Scottrade versus Etrade: Commissions, Fees and Investments Offered
- $7 per stock/etf trade
- Options: $7 plus $1.25 per contract
- Mutual Funds: 2,800+ free, $17 for all other mutual funds
- CDs, OTC Secondary Corporates, OTC Secondary Municipals, U.S. Treasury Bills, Notes, Bonds and STRIPS, New Corporate Offerings: subject to a markup or markdown
- Listed Corporate Bonds: $35 fee + $3 per Bond (minimum investment $1,000)
- Unit Investment Trusts (UIT): $50 liquidation fee
- Foreign Stocks Transferring In or Out: $60 per transaction
- $9.99 if 0-149 trades per quarter; $7.99 if 150+ trades per quarter per stock/etf trade
- Options: $9.99 plus $0.75/contract if 0-149 trades per quarter; $7.99 plus $0.75/contract if 150+ trades per quarter
- Mutual Funds: $19.99
- Futures contracts: $2.99 per contract, per side + fees
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Scottrade vs Etrade: Advantages
- Truly excellent customer service
- 500+ local branches
- Free real-time streaming quotes and charts
- Online community
- Perfect broker for beginner investors
- Great Trade Ideas tool
- No IRA fees (setup, annual, termination)
- Just $500 to open account
- Great trading platform
- No setup and annual IRA account fees, no minimums with electronic statements and confirms
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Scottrade vs Etrade: Disadvantages
- Surcharge of ½% of the principal value on penny stock trades
- Website could be improved
- Scottrade Elite is only available to 25K and larger accounts
- Cannot short sell stocks under $5
- Expensive commissions on all asset classes
- Etrade's trading desk might trade against you
- Customer service responsiveness depends on the size of account and frequency of trades
- First transfer holds your funds for nearly two weeks
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Scottrade and Etrade Websites and Ratings
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