Money Blue Book

Reviews Of Cheap Stock Trade Offers At Discount Brokerage Firms

Anyone who has ever invested in the stock market before knows that one of the biggest potential drains on one’s rate of return is the amount of money spent on expensive commissions and trading fees, paid out to brokerage firms. Regardless of whether one only performs equity, option, or bond trades a few times a year – or engages in heavy duty non stop day trading – broker fees have a nasty and rather surreptitious way of chipping into one’s investment profits over time.

Back in the day when I opened my Roth IRA account and started investing for the very first time, brokerage commissions for equity trades were in the $20-30 range. That was how much I paid in the way of transaction fees for a single stock transaction back then – for an account that barely broke $500 at the time. These days, with the emergence of deep discount online brokerages like TradeKing and Zecco – for the same amount of money, one can now buy, sell, and transact securities two to three times over.

Of course, while many of these emerging top online brokers are able to offer their customers extremely low fees and discounted charges for investment transactions, bear in mind that they can do so because they offer their account holders substantially less in the way of investment tools, premium research material, and customer service support. While  not always the case, you generally get what you pay for. Premium high end brokerage firms such as Fidelity Investments, Charles Schwab, Bank of America, and even Wells Trade charge more for the brokerage services they provide, but in exchange they offer their customers more attention, provide them more expert investment advice, and back up their services with reputations that have been honed for a greater period of time. But even with that said, if you are a beginner to investing and are primarily interested in the major index funds, or if you are an experienced investor who doesn’t need the extra hand holding that more expensive full service brokerages provide – then going with the cheapest discount stock brokerage may still be the best option for you.

Personally, I own and retain accounts with most of the major big name brokerages (a few opened just for experimentation purposes). For my fund investments, I invest primarily in established mutual funds run by top fund brokerages like Fidelity, Vanguard, T.Rowe Price, and Charles Schwab. However, at the same time, I also balance my fund-heavy portfolio out with a number of individual stocks, and exchange traded funds (ETF’s) that trade like ordinary stocks. Savvy investors who want to maximize their investment returns may want to do the same – utilize popular mutual fund brokerages like Fidelity and Vanguard for no load, no transaction fee (NTF) mutual fund investments – but take advantage of discount online brokerages that offer cheap stock trading rates for individual stock and ETF purchases.

List Of The Top Value Discount Brokers With The Lowest Commission Costs

While going with a cheap stock broker that offers basement prices for equity trades may seem like the natural way to go for the cost conscious investor, I would advise readers to not overlook the importance of value. Sometimes, paying a tiny bit more might be worth it if what you’re getting in return in the way of a better trading experience outweighs the cost. After pouring through a large number of excellent online brokers and researching their commission structures and fee tables, here are the results of my findings. For comparison purposes, I’ve also included the cost per stock trade numbers in parentheses below.

1) Zecco ($0.00 per trade): Zecco customers enjoy a special recurring offer of 10 free stock trades every month so long as they maintain a $25,000 minimum balance or make at least 25 trades each month. However, even if an account  is unable to satisfy the requirements to get the free trades, the regular Zecco commission rate is only $4.50 per trade – still an extremely good deal for even the most price sensitive of investors. For no load mutual funds, Zecco charges $10.00 per trade. With its tandem promotion of free online stock trades and regular low cost commissions, Zecco will likely appeal to active traders the most. While the gimmicky brokerage firm does not offer the best all around package in the way of investment research features or advanced trading tools for its account holders, those who are willing to perform the bulk of their stock and mutual fund research elsewhere should be able to easily overlook this nominal downside – in favor of Zecco’s super cheap rates.

2) OptionsHouse ($2.95 per trade): Charging only a mere flat rate of $2.95 per stock trade, and a flat rate of $9.95 for option contracts, OptionsHouse is one of the most affordable discount online brokerages in the market today. With OptionsHouse, there are no monthly minimum balance requirements and no maintenance fees to contend with. Ranked #1 with an award of 4.7 stars by Barron’s in its 2009 Online Broker Survey as the best choice for options traders, the brokerage firm’s offerings are not limited to just options. Despite its name, with OptionsHouse, you can trade stocks, ETF’s, no-load networked mutual funds, options, spreads, and invest in most of the usual host of financial products you’d expect from any other major discount brokerage firm – but without the high commission cost. Currently, OptionsHouse is running a host of exclusive online promotions, such as offering a free $100 bonus rebate when you switch to OptionsHouse from your current broker, as well as extra $50 OptionsHouse referral bonuses for when you Refer-A-Friend to the firm.

3) TradeKing ($4.95 per trade): Bottom line, Tradeking is one of the best discount brokerage firms out there, and one of my personal favorites. Whether online or broker assisted, trades via the popular brokerage firm are incredibly affordable at a mere $4.95 per equity trade for both market and limit transactions. With TradeKing, there are no minimum balance requirements and no account maintenance fees. The very highly ranked company has won numerous accolades and high praises from major publications like Barron’s, SmartMoney, and Kiplinger’s for its award winning account features – something that should offer great appeal to both beginners and experienced investors alike. But perhaps TradeKing’s most commendable feature is its highly touted and highly regarded customer service reputation. Whether you desire extensive customer service support via a live representative or need technical support via phone or email, TradeKing is there to deliver the support you seek. Currently, the firm is offering a bonus deal of $150 for new account transfers and $50 for each new account referral. For a more detailed overview of my personal experience with the firm, please see my TradeKing review.

4) Scottrade ($7.00 per trade): Scottrade is probably a pretty well established and recognizable brand name to most American consumers, as the firm advertises heavily on mainstream media networks like CNBC, CNN, and elsewhere online. In terms of fees, Scottrade really shines – charging only $7.00 per online trade with no account maintenance or inactivity fees, and low balance requirements. While phone and broker assisted trades do cost more, they can be easily avoided by simply sticking with online trades exclusively (as everyone ought to anyway in this day and age of Internet based brokerages). For mutual fund investors, Scottrade offers a broad selection of  NTF funds that are completely devoid of fees, as well as a broad selection of out of network funds at a price. But for the majority of retail investors, Scottrade’s greatest appeal will likely be the large number of physical branch offices that the company maintains and operates. While most online broker investors will undoubtedly conduct the majority of their investment transactions via the Internet, Scottrade’s incredibly large network of branch offices nationwide is there when you need to tap into it. Check out my Scottrade review for my personal analysis of the popular discount broker’s pros and cons.

5) TradeMonster ($7.50 per trade): As a subsidiary of options trading brokerage firm, OptionMonster – TradeMonster is a relative newcomer to the discount brokerage scene. Despite its relative newish stature, the company’s reputation has already been rapidly lauded and reviewed by financial publications such as Barron’s, recently awarding the brokerage firm 4 stars for review categories such as trade experience, usability, research amenities, and portfolio analysis reports. Offering a pretty impressive online trading interface for its account customers, TradeMonster’s pricing structure is also quite competitive – at just $7.50 per trade up to 5,000 shares, and a mere $0.50 per options contract. For mutual funds, the company charges $15.00 per purchase and nothing for sales. Trade Monster also offers all of the usual investment products and possibilities, including stocks, options, ETF’s, mutual funds, bonds, traditional IRA’s, and Roth IRA’s. Although new, this low cost brokerage is worth a hard look.

6) E*Trade Financial ($9.99 per trade): E-Trade has been around since the advent of discount online brokerages. In the early days, the company was one of the first to offer an integrated all in one power trading and Etrade banking service for online investors, and one of the first to offer continuously streaming quotes and regularly updated news reports for its customers. Since then, the popular online broker’s services and features for account holders have only continued to expand. While ETrade is by no means the cheapest brokerage option in the market, the firm brings forth a tremendous amount of value. The company has won an impressive number of accolades over the years, including the very coveted number #1 ranking for the best overall online discount brokerage firm according to the 2009 SmartMoney best broker survey. In the editorial review, E-Trade received extremely high marks for almost all facets of the firm’s offerings, snagging extra praise for its top notch customer service, excellent banking features, and highly regarded research tools. If you want the very best in the way of financial research material and investment calculation tools, you really can’t go wrong with E-trade. In terms of fees and charges, Etrade’s offerings are decently competitive – charging just $9.99 per equity trade for those who make at least 30 trades a month or maintain $50,000 in account assets, and charging the standard rate of $12.99 per trade otherwise. Currently, ETrade is also offering a limited time bonus offer of 100 commission-free stock and option trades for new accounts.

As the economy steadily recovers from the devastating recession that has gripped the nation for months, stock market prices that were previously beaten down into the depths of generational lows are finally starting to rise again. With opportunities afoot, it’s perhaps time for those of us who have been cautiously hoarding cash on the sidelines to consider jumping back in again. Stock prices are extremely cheap right now, and tremendous long term gains are ripe for the taking. If you have been contemplating the prospect of getting back into the market again or perhaps getting started with investing for the very first time, now may be the time to consider opening up a new discount broker account. In the hopes of earning your business, a host of online brokerage firms are now offering consumers extraordinarily low prices for cheap stock trades – without scrimping much in the way of premium brokerage amenities and features.

One of the most highly touted low cost brokerages in the market today is Scottrade, a brokerage firm with which I have retained an investment account with for years now. While certainly the company’s website design and palette choices aren’t exactly the prettiest or most intuitive around, the firm’s online trading tools and statistical reporting features are more than sufficient to satisfy the discerning needs of most run of the mill investors.

Scottrade’s Best Features: Low Broker Commissions, Low Account Minimums, and No Hidden Maintenance Fees

Compared to all-in-one brokerage giants like E-Trade or Charles Schwab that offer one stop shopping for all of one’s banking and stock trading needs, Scottrade focuses exceptionally well on its primary niche – individual stock traders and mutual fund investors who want to enjoy the benefits of deeply discounted fees and rates without having to pay extra for the premium services they never use. Striking a decent balance between quality and value, Scottrade offers a fairly robust line of investment products, differentiated online trading platforms for different types of investors, and enhanced market research tools for those that desire exceptional control over portfolio performance – all without breaking the bank in the way of fees.

Scottrade’s trading fees are exceptionally low, even when compared to the rates touted by other online discount competitors – charging only a flat $7 fee for trades priced over $1. All equity and option trades, whether they be market or limit orders – are only a simple $7 per trade. This type of low and straight forward flat pricing not only should comfortably suit the needs of long term buy and hold investors, but also should greatly appeal to day traders and active investors who execute frequent buys and sells. Of course, do bear in mind that while $7 flat fee trades apply to all online Internet based transactions, if you choose to execute trades over the phone – it will cost $17 for phone based trades and $27 for broker assisted trades. Take my advice – regardless of which discount broker you ultimately decide to invest your money with, learn to make trades online – you’ll save a bundle over your lifetime.

Both advanced traders and entry level beginners to investing will greatly appreciate the low minimum balance requirements for new accounts. Currently, Scottrade only requires $500 minimum to open a new account. The online broker also imposes no inactivity charges and levies no hidden maintenance fees as well. Leave your investment account idle for as long as you wish – there is no charge. For the convenience and freedom of its brokerage customers, Scottrade also imposes no account closure or transfer fees. Investors looking for a simple brokerage option that offers straightforward cost competitive pricing without anything tricky will do well with a firm like Scottrade.

Scottrade’s Online Customer Support and Branch Offices Are Well Regarded and Highly Ranked

With over 400 local branch offices across the United States, a live Scottrade representative is definitely reachable when you need the prompt assistance of one. As someone who has called the Scottrade customer support phone line numerous times (800-619-7283) in the past, I’ve never encountered difficulty in obtaining assistance. It seems Scottrade strongly prides itself on its ability to deliver prompt personal attention to its customers. I recall when I first signed up for Scottrade online, within a few hours of registering for an investment account and even before I had set up my initial fund transfer, a Scottrade representative was already calling me up to introduce himself and ask if he could help me in any way or answer any questions I might have. From where I’m from, that’s called excellent customer support and the start of a good relationship.

But then, you don’t have to take my word for it. For many years now, the J.D. Power and Associates global marketing firm has consistently ranked Scottrade #1 overall in its Online Investor Satisfaction Survey – giving it the number one award for the “Highest In Investor Satisfaction With Self Directed Services” from 2001 through 2008. In another highly touted editorial review of the best discount brokers online, the SmartMoney best broker survey for 2009 awarded Scottrade 4 stars for its impressive array of investment products, online trading tools, and highly commendable customer service. Similar praise and reputational accolades have also been bestowed by Kiplinger’s Finance and Barron’s as well.

In terms of the firm’s own employee satisfaction ratings, Scottrade has consistently been ranked by publications like Fortune Magazine and ComputerWorld as one of the best places to work at. While not totally pertinent to investor satisfaction, perhaps it’s contagiously true – happy employees beget happy customers.

Scottrade Investment Account Features and Online Trading Tools

Like most online broker firms, Scottrade offers the usual array of investment products – such as stocks, options, mutual funds, IRA’s, exchange traded funds (ETF’s), Coverdell education accounts, bonds, CD’s, U.S. Treasuries, and various fixed rate annuities. While Scottrade’s online trading tools are pretty basic without much in the way of heavy hitting premium research material, they’re more than adequate for most investors and traders.

In terms of Scottrade’s online tools, the firm offers several options depending on how you wish to trade and how much investment control you desire. The vast majority of people will find the basic Scottrade website’s research and trading tools more than sufficient for their investment needs. More experienced traders will likely gravitate towards the ScottradeELITE advanced trading platform, which is equipped with fancier tools like enhanced news tickers, higher performance stock scanners, improved graphical chart functions, and access to Level II quotes that help active investors react more quickly to market opportunities that present themselves. New entrants to option trading will find the Scottrade OptionsFirst platform quite easy and intuitive to get a hang of. Those of you equipped with iPhones and various smart phones who wish to perform stock research and stock trades on the fly may find the Scottrade Mobile platform quite useful.

My complaints regarding Scottrade are few as the company’s pricing and customer service features make up for what shortfalls the firm has. But if I had to nitpick, my only dissatisfaction with Scottrade centers around the brokerage’s lack of an automatic dividend reinvestment function and the firm’s comparatively lackluster rates of return on un-invested sweep account cash balances.

I also wish the discount broker offered a more integrated and obvious way to engage in Scottrade ACH transfers for deposits and withdrawals. Presently, the firm offers MoneyDirect as a way to make one way electronic deposits via a bank account into a Scottrade brokerage account. However, account withdrawals require the submission of a request for a paper check of the balance desired. There is presently no similarly easy way for all participating Scottrade customers to withdraw such deposited funds online and on demand. The only current workaround is to qualify for check writing privileges by developing a brokerage balance of at least $5,0000. Only with check writing privileges enabled can one gain access to a checking account number and routing number that can be ACH linked to other banking institutions for easy electronic transfers. But despite the above mentioned gripes with Scottrade, none of these issues are significant enough to overshadow its pluses and discourage me from recommending Scottrade as a top online broker.

The month of August 2009 is going to go down as a particularly momentous period in my life. It’s going to be the month that I finally pulled the trigger and made the decision to purchase my very first home. While the actual date of my contractual signing will likely be dragged out until the first or second week of September as things currently stand – it was during the last few weeks of August when most of my major home purchasing decisions were rapidly set in motion.

The last few years have been quite the whirlwind for me. I know on this personal finance blog I may frequently portray a sense of stability and perhaps frequently offer up an air of someone who appears to know exactly where he wants to be in life and knows exactly how to get there – but the reality is quite far from it. I’ve been blessed with an incredible amount of luck, remarkable timing, and good fortune – with much of my financial success starting only a few years ago when I first started blogging online to make some extra cash on the side. My early attempts at trying to make money money blogging started rather surreptitiously without much fanfare and without the knowledge of most of my friends and family. Through the struggles and early process of starting my very first blog, I developed and honed a variety of entrepreneurial skills that I ultimately leveraged into the start of my own fledgling legal practice as a part time attorney. While I had saved a sum of money through my past jobs of working for other people shortly after graduating from law school, it wasn’t until after I had started working for myself and began to pursue my dream of starting my own small firm and online business that I began generating the type of income that I enjoy today. I guess it goes to show that even in a down economy, with some practical skills and a very healthy dose of chance, it is still possible to find a silver lining if one is willing to consider alternative possibilities and take a leap of faith on a dream.

My Current Net Worth and Financial Status Update Compared To Last Month

Closing In On The Purchase Of My Very First Home – A Long Time Coming

I started my home search in early May 2009, but didn’t start devoting serious time towards scouting out locations and visiting open houses until late June 2009. Because I work from my home office and much of my various self automated businesses are able to run themselves without active supervision for reasonably lengthy periods of time, I was able to pull myself away from work and spend a great deal of time in recent months searching for my future dream home in the Washington D.C./ Baltimore area.

As a single guy, who’s dating, with no family as of yet and not anticipating one anytime soon for at least the next 5 years – instead of focusing on school districts, I concentrated on finding an upscale semi-rural community located in very close proximity to stores and restaurants, that not only offered the sleepy feel of a farming town but also offered the transportation conveniences of a major suburban center. Because I work from home, work location was not an important consideration for me. However, proximity to major highways and multiple access points to both D.C. and Baltimore City were important factors to me as both areas are places I frequently visit for social and familial reasons. In terms of price, I made the decision early on that I would not be restricted to a certain price cap – as what I was looking for was fair value, with the potential for future upside. I decided at the start that I would be willing to pay a hefty premium for a high end location in an extremely safe neighborhood and that I would not be willing to pigeon hole my preferences into a less than desirable neighborhood for the sake of price savings alone.

After months of searching, I finally found my dream home in my dream location – a brand new, pre construction, perfectly sized (2500 square feet above grade) single family home with 4 bedrooms, 4 baths, located in an excellent upscale community close to all of the transportation conveniences I desired. While the house is close to powerlines (depending on whether you think 350 yards away is considered close), the home offers everything else I could ever want in a first time starter home situated in a strategically located D.C. / Baltimore area location. While I had considered the prospect of pursuing a lower priced new construction townhouse, ultimately, I felt a single family home offered better recoupment possibilities in terms of future resale upside.

With the assistance of my real estate agent, we are now imminently close to an official signing date. Unfortunately, negotiations don’t seem to be proceeding as well in my favor. While I had hoped to be able to negotiate the listing price down or secure better builder incentives towards option upgrades, the listing agent has thus far refused to budge. However, this refusal on the part of the builder to negotiate the price down can probably be attributed to the fact that the demand for upscale housing in my desired location is currently outstripping the available supply (rather opposite as to what’s happening in most other parts of the country). Despite this, I will probably still go through with the purchase in the next few days, barring any unforeseen hiccups.

Time For Me To Start Investing In The Stock Market Again Via ETF’s and Mutual Funds

For several months now, I’ve been holding the vast bulk of my discount brokerage account funds in cash form. As I liquidated the bulk of my stock market holdings early on (it really wasn’t a whole lot) to avoid the stock market crash of early 2009, I consequently missed out on the frantic rally of March 2009 that has since seemingly continued to soar. However, I don’t plan to miss the next major leg up – whenever that may happen.

With economic indicators now indicating faint glimmers of distant hope with better than expected statistical improvements in employment numbers, corporate profitability, and new housing constructions, I think this may finally be the time to get back in. While the stock market can certainly go down further from here (a W shape recovery as many CNBC pundits are calling it), I personally am no longer gripped in utter fear of the same cataclysmic multi-decade economic depression and financial Armageddon scenario that many had been so fearful of back in the early part of 2009.

In the coming months, I will probably start watching out for investment opportunities as they arise – focusing my efforts on broadly traded exchange traded funds (ETF’s) like the financial ETF (XLF), the S&P500 ETF Index (SPY), and possibly even the China 25 Index (FXI). Yes, I am quite well aware that the funds I’m looking at are regarded as aggressive investments, but with at least 30+ more years until my planned retirement, at this point I am seeking earnings upside rather than safety or stability (particularly now that the worst case scenario has seemingly passed). Serious issues like inflationary pressures due to the ever ballooning governmental deficit, market correction risks, and future interest rate increases by the Fed will probably result in a great deal of stock market volatility down the road, but I see the possibility of spikes and dips as prospective speed humps rather than serious causes for concern. Thoughts?

Updated List Of The Best Nationally Available Bank CD Rates Below

Below, I’ve included a list of the best CD (certificate of deposit) rates presently found online – periodically updated by yours truly whenever I am alerted to major changes in the rates. All of the bank CD rates listed below are nationally available and not restricted to residents of any particular state(s). While national annual percentage yield (APY) rates for banks have fluctuated and dropped across the board due to the economic troubles we’ve been experiencing, the interest rates offered by CD’s still remain consistently higher than that offered by other forms of FDIC insured deposits such as savings accounts and money markets.

For many years now, I’ve kept my short term cash and emergency fund money saved in a variety of online savings accounts and online CD’s – jumping from one bank to another in pursuit of the highest interest rate yields. To maximize my money to its highest passive income potential, I never keep my short term cash idle for too long. At the very least I always ensure that they are properly invested in the best interest bearing accounts offering me the most competitive yields based on what I’m willing to give up in terms of account accessibility and liquidity. While I keep my most short term emergency funds stored in ultra accessible savings accounts, I store the bulk of my regular cash savings into certificate of deposits, neatly arranged into CD ladder setups for maximization of return and liquidity.

Contrary to some views, CDs are not all that difficult to use effectively. They are nothing more than time deposit products offered by banks that offer fixed rates for the life of the CD term. The biggest difference they have with savings accounts is that the funds deposited into CD’s are held for pre-set terms that range in duration from as short as 1 month to 10 years or longer. In exchange for the customer’s agreement not to withdraw the funds for the predetermined period of time (and consent to face an early withdrawal penalty fee if he or she does), the servicing bank pays the CD account holder a higher rate of interest on the deposited funds than it would otherwise pay for a readily accessible savings account. It’s a trade-off consideration between the customer’s preference for instant account accessibility versus interest rate of return. Typically, the longer the CD term the bank customer agrees to, the higher the CD rate offered in return. Obviously, one should not put funds into a CD that one would expect to absolutely need within a very short period of time.

Online CD Deposits Offer Much Better CD Rates Than Traditional Banks

While anyone can easily visit their local bank or neighborhood credit union and open a new certificate of deposit account, you’ll find that the rates these brick and mortar sources provide are rather limited compared to the higher rates that online banks and Internet based lending institutions are able to offer. The top online banks can afford to provide their customers substantially higher rates on their CD deposits and investments due to the much lower overhead costs associated with running web-based services. Because they don’t have to maintain as extensive of a network of branch offices and don’t need to spend as much money hiring a large staff of employees and bank tellers to run their operations, online banks are better situated than traditional banks to pass on that extra savings to their depositors. As such, the high yield savings accounts, money market accounts, and CD rates you’ll find with online only banks such as EverBank, Ally Bank, and HSBC Direct will almost always beat out the interest rate offerings of more well known financial institutions like Citibank, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase Bank, and Wells Fargo.

Even In The Event Of An Emergency, Online Bank CD Deposits Are Fully Protected

While these online banks perhaps don’t have the same brand name recognition and years of extensive and proven reliability as many one of the too-big-to-fail U.S. banking giants, all of the various deposit accounts they offer all enjoy the same equal protections and solid depositor guarantees afforded to the bigger name banks and credit unions. In the United States, the vast majority of bank accounts and CD deposits are fully protected from loss in the event of any unforeseen system collapse, theft, or potential run on the bank – backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government up to the current maximum FDIC coverage limit of $250,000 per depositor, per bank. Unless the federal government suddenly collapsed, ceased to exist, thereby dissolving the entire nation into Armageddon and social anarchy – your money, whether deposited in a savings account or stored in a certificate of deposit account – is 100% safe.

List Of The Highest Yield Bank CD Rates For 12 Month Deposits (1 Year)

For consistency and comparison purposes, I have chosen to only list the best CD rates for 12 month certificate of deposits as opposed to listing every conceivable CD duration out there.

Compare CD Alternatives For Offers That Exceed Even High Interest CD Rates

Of course, you should never commit to any agreement until you’ve conducted some research, properly compared offers, and first shopped around for the best CD rates and deals. You should never solely take my word for it without performing your own due diligence. I highly encourage you to check out the various rate disclosures to confirm for yourself.

Alternatively, if you’re looking for a super competitive rate of return, you may wish to consider options beyond just high yield CD’s. Those willing to swap a little bit of the iron clad protections afforded to CD’s by FDIC insurance may want to check out P2P social lending networks where yields for investors are currently averaging over 9.60% APY for those willing to lend money out to prospective good credit score borrowers. The rates offered by sites such as Lending Club and Prosper.com tout APY offers that greatly exceed anything offered by bank CD’s. The impressive rates of return as reflected in this review of Lending Club are at the very least worth some consideration by prospective CD rate chasers.