New to investing

[Jicn86]

Hi... I am a college student and I have been saving up some money to invest. I am new to investing and I have been reading articles and discussion boards all over the Internet. My main concern right now is a good broker. I have been reading some of the topics on this discussion and I have seen people are using Scottrade. I went to the Scottrade site and saw the comparison chart of the all broker firms and it seem that Scottrade was the best. I was just wondering if I should know any other information about Scottrade before I set up an account. Thank you

[meth]

some good stuff in here:

http://www.cramersmadmoney.com/viewtopic.php?t=1366

[optimus25]

Not sure if this was covered on the other post but Scottrade charges more if you trade penny stocks. Just an FYI.

Scottrade has decent research. TD Waterhouse has, in my opinion, the best research on stocks.

You can practice (paper trading) at www.clearstation.com

The site allows you to buy and trade and watch your investing ideas.

[meth]

ya, i tried to buy something that was like $.88 today.

it is $7 per trade + 1/2 principal. what is principal?(yes i am serious, i am a graphic designer by proffession.) :lol:

[optimus25]

Not sure. That seems kind of high for a fee (1/2 of principal).

It might be more like $7 + .05 per share. Can you cut and paste the actual fee on this message thread?

[Jicn86]

some good stuff in here:

http://www.cramersmadmoney.com/viewtopic.php?t=1366

Thank you Meth for that link that really helped me out with the unsettled funds...I am going to set up that account tomorrow...I was just wondering if you have any good stocks to invest in.

I also set up an account with the U.S. treasury. I heard that Government bonds and securites are a good thing to invest in now. Is that true? javascript:emoticon(':?')
confused

[meth]

Not sure. That seems kind of high for a fee (1/2 of principal).

It might be more like $7 + .05 per share. Can you cut and paste the actual fee on this message thread?

sorry, you are correct, here it is copied and pasted from scottrade:

* If the price is under $1 at the time of execution, commission is $7 + 1/2% of the principal

so, what does this exactly mean?

[Luc1Grunt]

One half of 1 percent of the total dollar amount:

500 shares @.88 per share equals $440
1/2% of $440 is $2.20
plus $7 equals $9.20

That is it.......may mean something if your counting pennies, swing or day trading.

[meth]

One half of 1 percent of the total dollar amount:

500 shares @.88 per share equals $440
1/2% of $440 is $2.20
plus $7 equals $9.20

That is it.......may mean something if your counting pennies, swing or day trading.

wow, thank you for the crystal clear answer. i get it now. i was intimidated at first when that popped up so i just cancelled the order.

* If the price is under $1 at the time of execution, commission is $7 + 1/2% of the principal

so principal = .01(shares x price of shares)

so 1/2% of the principal = .005(shares x price of shares)

thank you sir. i learn something new every day here.

[aj14]

I don't know anything about how these bucket shops work, but i wouldn't enter into any deal that isn't a fixed rate per share (a penny or two) or a fixed amount ($10 or $20) per share. Try Schwab, from what i hear, but don't forget that every deal is negotiable...business is tough, so be aggressive in your negotiations!!! They need you more than you need them. Remember, costs are fixed to the broker, so any money they take in is helpful. It costs them virtually nothing to execute and settle a trade for you.

[the_menace]

If you haven't signed up yet and want 3 free trades, I can get you a referral. :lol: Send me an email thru my website. 8)

[Jicn86]

If you haven't signed up yet and want 3 free trades, I can get you a referral. :lol: Send me an email thru my website. 8)

Thanks the_menace....but I want to your website and the submit button doesn't work for some reason... This is my E-Mail address Jneilis86@yahoo.com. Thanks

[the_menace]

If you haven't signed up yet and want 3 free trades, I can get you a referral. :lol: Send me an email thru my website. 8)

Thanks the_menace....but I want to your website and the submit button doesn't work for some reason... This is my E-Mail address Jneilis86@yahoo.com. Thanks

Sent...please me know how it goes. :wink: