Brokerage - who does everybody use?

Discussion in 'Online Brokers' started by Stacked, Feb 13, 2014.

  1. wanderingwildman

    wanderingwildman Well-Known Member

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    I agree with crimson about having a personal relationship with your broker. Your money is so important to have someone handling it with care. The world of e-commerce definitely takes away the personal connection with people.
     
  2. JadeDoo

    JadeDoo Well-Known Member

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    Why do you need a personal broker unless you are placing massive orders. Otherwise your just paying significantly more commission and possibly putting yourself in a position for churning if you have a bad broker with advices.
     
  3. crimsonghost747

    crimsonghost747 Senior Investor

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    That is an easy interface for you!? I thought it was ridiculously complicated and a big mess compared to the old one I used. But after some getting used to I quite like IBs one... but I wouldn't call it easy by a long shot.
     
  4. Strykstar

    Strykstar Well-Known Member

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    I hadn't tried before so I can't attest to the interface before, but the amount of good feedback in this thread definitely steers me towards using IB.
     
  5. JR Ewing

    JR Ewing Super Moderator Staff Member

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    If you have a substantial amount of money, you'll need a personal advisor sooner or later - taxation and gifting issues, estate planning, putting together an income portfolio that will hopefully last you a lifetime, etc.

    And even if you aren't a millionaire, you should still consider a personal advisor if you honestly suspect that you do not have the time, temperament, and aptitude to do your own investing. If I was in such a situation, I'd like to think that I'd be wise enough and in control of my ego enough to let a professional do it for me. If I couldn't trust myself to manage my money, I'd have no problem paying an experienced pro at a reputable firm to protect my principal and get me respectable returns for 1% or so. Certainly a better alternative than just throwing a few darts and risking losing my nestegg.
     
  6. JadeDoo

    JadeDoo Well-Known Member

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    My opinion of personal advisor given that I majored in Finance honors is that they are not supposed to specifically give advice on individual stocks but rather help the client find the right mix of asset classes to manage risk vs return for their given portfolio size and goals in term of future expenditures and liabilities.
     
  7. JR Ewing

    JR Ewing Super Moderator Staff Member

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    Believe me, not everyone who has money to invest has the ability to pick stocks, bonds, or funds for themselves or has a clue how to manage risk, etc.

    I do personally know millionaires who simply do not have the aptitude or interest in trying to pick their own investments and would be foolish to try to do it themselves in their cases.

    Some have no idea what a PE ratio is, what a bond yield is, etc, and have absolutely no interest or inclination to grasp these concepts. They may be great at brain surgery or finding oil, but clueless about what to do with their money.

    Some may have the mindset but not the time.

    Others simply don't have the emotional detachment needed to wisely pick their own investments and control their emotions - they may be prone to panic or inclined to pick stocks for emotional reasons, for instance.
     
  8. FivebyFive

    FivebyFive Member

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    I use Charles Schwab, I have for several years now and they were the first company I dealt with when I started buying stocks. Originally their online interface is a bit confusing initially but it has improved drastically in the past few years. I also love the web app which I've used for quite some time.
     
  9. Dex

    Dex Member

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    I use AMP to trade the ES mini and TD Ameritrade for stocks. I got my trades down to $7 per trade with TD
     
  10. troutski

    troutski Guest

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    I use Loyal3, which offers free buy and sell orders on about 50 stocks. I also use Tradeking, which has $4.95 trades and a ton of investing resources. They're both great without too many negatives. I can't even think of any at the moment.
     

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