Chosing an Investment Firm...?

I would like to buy some stocks, but I want to do it in a cost effective and flexible way. I have been looking at Scottrade and E-Trade, but I wanted to ask people with experience. I would like to purchase stocks online. Also, I am puzzled by the saving's account that acts as an intermediary between my bank account and my investment portfolio. Are there firms that eliminate this "middleman" approach, but still provide a flexible (quick) way to purchase/sell stock. I don't plan to do day trading... most likely periodic investments (long term), though I want to make sure if I want to but a stock, I can do so quickly. Should I be looking at some other investment firms I am not aware of? Your insight is appreciated, I don't want to start out with the wrong firm.

I think the best way to invest is to open an account at Scottrade.com - they offer $7 online trades. To find great investment ideas, see what the best investors are buying and selling. To find this information, go to http://www.top10traders.com - this is a free site that lets you create a portfolio of stocks with $100,000 in "play" money. Each day the site ranks the best performing portfolios, so you can see how your picks perform compared to other investors. You can read posts on investing from the best traders, as well as share your own investing ideas. There is a charting feature, so you can see how your portfolio performs compared to the S&P 500. Also, you can create your own "group" so that you can see how you are doing compared to your friends.

Here are this month's best traders:

http://www.top10traders.com/Top10Standin...

Once you are comfortable investing with "play" money, you can slowly start investing the real stuff.

Good luck.

Speak to your (an) Accountant - they'll guide you to what is best for you.

Perhaps, you should look at Sharebuilder. It is a firm that allows you to purchase shares on a regular basis (dollar-cost averaging) directly from your bank account. So on say the 15th of every month, it would debit your account $250 and purchase shares of the company you want. If you aren't day trading, buying stock on a consistent basis is the best way to invest.

I use schwab.com and use money link to link my checking acct to schwab online...works great and schwab is very trustworthy

Online trading is quickly becoming a commodity and therefore you should choose one based on convenience and fees. I found that the discount brokerage arm of my bank was the best place for me to manage my investments (Wells Fargo). I'm able to trade online for $2.95 a trade and easily move funds between my bank deposit accounts and my brokerage accounts online. The brokerage arm of my bank provides a better return on cash (money market account: APY 4.89%) for idle cash, so I keep most my cash in my brokerage cash account which allows me to invest funds when an opportunity comes up, earn a decent money market return when cash is idle, but also easily move funds back to my checking account when needed.

You raised a good question regarding the savings (cash account) brokerage firms offer and I would encourage all investors on this board to check with their brokerage firm regarding their cash accounts. A new trend in the industry is to provide a savings account (not a money market) return on idle cash sitting in brokerage accounts. Many brokerage firms are paying a lousy 1% on idle cash and then simply turning around and putting your cash into money market funds, pocketing the difference between the money market fund return and the 1% they pay you and generating huge profits for their firms. This is quickly becoming a new standard and investors need to demand access to money market returns on their cash acccounts or else take their business elsewhere.

I have used Fidelity and E-trade in the past. Both were fine.

Recently I have seen TD Waterhouse advertise that the fees they charge are the same regardless of how much you invest and how many trades you make in a month. Other companies require you to have a lot of trades and a large balance to get the best rate.

I also saw Bank of America advertise that you can open an Internet account with them and make trades for FREE.

I have been in the market for over 10 years, I have done pretty well by following advice from many different sources, but I have not done close to as well as my mutual funds. So now I only invest in Mutual funds. That way I have more experienced money management and better diversification.

I, recently got involved with a company that preselects some of the best investments i`ve ever seen. They screen them so it lowers your risk. Check out one of there seminars. You can E mail me at brakesplusauto@yahoo.com. www.thewealthkeys.com

If you want to save then open a brokerage account at Zecco.

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