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What are the best stock brokerages for beginner/new investors?
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If you are new to investing, the stock market can be a hard thing to grasp.
The technical lingo, the crazy swings, the unpredictable behavior, and, of
course, the apprehension: who wants to
lose their hard-earned money? But investing is
a skill that can be learned; the more time and effort you put into your
investing education, the better you become.
It’s also important to choose a brokerage firm that is friendly to beginner investors.
Some brokerage houses target wealthy investors who want to let the firm manage their money. Other firms are
after clients who are already knowledgeable and comfortable with advanced trading
tools (like day-traders). However, there are also brokerage companies that welcome new
investors and offer them plenty of educational material, and, often, trading simulation
tools to practice trading. Some firms even have a helpful community message
board where one
could ask questions and get investing ideas from fellow traders. A few of these companies don’t
charge extra commission if one wants to call a stock broker and place a
trade with broker help.
Below we list best brokerage firms for new investors. The
first two choices have no account opening minimum, so you could try them without
committing any money.
- Zecco offers very low stock commissions -- 10
FREE stock trades if you have a 25K account balance or make 10 trades per month, and
$4.50 per trade otherwise. It also offers a virtual trading environment,
lots of educational articles and a vibrant trader community. There is no
minimum balance requirement to open an account. Broker-assisted trades are $19.99.
- Tradeking charges $4.95 per trade and has
great, helpful investor community. Tradeking was named the Best Discount Stock
broker by Barron's for two years in a row. It has no extra charge for
broker-assisted trades. However, Tradeking has no trading simulation feature. Open
an account with TradeKing and give it a try for $0.
- Scottrade
has a flat $7 stock trading commission
and only $500 account minimum. Scottrade is one of the best-known stock brokerage companies
and boasts one of the highest customer loyalty levels. Broker-assisted trades
are very high, though -- $27. There are plenty of educational resources on
Scottrade's website and live trader community but the firm lacks virtual trading environment.
If you are new to investing and looking for the best overall package,
then Tradeking
is definitely the way to go.
Zecco is the best choice if you have
at least $25,000 for brokerage account and want the
cheapest stock commissions.
Go with Scottrade if you
are only comfortable investing with one of the most established and
well-known online brokerage houses.
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