Choose Scottrade: A Review of an Online Trading Broker

If you are looking for an easy and inexpensive trading experience, Scottrade might be for you. They offer trading in stocks, bonds, mutual funds and options. It took only 15 minutes to open a fully functional stock trading account. Discount brokers such as Scottrade have recently become very popular. This is due to their cost relative to traditional full service brokerage firms.

The Pros

After opening a Scottrade account, the pros and cons became clear. There is a reasonable 500 dollar minimum balance. The website is very intuitive. In addition, the local Scottrade brokerage office called me to see if I needed anything. Tutorials about the basics of trading are easily found on the website. If you are new to trading and investing this is of great importance, because mistakes can be costly. Trades for stocks over 1 dollar are a flat rate of 7 dollars in most cases and service fees are inline with industry peers.

The Cons

Though the website is intuitive, the research and tools provided with a basic account are sparse. If you are a fundamental investor who enjoys doing heavy analysis, another broker may be more suitable. Secondly, for stock trades under a dollar, a fee of ½% of the principal is charged. This can make trading in penny stocks more expensive. High volume options traders may find Scottrade more expensive than other firms. Their base rate is only 7 dollars, but the fee of 1.25 dollars for each contract is expensive. Overall, Scottrade is a great firm for both experienced and inexperienced in investors. They offer a no frills and easy to use brokerage account. If you would like to open an account you can go to www.Scottrade.com .

Sources:

Scottrade, http://www.scottrade.com Scottrade

Scottrade, http://www.scottrade.com/online_trading_commissions/investment_fees.asp Scottrade

Scottrade, http://www.scottrade.com/online_trading_commissions/index.asp Scottrade