Scottrade Review 2011-2012: Commissions, Fees and Investment Products
- Stocks and ETFs: $7
- Stocks and ETFs broker assisted: $27
- Stocks and ETFs interactive voice response (IVR) telephone system: $17
- Options: $7 plus $1.25 per contract
- Mutual Funds: 2,800+ free mutual funds, $17 for others
- 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 plus $3 per bond (minimum investment $1,000)
- Unit Investment Trusts (UIT): $50 liquidation fee
- Foreign Stocks Transferring In or Out: $60 per transaction
- Investment products: stocks, options, mutual funds, CDs, munis, U.S. Treasury, Canadian and foreign stocks, ETFs
- Minimum to open Scottrade account: $500 for a cash account, $2,000 for a margin account
- All Scottrade fees
We start Scottrade review with trading costs:
company offers flat rate, $7 per trade commission on stocks and ETFs priced over $1. But what we really like, are over 2,800
no transaction fee (free) mutual funds, which allows mutual fund investors to invest for free.
Scottrade made the account opening process easy and painless. We opened account in less than 10 minutes and, thanks to electronic
signature, there are no forms to print and mail. After setting up security questions and consenting
to few standard agreements, we were free to explore the website. Next day we got a phone call from Scottrade customer service asking if
there were any questions - always a nice touch.
Scottrade Money Direct feature allows customers to instantly transfer cash directly from their bank account. Bank account setup and
instant account validation is implemented very well (you will have to supply bank's user name and password). We were able to use ACH Deposit
to transfer money right away. Minimum to open Scottrade account is a reasonable $500.
Scottrade Review: Website (Scottrade.com)/Trading Tools
Scottrade boasts award-winning trading tools. Customers could trade from the website as well
as from fully customizable, stand-alone application called ScottradeELITE. ScottradeELITE is an advanced, professional
trading platform for active traders with an account balance of at least $25K. Clients could also trade
from their hand-held devices using Scottrade Mobile Trading Site.
Scottrade Review: Pros
- No inactivity, account maintenance or hidden fees
- No-fee IRAs
- One of the highest customer satisfaction ratings according to JD Power and Associates
- 500+ local branches
- Great support for beginner investors with massive amount of educational resources
- Online user community
- Banking services: savings, CDs, money market and checking accounts (visa check card and first order of checks is free)
- No ACAT fee
- Only $500 minimum to open account
- Free real-time streaming quotes and charts
- Free dividend reinvestment for mutual funds (but not for stocks)
Scottrade Review: Cons
- Additional 0.5% of the principal value commission for stocks under $1
- No electronic withdrawals (but can use debit card or checks)
Scottrade Review: Summary
Scottrade is one of the veterans of the discount stock trading -- a solid, well-established company that
has been around for over 30 years. The firm offers $7 flat rate commission on stocks and ETFs (with exception for penny stocks).
Scottrade keeps customers happy by not charging fees for things like IRAs,
large orders, after-hours trading, account maintenance and inactivity.
It's also almost unique among brokerage firms since it does not have Account Closing and Transfer (ACAT) fee (for transferring
account to another company) and IRA termination fee.
Scottrade is one of the leaders in customer satisfaction according to JD Power and Associates.
However, we would love to see the company canceling the surcharge on penny stocks and improving its options trading tools and pricing.
Also, the absence of electronic fund withdrawals is puzzling (withdrawals could be done by using debit card or checks).
Thanks to live webinars and events, tons of learning materials, very helpful customer service and online user community, Scottrade is an
excellent choice for beginners.
Customers that invest in mutual funds get over 2,800 FREE mutual funds to choose from. Long-term, "buy and hold" investors will be
happy with no account inactivity charges. Absolutely no-fee retirement accounts make Scottrade one of the
Best Companies for IRA.
Because Scottrade is a stable, seasoned brokerage firm with a good reputation, it is a very appealing choice for people who
would not trust their money with newer companies but also don't want to pay $10 or more for trades (and multiple fees) with other
established brokerage houses. Ability to visit local branch and talk with someone face-to-face is very valuable too.
We ranked Scottrade #2 among Top Brokerage Firms in 2012.
We will end Scottrade review with information about Scottrade promotional offer - the only one company had for the last 2 years.
Scottrade will reimburse the account transfer fees up to $100 charged by another broker when you transfer your account with a
value of $10,000 or more to Scottrade. You must apply for the fee reimbursement offer by completing and submitting a Scottrade
Account Transfer Reimbursement Request form and a statement providing proof of imposed transfer fees. Account Transfer Reimbursement
Request forms and proof of transfer fees can be mailed, faxed or personally delivered to your local Scottrade branch office.
Scottrade
Reviewed by Brokerage Review on
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Rating: 5
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