Reviews about Online Brokerages

muwhobbit says "Bank of America's a decent bank for students" about Bank of America

muwhobbit — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:25:39 GMT

I got an account with Bank of America when I moved to Athens. So far, my opinions are pretty positive. I got a $50 signup bonus, and for the first 90 days they also matched 100% of my "Keep the Change" savings, which racked up close to $250. This was definitely a big reason for my opening an account with them.

That being said, my account doesn't have too many frills. I don't get a high interest rate on my savings (something like 0.002 percent or something - it's negligible) and I'm subject to an account maintenance fee unless I have my paycheck direct deposited every month. I like the "Keep the Change" program a lot; it's easy to overlook how quickly fifty cents here or there adds up, and so far this year I've saved close to $500 just using the program.

Their customer service is always friendly and helpful, but it can take a while to get in contact with a real person. My card was stolen over the holidays last year, and I was on hold for an hour and forty-five minutes waiting for a customer...

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ronzfidelity says "System Down Before GS Earnings. System Down Before AAPL Earning." about Fidelity Investments www.fidelity.com

ronzfidelity — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 21:59:16 GMT

This is by far the most user-UNfriendly trading platform that I have used. For every single activity that you pursue, a new window opens up; simply placing trade could result in up to 4-5 windows being opened.

BUT the biggest problem is reliability. At least 5 times since I opened this account 6 weeks ago, the system has gone down. The day before Goldman was to release, I waited for over 4 hours to find out if a C shortsale trade had executed. Today (October 19, 2009), their system went down before AAPL earnings and was not available until after they reported.

Another problem is executions. On at least 15 occassions, I have placed BIDS at the current ASK price when Level II reflected over 350k ASK available; on at least 5 of these occassions, I watched for over 5 minutes as ASK at my BID kept executing yet my shares did not go.

My estimate of lost profit for all 5 down times is about $5,000. I am now looking for another broker (I'd like to point out that I spend $2,500...

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Vince77 says "Scary customer service - SogoTrade" about sogotrade.com

Vince77 — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 19:25:54 GMT

I opened an account with Sogotrade a few months ago. I received a welcome e-mail from that but that's all. I never received any other communication on what to do to get started - which after speaking with them, was confirmed to be a mistake. I'm talking just some basic e-mail describing the steps to set up a bank account, etc. But no, I got nothing.

A few days later, I spoke with them and they confirmed that the account was set up. I later tried to log on but no go. I then called and for some reason they had to reset my password. IIRC, it was some issue where one department didn't know what the other was doing.

I got through the bank verification process fine and mailed them a voided check. I didn't get a chance to fund the account until several weeks later but that failed with the error that they did not have proper documentation (voided check).

I called them up and after waiting about 10 minutes, someone came on the line and quickly blurted something. I said "hello". I still did not get...

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aponish says "you're money is not safe with bank of america" about Bank of America

aponish — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 01:51:57 GMT

I decided to utilize bill pay and was disappointed in the fact that 2 mortgage payments were deduted from my account instead of one. After speaking with several supervisors in the bill pay department who blatantly called me a liar, I realized that the customers words didn't mean anything. They refused to refund the in-sufficient fee charges, eventhough I had my receipt as proof that I only authorized one mortgage payment. So I decided to close my account. I then spoke to several customers who stated that they had similar incidents and also closed their accounts. They find ways to take your money. That's how they grow!!!

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JuniorRathod says "Missed trades - unreliable ACH approval. Not happy! Zecco" about Zecco

JuniorRathod — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 23:13:25 GMT

Zecco equals zero in customer service and not in trade commissions. Since, I am cheap - I wanted to go with the most economical brokerage house. However, not too long ago they increased the minimum required balance to enjoy free trades to $25000 that I don't have. So, it is no more zero dollar trades for me. It is $4.50 which is still lower compared to the others. But, I should have had realized, what you pay is what you get. Their customer service sucks big time. Zecco's clearing house is Penson, so at times you have to use their interface to download statements and trade confirmations, which is not as intuitive as other brokerages such as E*Trade or ScotTrade. On personal front, I have had a few problems with Zecco's reliability of trade execution with limit orders on 2 occassions in last 14 months. I have also had problems with incoming and outgoing ACH not getting honored even if submitted before the daily cut-off time. On one occasion, my outgoing ACH was cancelled even when I......

madlila says "Best small purchase brokerage, now coupled with ING" about Sharebuilder

madlila — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 05:31:51 GMT

I opened my Sharebuilder account about 5 years ago. One of the best financial decisions I've ever made! Now that they are partnered with Ing it's even better. Sharebuilder is best for investors who just want to build up a basic retirement portfolio. Think long term, buy and hold. Not that good a choice if you will be doing a lot of transactions every month a la day trader.

I use the automatic option and try to stash some money each paycheck and then once a month purchase small amounts of a number of stocks. At first I was using the standard $4 per trade, but recently switched to the $ 12 plan which is cheaper for multiple purchases.

There are research links and, overall, lots of good investing information. I never feel like they are pushing a particular stock or fund. Just good information.

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Alxsteele says "Good options, reasonable rates." about Sharebuilder

Alxsteele — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:45:54 GMT

I have been investing with Sharebuilder for over six years now. I have found their fees to be reasonable, compared to other online brokers that I have had experience with. Recently, Scottrade tried to solicit me away from Sharebuilder. I asked Sharebuilder whether they would match the investment rates of this competing broker. They were not willing to do that, but they did offer me me three months of the advantage rate plan (for free). You can invest in many mutual funds, most US stocks, some foreign options, and many initial public offerings. Rates run $4 per pre-planned investment, and have recently come down to $9.99 (from $14) for real-time investments. If you are looking for a way to invest in individual stocks, this is a reliable company with good service. Recently, they were acquired by ING Banking, which now allows me to access my account from the ING site. I can recommend this site to any, regardless of your investment philosophy or experience.

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dbm82 says "Sharebuilder IT Outages=Money Down The Drain" about Sharebuilder

dbm82 — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:41:36 GMT

I wanted to love Sharebuilder but unfortunately this service ended up costing both me, my boyfriend, and who knows how many investors hundreds of dollars because the site apparently could not handle large volumes of activity that naturally occur during rallies and other times of high trading.

During two periods of major stock market activity, a few months ago, the site became completely inaccessible to both of us. We would try to log on over and over again to no luck. Online message boards filled with complaints as we watched the value of our investments fall and fall with no ability to sell. This was my first time investing outside of my retirement account and terrifying to watch.

Had this happened just once, this may have been forgivable but it had happened months earlier and happened AGAIN just a few days later. (Google "Sharebuilder outage" for more details.) Phone lines had impossibly long waits. In the end customer service offered virtually nothing in return.

I highly recommend...

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kat9948 says "Always helpful and quick to respond" about Charles Schwab

kat9948 — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 00:47:40 GMT

My aunt helped me set up my new IRA at Schwab several years ago. Being a new college student and part time employee I was unsure of everything and anything to do with retirement savings. I have never actually gone in to see anyone at Schwab, but every email I have written has come back within two or three days, usually within 24 hours. The responses I get are accurate and friendly and give me the information I was looking for. The phone operators are also as polite and friendly as the email people. I would definitely reccommend Schwab to people starting out, or having years of investing experience.

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INVESTOR1 says "INCOMPETENT TRADING PLATFORM" about Scottrade

INVESTOR1 — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:47:32 GMT

STAY AWAY FORM SCOTRADE! THERE TRADING PLATFOME HAS CRASHED 3 TIME IN 2 MONTHS AND AT ALL TIME THEY DID NOT OFFER FAIR COMPENSATION OF ANYKIND. I HAVE HAD SLIPPAGE IN INVESTING STOCKS OF 935.00 AND THEY KNEW ABOUT IT ADTER CHECKING ON IT AND THE BRANCH MANAGER CHARLIE @ THE ANAHIEM ,CA BRANCH WAS COCKY AND IN DENIAL OF COMPENSATION AS WELL AS RUDE WHILE KNOWING IT WAS THEIR NEGLIGANCE. I WRITTEN TO THEIR COMPLIANCE DEPT AS WELL AS TO CEO ROGER RINEY TWICE AND HAVE NOT RECIEVED ANY RESPONSE. TODAY 6/1/09 WHILE TRYING TO BUY A STOCK AS WELL AS TRYING TO SELL ANOTHER AT THE OPENING OF THE MARKET I ENTERED TO REVIEW MY ORDER AS USUAL AND THIER TRADING WEBSITE PLATFORM AUTOMATICALLY EXECUTED MY TRADE WITHOUT ME CONFIRMING IT WITH THE CONFIRM BUTTON. I CALLED LINDA PHO BRANCH MANAGER AT LAS VEGAS AND WHILE GOING BACK AND FORTH AND RE QUESTIONING OVER AND OVER AS IF I WAS NOT BEING HONEST I ASKED HER, DO YOU THINK I AM LYING? SHE COULD NOT UNDERSTAND I WAS SERIOUS ABOUT THIER NEGLIGANCE...

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Bryan-Carey says "Sharebuilder.com Will Help You Reach Your Financial Goals" about Sharebuilder

Bryan-Carey — Mon, 11 May 2009 18:34:42 GMT

Investment is important to a solid financial strategy, yet many people forgo investing due to lack of knowledge. If you would like to get started on building a portfolio but would like some assistance, there is one web site that can help you get going for relatively low cost. The site is Sharebuilder.com an on- line financial brokerage service.

Brokerage Commentary:

Sharebuilder.com offers investment accounts, online trading in real time, investment research, and most all of the other tools normally associated with an online brokerage company. In addition, it also offers credit reports, insurance, loans, and more. Recently, Sharebuilder.com combined forces with ING Bank, which helped to further expand its financial service offerings.

Sharebuilder.com is a good on- line investment company that can help anyone start an investment/savings program and many credit Sharebuilder.com for helping them to establish an investment account for the first time. I am not a beginner to the world...

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Brendar1974 says "Charles Schwab has been a great bank to work with" about Charles Schwab

Brendar1974 — Fri, 01 May 2009 20:01:21 GMT

Charles Schwab has been a great bank and investment house to work with. I use all aspects of the website and have been very pleased. Their stock trading page is easy to use and tells you exactly the status of all orders. The brokerage account overview lets me know exactly how much I have gained or lost for the day and sends notices to my e mail about the companies that I am invested in. I can get all of my statements and notices through my e mail so I cut down on the use of trees and also the possibility of identity theft. The bill pay option has saved me a bundle in stamps. It also gives me the option of tracking my expenses and a way to prove payment if there are ever any issues. I have called the customer service center and they always treat me great and anwser my call in a timely manner. They are always polite and anwser all of my questions in a professional manner.

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missann1 says "Cheap and Easy" about Scottrade

missann1 — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 06:54:31 GMT

If you want a no-nonsense online broker, Scottrade is your best bet. Trades are only $7 and there are no hidden fees. This may indeed represent the best value in online brokerage.

The account summary gives a short term growth history and shows the amount availble for trade. Daily gains and losses are also readily visible on the homepage. Statements are available online.

Trades are executed promptly with confirmation sent via email. Free trades are available by referring others to the service.

One complaint I had before was the inability to electronically fund the account. However, Scottrade recently launch this capability with two methods of account confirmation.

Ticker information is quick and accurate with stock charts and relevant news for review. Proxy materials are also delivered satisfactorily.

Users have the option to form a watchlist of stock tickers that will show on the homepage. The is quite useful.

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Ejli says ".Poor customer service for disputes" about Bank of America

Ejli — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 21:45:27 GMT

Bank of America will not accept a written or email dispute. I was in the hospital and had 3 separate problems that occured while trying to do business through the internet. I sent two emails outlining the problems, I used the interactive chat to summarize the situation and the problems and then hand delivered a written outline and detailed summary of the problems that had caused improper fees and account problems. I was in the hospital in February, May, and December. I began the disputes in the summer of 2008 and have had no response. My wife and I are disabled and have had consistent problems with the internet and the Bank. It seems that they are incented to not solve the problem. We have waited hours on the phone when trying to settle problems and we have had several consistent incidents where our understandings and our discussions undocumented or incorrectly documented. Our income is limited and we cannot afford to keep very much money in our checking account; ...

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zeusal1 says "Great way to invest" about Sharebuilder

zeusal1 — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 17:44:00 GMT

I bagan using Sharebuilder in January 2009. I have a 401K account through work that has been doing terrible over the last year like everyone else's is doing. My husband talked me into getting into the market with Sharebuilder on a small sacle now that the market is as close to zero as you can get. We started small with $100 a month and are now at $200 per month. I received a bonus at work and put it into the account and we decided to not try and guess individual stocks that would go up, so we picked some ETF's (Exchange Traded Fund). We feel like we almost know what we are doing, as the market has started to move in the right direction for us, and if it does this for another month or two, I can see us getting back everything that we lost in our 401K's this year, and getting ahead by next year. The forced savings of automatic investing makes it feel like we never received the money to start, and it doesn't hurt as much. We have hardly had to change how we live to allow for...

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mschante1979 says "I love this bank!!!" about Bank of America

mschante1979 — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 01:14:17 GMT

I love Bank of America. I have a checking and savings account with them. They are super about returning money for unauthorized transactions. They don't ask a million questions. It doesn't take forever either!!! They do what they say when they say it!!!!

Someone stole my check book. I called Bank of America and they closed the account and set up another one for me with no problem.

I also love the fact that they have atm's all around. I have never had problems finding one. Keep up the good work BOA!!!

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redirishphotogrl says "Bank of America sucks!" about Bank of America

redirishphotogrl — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 20:10:50 GMT

I've recently closed my account with Bank of America because of their very poor customer service. With the economy the way it is I completely understand that banks are going through a hard time, but even more important to keep the customers you have happy...right? Wrong...very wrong. I've had problems in the past with Bank of America, but never really that big, on going, but never really that big...until recently. I'll make it short and simple.

It all started when my husband went on a trip to another state and needed to rent a car from Enterprise (which is a whole other story). Anyway, Enterprise ended up taking out the incorrect amount from my bank account which severely overdrew my account. Now, I am a very strict "budget" kind of person. I budget everything. So when my husband went on this trip, I put a specific amount into my checking account to go along with his expenses. Enterprise ended up correcting the mistake, but by this point it was to late, Bank of America ended up charging...

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FIAE says "Fidelity reviews cost nothing and are done by a computer. " about Fidelity Investments www.fidelity.com

FIAE — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 02:59:12 GMT

As one who has provided hundreds of portfolio reviews for customers at Fidelity Investments, my comment is that "You get what you pay for." Fidelity Investments portfolio reviews cost nothing and are computer generated. Though Fidelity representatives can waiver off of the computer generated recommendations, Fidelity compliance requirements and overall management fear of doing anything that could be construed running counter to the "inferred" Fidelity performance requirements, makes Fidelity reviews basically worthless. In recent months, Fidelity has gone on a ruthless campaign of laying off an disproportionate number of their long-tenured (read "higher paid") employees in the name of "saving jobs." Fidelity has basically proven that their shop portfolio reviews and retirement planning can be done by 1) low-paid, low-experience kids in their 20's 2) low-performing reps with 3-6 years of experience and 3) trained chimpanzees. If a Fidelity rep tries to veer away from the shop computer-generated...

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turchene00 says "They did not want to work with me!" about Bank of America

turchene00 — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 19:56:35 GMT

I have been customer of this bank since 2003 and I really loved them. Recently I have been dealing with financial difficulties and was trying to work with the bank to reduce my minimum payments and my high interest rates. The lady at the customer service was very mean and simply did not want to help me. I kept telling her that I am unable to pay them $650 in minimum payments and if there is anything they could do. She just kept telling me, that it is what it is and that is all about. It has become that much because I was late 1 day on the payment twice in a year, but it was only 1 day and they increased my interest to 28%. It really put me at the edge. The lady would not transfer me to her boss or credit department. I was so pissed. I ended up having to file for bankruptcy. Two months after I stopped paying my rep called me and tryed to work with me on reducing my payments. I had to tell her, that it was too late and I already in the process of filing for bankruptcy since they refused...

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meg2000 says "happy customer" about Scottrade

meg2000 — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 02:40:19 GMT

I've been using Scottrade for a while now and so far had no problems. And a like Money Direct that allow you to make transfers from your checking account to your Scottrade account very easy. The minimun to open an account is $500 no bad. If you decide to open an account they have a 3 free trades offer. On the Get Started page fill your info and when asked how you heard about Scottrade, select "Referred by a friend, relative, etc." Enter the following Referall code: NBNX0491 to get 3 free online trades....