Online Stock/Options Broker

Quoting unlv_tj

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I am looking at opening up an online Stock Broker.

All my previous investments have been in mutual funds and real estate. I have been studying the stock market, and have felt for a while that fundamentally I am ready to invest (not trade) in stocks.

With some of the Forex trading help I have read and seen shared here, I feel I can use that to my advantage as well to get the best price for my investment.

I would probably hold my stocks for at least a few months if not years, unless something was telling me to bail out. So it is certianly not trading.

If anyone here uses an Online Broker, let me know, and if you would recommend them. I am only going to start with maybe $5,000 to $10,000.

I am right now thinking a choice between ThinkOrSwim and ScotTrade, but I maybe over looking something.

Thank you for your help!

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Quoting clockwork71

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I had a Scottrade account for a few years. Nothing overly exciting, but if you are a long-term investor, I think they would do well for you. (I believe the transaction fee is $7/trade, maybe?)

Either way - I never had bad experiences with them.....

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Quoting unlv_tj

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I am looking at opening up an online Stock Broker.

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Quoting philmcgrew

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With your account size you could take a look at tradestation. You could trade stocks/options/forex/futures all from the same platform.

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Quoting unlv_tj

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Thanks man! Do you use Tradestation? If so, it sounds like you are satisfied anyway.

I did not realize any brokers offered both Forex and Stocks/Options and even Futures.

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Quoting philmcgrew

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I've had it for 5+ years so yeah, I'm pretty happy. To be perfectly clear, stock/options is one account, forex another, and futures yet another. But, you trade them all from the same charting platform (which is programmable and supports automation). The only broker I know that permits trading from a universal account is IB but I don't have any personal experience with them.

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Quoting unlv_tj

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Thank you for sharing this information.

Do you like Trade Station's trading platform software?

Have you tried Meta Trader 4 for forex before?

And this might be a silly question, but I will ask anyway. I have only bought my Mutual Funds through Edward Jones, and at the end of every year (actually the beginning of the following year) I am sent a statement for my annual tax filings (so I will pay taxes on dividends and any other gains). Does Trade Station (along with other online brokers) also send you an annual tax filing statement, or do you have to keep track of your gains for tax reporting purposes yourself?

Thanks man!

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Quoting philmcgrew

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Yes, I like tradestation, no one keeps something for 5 years without liking it.

No, I've never had MT. I'm the only person on the forum who's never had it. There have been rumors that someone like me existed, now you know who it is.

Yes, you get an annual statement. That's require by the law and all brokers must comply. You should always keep track of your own gains though.

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