Picking A Broker
This is a quick tutorial on how to get started with opening
your personal investment account. While
there are a number of choices, the average investor just getting started should
only consider discount brokers. That’s because if you are no bringing a 100K or
more to the table to begin with, the banks are that considered with giving you
a break on fees and charges. I am personally
sending you two of the biggest players in the industry:
TD Ameritrade
- https://www.tdameritrade.com/
eTrade - https://us.etrade.com/home
These two
are brokers have been around since the beginning of online investing and the Dot.Com
era and are still around. There are many
brokers to consider but these two do just about everything you will need them
to do when just starting out. Go to TD Ameritrade or ETrade and trust me you
will see a link to “OPEN AN ACCOUNT”. Click on that link and fill in the
following:
Account Minimums – In today’s world the
minimum amounts are going to be roughly $1,000 to $2,000 to open an account.
Have this amount stocked away in your checking account before you begin your
application.
Opening an Account
Personal
Details:
-
Have your Social Security Number and Employer
Name/Address ready
-
Name/Phone/Email
Citizenship
-
Select your status
Account Type
-
Choose “Individual” for traders looking to
establish their first account
-
Choose “Buy & Hold” for investors starting
off with the basics. You can always upgrade to complex trading in the later
years
-
Confirm you are a “first-time” investors
Account
Owner Details
-
You will be required to fill out unique account
details that prove you are who you say you are and not trying to open an
account through some type of illegal enterprise.
o
Employment Information
o
Financial Information (Be honest about your net
worth, its likely 0 – $15K)
o
Personal Affiliations ( Select No, if you are
new to investing and have no family members that work for Wall Street)
They will
have you review and edit your details, agree to their terms, and eventually
choose an “Account Login and Password” and “Funding Type” (how you want to fund
your account).
Funding Your account - Think “Direct
Deposit” when getting a tax refund.
-
You will enter the “Routing” and “Account Number”
of say your checking account into your newly established broker account.
-
Your broker will deposit a small amount of
change into your checking account.
-
You will identify that amount deposited and
login to your new brokerage account and CONFIRM that the two accounts have been
setup to sends funds between each other.
-
Once confirmed, you will be asked to initiate an
electronic withdrawal for minimum deposit amount over to your new brokerage
account.
-
Remember starting off with $2,000 as a minimum
is just that to these guys so be ready because the key is to meet that amount
so no fees will be taken out against your account.
Happy
Trading
