Online Trading...

[Reephdweller]

I've been thinking of doing online trading for a while now, but I don't know if one company is better than another. If you've done this, is there one service that's better than another? What I'm looking for is a good service that is responsive if I want to buy or sell stocks rather quickly, and to also be able to see the quotes in real time. The other thing that's important to me is the quality of any research the services might do on a company.

I've heard Scottrade, TD Waterhouse, Sharebuilder, Ameritrade, Schwab, Sharebuilder are good, but is there one that is better than others? I've also been trying to find articles online that compare the services as well, but so far I haven't had luck. If you've had good or bad experience with these types of services please let me know.

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[sr71blackbird]

What about something like Freetrade? (http://www.freetrade.com/)



Freetrade is the ultimate discount broker - a virtual company. Everything from opening an account to placing a trade is done electronically.
Real-time Updates
Fast/Secure Electronic Delivery of Statements and Confirmations
E-mail Communication with Freetrade Staff
Innovative Products
All costs not absolutely necessary for executing stock trades have been eliminated. The end result is a totally electronic trading experience that allows us to pass on extremely low commissions for equity orders, as well as options and Extended Hours trades, to our clients.*



I dont know if there is any kind of ratings of these kinds of things, but I would think taht somewhere there is somthing like Morningstar ratings for brokerage services.

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[Reephdweller]

Freetrade seems pretty cool, but I'm concerned about how responsive this and the other services are with regards to putting in sell or buy orders.

I just wish there was a way to compare the services.

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[JustJon]

Don't forget E*Trade also.

Did you check Consumer Reports?

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[Reephdweller]

Did you check Consumer Reports?


I did, but I didn't see anything that reviewed it. Then again though I don't have a membership to their website so I can't get to far into the site to see if they do review them.

Someone had told me that E*Trade is very un-reliable when it comes to processing sell orders online. That more often than not the site will be down or delayed.

I saw on Scottrade's website it says it has all these awards (http://scottrade.com/frame_awardpr.asp) from J.D. Power and Associates, but I'd like to see an article or something that talks a little more in depth about each of the services.

So far I like the looks of Scottrade, TD Waterhouse, or Ameritrade. Though I'll have to look each of their websites over carefully before I decide. Unless someone knows of a better site. Also Fidelity Investments seems very good, but expensive.

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[JustJon]

http://www.consumersearch.com/www/personal_finance/online_brokers/

http://www.onlinebrokersguide.com/

http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor/trading/main.asp?bPage=99

http://www.street-insider.com/BrokerIndex.html

Google is your friend

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[Recyclerz]

I use E*Trade and haven't encountered any problems with the execution of orders. Of course, I trade less than 20 times/year and its just market or limit orders on common shares; nothing too fancy with options or short-selling.
I have friends who swear by TD Waterhouse and Sharebuilder is a good option if you are buying and holding with small regular amounts and won't need to sell in a hurry.

My bottom-line advice: Buy magic beans.




[b]Sig-less in Gaza[b]

[stavers]

Scottrade is really good. Only $500.00 to set things up. Easy page navigation and you get a few trades for free.