Vanguard Promotion
There are no promotion offers from Vanguard at this time.
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Vanguard Pros
Commission-free trading. Vanguard offers zero trade fees on some (but not all) securities transactions.
Excellent portfolio management service. Vanguard outperforms many modern brokerage firms, especially for large accounts.
Vanguard's own lineup of funds. These funds always have no load and no transaction fee when traded on Vanguard’s platform.
Vanguard Cons
Customer service could be better. Vanguard's customer support isn't as good as what you get at other firms.
Basic trading tools. Vanguard focuses on long-term investing, which is evident in its basic software.
No banking tools. Vanguard has removed these services, leaving customers with fewer options.
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Investment Vehicles
Vanguard focuses on fund trading, not short-term or niche products. This includes mutual funds and exchange-traded funds from Vanguard and other providers, as well as closed-end funds.
Besides these, Vanguard offers stocks, options, and fixed-income securities like unit investment trusts, commercial paper, CDs, and mortgage-backed securities.
However, Vanguard does not support a range of other investments like precious metals, forex, contracts for difference, futures, options on futures, warrants, global stocks, and
cryptocurrencies.
Account Types
Vanguard provides a variety of account types, though some have fees not common at other firms. This includes individual, joint, and trust accounts, both cash and margin.
For retirement savings, you can open Roth, traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs, as well as variable annuities and solo 401(k)s. Education savers have UGMA/UTMA accounts and 529 plans (sponsored by Nevada) at their disposal.
The standard brokerage account has a $20 annual fee, avoidable by opting for e-statements. SIMPLE IRAs incur a $25 fee per Vanguard fund, waivable under certain conditions.
SEP IRAs have a $20 fee per fund under $10,000, which can also be avoided in some cases. The broker’s individual 401(k) has similar fund-based fees.
Missing from Vanguard are inherited IRAs, custodial accounts, investment club accounts, Health Savings Accounts, ABLE accounts, estate accounts, and Coverdell Education Savings Accounts.
Portfolio Management
Investors not confident in their own trading can use Vanguard’s professional money managers. Fees start at 0.30% and decrease with higher account balances, dropping to 0.05% at $25 million.
You can consult with an investment advisor via phone, chat, or video chat.
Vanguard’s downsides here are no physical branches, no robo-advisor service, and a high minimum investment requirement.
Vanguard Bonus Offer Disclaimer
Current Vanguard promotion/bonus offer details to open a new account could change at any time without notice.
Updated on 12/2/2024.
Arthur Chachuna is a professional personal finance blogger, and the owner of Brokerage-Review.com.
He has been an avid investor for 25 years, and has a background in both applied math and programming.
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