I do not live in a major city, nor are there any local houses for me to trade at. However, I have configured my own home network and have had a pretty decent run at scalping lately. I am tempted to give this a run, along with the fact that some direct access online firms offer 4-1 intraday buying power. As you all know, in this "telecommute" initaitive, there is monthly software/data fees, ticket pass through fees, some ECN fees, and finally the actually per share fee to contend with. I would be very curious as to anyone and their input of what they find the most value in. In other words, is there a way for me to do this without having 10 different fees hitting me in the face so to speak. For example, what are your sentiments on a TradeStation 6 platform. Is this 1.2 cents per share legit?? NO pass through ticket fees or ECN stuff to deal with??? Is there anything better or comparable to this in cost, reliability, and performance? THank you in advance...........................
IB is 1.0 cent for first 500 shares, then a 1/2 cent above that (all in). They have a very fast execution platform, with hotkeys, etc. Negatives are poor customer service (automation oriented). I believe Tradestation has a $99 base fee if you don't do enough volume, where IB has a $10 quote fee if you do under $30 per month. Look in the broker review section for good comparisons.
well, IB is good but you can't compare the 2 brokers or systems, they cater different users and customers imo. the prices are close with small lots, and better with IB with bigger lots, but that's only one parameter in choosing a broker, and trading platform. there are many different parameters. for some traders, realtick platforms/brokers are better.
TS 6 gives you the choice of 9.95 + ecn fees per trade with no monthly data fee, or 1.2 cents per share including ecn fees and a 99.00 per month data fee. i have used TS6 over the last 2 months and would highly reccomend it to you. surf
<i>a pretty decent run at scalping</i> imo, if you are scalping, speed is a priority. "The Watcher" software program made great innovations toward speedy keyboard-based executions. Nowadays, there are several Watcher knock-offs, so to speak. Broadway's "The Mach," Pointdirex, and the Sonic software all come to mind. I think there are some brokers still offering the original Watcher program as well. If you have never traded on Watcher, or a facsimile thereof, I highly recommend checking one out. And remember that if you are doing volume, commissions are almost always negotiable, especially at smaller firms. I hope your run continues.
marketsurfer, I don't think new customers have the choice. I think, only the original customers can choose if they want to switch to the new fee structure or stay with the old one. For the new ones, it's 1.2 cents a share (.75 cents incremental for over 1500 shares) + 99 monthly software fee
Just an alternative: Our "Bright-at-Home' traders pay no ECN fees, no ticket charges, and no more than 1 cent per share. And for $200 /mo. you get all the data feeds you need, and full exchange member access to the markets, use of capital, and intraday assistance. If you want to take this seriously, we can help (you must take a license exam). And if you choose TS6, great (the 1.2 cent deal is for professional traders it says)! They provide an excellent service for retail traders.
FYI, SLK's RediExpress is very similar to the Watcher and designed for NASDAQ traders who want quick keystroke execution like Watcher traders get.
Just had a look at details of REDIXpress on REDI's site and it appears to be the long-awaited Watcher clone, designed for the high volume Nasdaq trader, that has been sorely missing from REDI's arsenal - definitely a step in the right direction.