The Lost Eyeball

Brokerages

I’ve been doing some research lately on different discount online brokers, trying to decide which I should move my IRA holdings into. So I reckoned I might as well put together a table comparing them.

Some notes:

1. Clearly the table is not entirely filled in. I left cells empty when I couldn’t find the information for that entry on the broker’s website.

2. Please let me know in the comments if you find any mistakes, or items that need updating. Thanks.

3. The bulk of the numbers in this table were last updated in late April 2007.

4. Some brokers will discount their rates if you make enough trades a year (generally at least 30)/have a high enough balance in your account (generally at least $25,000)

5. DISCLAIMER: I don’t guarantee any of the figures in this table. Do your own homework before signing up with any broker.

[TABLE=2]
Footnotes
$0: $0; 10 in one day max, 40 in month max, then $3.50 a trade

$0-$5-$7: $0 if 30 trades/month or maintain $25,000 account balance. >See Bank of America Investment Services Fee Table

$3: $3 each standard; if on $10
monthly plan, 5 free, then $2 each; if on $15 monthly plan, 15 free, then $1.50 each

0.6% of principle, $45 min: >See Bank of America Investment Services Fee Table

DETAILS: > Link, Terms: $25 will be credited to your Complete Savings Account within 30 days of the account being funded with a minimum deposit of $1. Payments will be reported as interest income. Accounts must be opened by April 30, 2007 to quality for the $25 offer. Must be a new account opened with new funds. Offer applies to one new account per customer. Not good with any other offer. This offer is not valid for E*TRADE FINANCIAL employees.

0.75% of principal: $100 min, $250 max

$19.95: Bronze: $19.95 per trade; Silver: if 36 trades/yr + $25,000 in household assets, or $50,000 in household assets, $10.95 per trade; Gold: if 120 trades/yr and $25,000 in household assets, or $1 million in household assets, $8/trade. >Full fee schedule (PDF)

My decision:

Different brokers will work for different investors, which is why I created this table, but I decided to go with Tradeking. I originally went with them a year ago when opening my regular brokerage account mainly because they were the cheapest around at $5 a trade. But then I did also when creating my IRA account in spring 2007 because Zecco had >ridiculously bad customer service, and Sogoinvest does not yet offer IRA accounts (although they said they were planning to around summer 2007). I’ve been quite happy with Tradeking’s execution speed, ACH and settlement of funds speed, and customer service, though I’ll probably give sogoinvest and zecco another shot at some point.