Whats the best way to enter stock market with only $500? Scottrade, etrade..?
I have never bought any stock but have been somewhat paying attention for the last few years. I just never had any extra money to invest but my finances are finally starting to turn around. Im not looking to invest too much since I still dont know much about the stock market but was thinking about just investing 0 for right now. Maybe in a few companies if possible but is there a minimum amount of stock I have to purchase? Whats the best way to get into the stock market if I did want to play around with it some ie may just hold for a few weeks or even a month maybe longer. I know there is Scottrade, etrade, fidelity, ameritrade and a bunch of other online market methods. Going this route seems like the best way but is there one in particular that is best for newbies? The companies I stated range in -10 in fees to buy and sell but there are others that only ask for . I saw this site http://online-stock-trading-review.toptenreviews.com/ but it still puzzles me as to whats the best way for me. Thanks for your input!
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November 4th, 2010 at 5:03 pm
I would recommend Scottrade. Trades are $7 ($14 roundtrip) but it has a very easy to understand account management platform. There are cheaper options for commissions but Scottrade really will help you out in learning about trading stocks. They will allow you to do instant online transfers but you do have to request a check to withdraw, they do say a minimum of $500 to open, but afterwards they are lenient (my account is still open after I withdrew all my money).
With only $500, its really hard turning a profit (after commissions) so I would recommend only buying into ONE company, keep adding money and buying more shares (but remember $7 commission per trade). You can start turning in nice profits with about $2k. (Without having to rely on catching a big rise).