I have a series 7/66 that are set to expire in a few months. IB is what I use now and love it. At least for my trading style, I have no need for 20-1 leverage but 7 or 8 to 1 wouldn't be a bad thing. I am hoping someone could point me in the direction of a prop firm that requires the series 7 (So it doesn't expire) and that is the least expensive in terms of a monthly fee. Echo looks great but I don't want to pay $300+ montly. Bright looks great if you are new to the game, but I don't want training, and have been around. I care little about the leverage, however a better trading platform might not be a bad thing. So my goals - Keep licenses - Avoid montly fixed costs as much as possible. - Find a firm with a decent platform. Any help is appreciated and I live in Boston.
I don't have any experience with them, but maybe take a look at Hold Brothers. From what I've seen a software fee / desk fee of $100-$200 per month is pretty common at prop firms like these, but you might be able to negotiate it down depending on how they are profiting from your trading.
I think the CBOE firms can hold the license try avatar, capital traders group, broad st, hold, protrade to name a few. As for software costs, it depends on who makes the software. Sterling & Laser go for about 250, DAS for about 200, Lightspeed for about 250-275, Blackwood about 200 - you may be able to find these for a few bucks cheaper here and there, but they go for about the same generally.