrebor said: however at Schwab their cash account still pays 4.5% and they pay 4.85% APY in their MM fund. Looks to me like the best you can do with Schwab is 1.82% unless you have $500K to invest.Not true. From their web site - Purchased money market fund yields:
SW2XX - Schwab Investor Money Fund - Effective Yield = 4.82% - Min. Bal: $2,500
SWVXX - Schwab Value Advantage Money FundŽ Investor Shares - Effective Yield = 5.04% Initial Purch.: $25,000/$15,000 IRA - Min. Bal: $20,000/$15,000 IRA 0.45%
jmorgans
Member
posted: Oct. 23, 2007 @ 7:38a
mikeres said: SW2XX - Schwab Investor Money Fund - Effective Yield = 4.82% - Min. Bal: $2,500
SWVXX - Schwab Value Advantage Money FundŽ Investor Shares - Effective Yield = 5.04% Initial Purch.: $25,000/$15,000 IRA - Min. Bal: $20,000/$15,000 IRA 0.45%
Yes, it's true that anyone can buy and sell those funds, but idle cash cannot be automatically invested, or "swept" there unless you have $500K.
mikeres
Senior Member - 1K
posted: Oct. 23, 2007 @ 10:44p
jmorgans said: mikeres said: SW2XX - Schwab Investor Money Fund - Effective Yield = 4.82% - Min. Bal: $2,500
SWVXX - Schwab Value Advantage Money FundŽ Investor Shares - Effective Yield = 5.04% Initial Purch.: $25,000/$15,000 IRA - Min. Bal: $20,000/$15,000 IRA 0.45%
Yes, it's true that anyone can buy and sell those funds, but idle cash cannot be automatically invested, or "swept" there unless you have $500K.You're right these funds are not for sweep funds. However, all the OP (btrevor) said was that in addition to their sweep fund(s), that also at Schwab "they pay 4.85% APY in their MM fund". Anyone can invest in these by explicitly "purchasing" them. I did not see Schwab specify any minimum account balance requirement.
The minimum purchase for SWVXX is $25k for investment accounts and $15k for an IRA account. Effective Yield as of 10/22/07 is 5.03%.
The minimum purchase requirement foe SW2XX is $2500. The Effective Yield as of 10/22/07 is 4.81%
There are certainly higher yielding MM funds out there, but the yield offered by Schwab is not that bad for a brokerage firm.
cfiziksh86
Member
posted: Nov. 14, 2007 @ 11:36a
Are there any brokers offering lower commisions than SogoInvest ($3) or Zecco ($0), and no monthly/annual fees? Those are the two cheapest commissions I've been able to find.
i've used etrade on and off for years, and lately i've seen some really strange things
i'm learning technical analysis and came into a pot of money that's enough to play with and that i don't have to worry about taking a loss on. so i transfer it to etrade and start to trade. first i buy QQQQ and get ticked off i didn't get the best price. sell it and bought SPY a week ago and got a much better price than Yahoo was showing on it's real time quote. sold it just now for $.35 more cents than what Yahoo was showing on it's real time quote
real time was around $135.75 and my trade went through at $137.08 with my limit being $137.00
had similar things with Fidelity when i traded with them for a little while, except in all cases they gave me bad pricing
probably stay with Etrade. if you give them revenue your calls will be answered in a few minutes and the service is good. if your account doesn't give them revenue you will be in IVR hell
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