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No, you can get 4 to 1 margin, as long as you're not a PDT. The 25K only applies to being a PDT.

Everyone's right about the overnight 2 to 1 margin and I know that was the original question, so it's been answered. However, if you are under 25K you CAN still daytrade with 4 to 1 margin. What you DON'T want to happen is to be classified as a "pattern day trader". This happens if you make...

You're not selling shares of a pooled fund to investors. That's the difference. You have to explain a lot more to investors when you do that. You're not series 65 licensed are you?

Thanks freehouse! I noticed I also made a mistake in the original post. I kept saying bid when I meant ask. Do you or anyone else know a broker that allows direct routing online to the option exchanges? Or at the least, a place to get the quotes of each of these exchanges.

Phil, Thanks for the quick response. I've been trying to read through the thread for answers to questions before I post them and it's almost like a book. I noticed the last SPX put spread you put on was for the closest month. I write a short time span and keep rolling to give the buyer...

optioncoach, This is an excellent thread! I have a colleague who placed a vertical put credit spread with EBAY with both legs in the money. Have you ever heard of doing this? It seems to me like it is the riskiest type of transaction you could do as the short put could be called away from...

Just to add, there are no market makers and the ECNs are not linked together in after-hours as they are during the regular trading session. It is strictly an order matching service. A broker that deals with only one ECN may still give you a composite quote combined off all the ECNs. This can...

You bring up an argument that has been settled to a degree: The Accredited Investor. However, this applies to Investment Banking more than simple online trading. I highly doubt they will make all online traders be Accredited Investors. Let's look at it from your side: If a person wants to...

Broker/Dealers loan securities from either their own accounts, customer accounts who are on margin, or by borrowing them from another B/D on the street through a written agreement. There are a lot of securities that can be sold short without having to check for availability. These are based on...

Actually, stops on listed stocks are triggered off the last price. Sell stops on OTC are triggered of the bid price. Buy stops on the OTC are triggered off the ask price. If a stop is already marketable before it hits the exchange, it is normally rejected. The market must be above the sell...

Yes, I know I can come across a bit angry when it comes to the anti-responsibility generation and I wasn't meaning it to be directed towards you. As a licensed professional, I also sometimes forget what it's like to be a retail investor attempting to trade online on their own, without...

You are correct that it was unkindly posted, only due to the fact that his complaint has nothing to do with him borrowing money, but that he lost money on his inept trading abilities. As you can see, it can go the other way. Regardless, either account would have been given a Fed Call for the...

Since you obviously didn't read your agreement when you opened your account, here it is for you with your personal paragraph copied. I just went to www.etrade.com, clicked on Forms and Applications, and then Legal & Authorization. You can look up the whole agreement if you like...

Exactly. You still have not given us details about how this happened. What does a glitch in the system mean? Did the system give you incorrect buying power figures? Day-Trading buying power vs regular b.p.? Did you have open GTC orders that executed? It's funny you bring up the fact that you...

Does anyone have any information about linkage between the options exchanges during their opening rotation? I had an instance where a market order to buy was routed to CBOE after the PHLX had already traded the option. The CBOE did not open their trading until 10 minutes later and I got the...

I place vertical put credit spreads, same month $5 strikes apart. There can be a good % made from the credit compared to the margin required for the trade. i.e $1.50 cr, $3.50 margin required. However, I am NOT bearish on these stocks. I am neutral or bullish. Selling puts = if the stock drops...