If you have some physical stock certificates to deposit in a brokerage account to put in street name, what will the brokerage use for the cost basis info on file? There is a new IRS law going into effect this year that requires brokers to track cost basis info.
I've done this several times with a Scottrade account. You just post your cost basis on your account page and that becomes your stock basis. Be sure to have records to back this up in case of an audit. Simple.
thanks for info. So Scottrade isn't doing anything special in regards to the new law in effect for 2011?
The easiest thing is to ask your broker as a "hypothetical" question. The broker is there for your commissions, they are not a secret police. They are not gonna pursue you for the rest of your life because you mentioned stock certificates a couple of times.