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Charles Schwab vs Sogotrade - compare discount online brokerages in
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Charles Schwab vs Sogotrade: Commissions, Fees and Investments 2012
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- Stocks and ETFs: $8.95
- Stocks and ETFs broker assisted: $33.95
- Stocks and ETFs phone trades: $13.95
- Options: $8.95 plus $0.75 per contract
- Mutual funds: $49.95. Mutual Fund OneSource® Funds - free
- CDs, Corporate Bonds, Municipal Bonds, Government Agencies, Zero-Coupon Treasuries, including STRIPS and Mortgage-Backed Securities: $1 per bond, $10 minimum, $250 maximum
- Preferred Stocks and REITs: $8.95
- Commercial Paper and Foreign Bonds, Unit Investment Trusts: call for pricing
- Investment products: stocks, bonds, mutual funds, futures, treasury issues, options, CDs, insurance, ETFs,
annuities, non-U.S. securities and ADRs, WEBs and Canadian foreign orders
- Minimum to open Charles Schwab account: $1,000
- All Charles Schwab fees
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- Stocks and ETFs: $3
- Stocks and ETFs broker assisted: $25
- Options: $5 plus $0.50 per contract
- Options broker assisted: $25 plus $0.50 per contract
- Options exercise/assignment: $15
- No-load mutual funds: $15
- Investment products: stocks, options, mutual funds, ETFs
- Minimum to open Sogotrade account: $500
- All Sogotrade fees
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- Traditional banking features: credit cards and checking accounts
- Around 300 offices for personal visits, deposits and 24/7 support
- Great, varied research
- Rich selection of investment products
- Low minimum balance requirement: $1,000
- Excellent customer service
- Free dividend reinvestment
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- Very low commissions
- Fractional shares available with no monthly subscription fee
- No inactivity, maintenance fees (accounts with over $100)
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- High commissions on stocks, options, mutual funds and ETFs
- Average trading tools
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- For stocks priced under $1, the online commission is $3 plus 0.5% of the principal value
- Terrible trade executions
- Poor trading platform
- Frequent technical problems
- Very slow new account set up process
- Hard to reach, unresponsive customer service
- $30 annual IRA fee
- Can't short stocks under $3
- Cannot invest in CDs and bonds
- No interest on cash
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Charles Schwab versus Sogotrade: Comparison Summary
Charles Schwab (Charles Schwab Review)
offers much higher commissions on stocks and ETFs than
Sogotrade (Sogotrade Review):
$8.95 versus $3 per trade. Both brokerage houses don't have surcharges on large orders as well as
account maintenance and inactivity fees. Sogotrade, however, charges $3 plus 0.5% of the principal value on stocks under
$1 per share and does not offer extended hours trading on regular SogoTrade accounts.
With Charles Schwab brokerage firm investors get decent banking services, wide
selection of investment products and great customer service.
But its trading tools and website need redesign and capabilities upgrade.
With Sogotrade investors cannot invest in CDs and bonds. Its trading platform is limited and order execution
is terrible. There are a lot of complaints about company's customer service and very slow account setup process.
Sogotrade charges $30 annual IRA fee. Even though Charles Schwab does not have IRA fees, it was not included in our list of
Top IRA Companies in 2012.
Neither of these brokerage companies is right for beginner investors. They don't offer access to an online community,
where customers could ask questions and learn from more experienced investors. Newbies are better off with one of our
Best Brokerages for Beginners suggestions.
Because of steep commissions at Charles Schwab and terrible trading tools, order executions and customer services at Sogotrade,
we don't recommend opening investment account at these brokerage firms. We suggest researching other companies and reading
brokerage reviews.
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