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Chris, With the occasional exception, I currently only trade the broader market indices, with my favorite market being the XEO/OEX. While I used to spend a lot of time scanning for stocks based on theoretical pricing divergences, high relative IV or some misconceived notion that I actually...

EliteThink, I hope you're right. I violated one of my cardinal rules today by buying back the short September XEO puts component of my iron condor for next to nothing, while letting my long further OTM puts run. I'm now far more delta short than I typically like to be. But everything...

Chris, I agree about not writing against the long option again when the near term expires. As I said, I typically like to have 2 months between my short and long options. Thus, at near term expiration, I typically close out the long option and evaluate putting on an entirely new spread...

Phoenix, Yes, I've come to learn that knowing when and which adjustments to make with the Greeks in mind is the true key to success in the options game (that is, unless you're the house). Of course, it's often the adjustment not made, particualrly when selling theta, that makes the difference...

MYDemaray, I agree. Straight calendar spreads, or any vega positive trades, haven't fared well the past 5 months. But, in response to your question, there are ways to play theta while being vega neutral or vega negative. With regard to the latter, you could always do my favorite trade -- the...

Phoenix, An iron condor is simply a short strangle combined with a long further out of the money strangle. Or, another way to define it, is a combination of both a bear call spread and a bull put spread. For example, long OEX Sept 480 put/short OEX Sept 490 put/short OEX Sept 500 call/long...

Chris, Combining calendar and vertical spreads (creating a diagonal spread) can be great in a rising volatility market. The trade is both vega positive and theta positive (the latter being a virtual must in my book). Though many will disagree with me, I view a volatility skew as not being...

Trajan, Thanks a lot for all the great information. While I obviously have much to learn about how this works, you've certainly armed me with enough info to at least determine whether such an arrangement would make sense. I'll be sure to share whatever I find out in the course of my research...

I'm at TOS now (among a couple other places), and couldn't be happier from a retail options trader perspective. Certainly a huge improvement over the full-service no-nothing firms that I had the misfortune of trading at in the past. However, the point of my question was to find out whether there...

Trajan, Thanks for the info. I actually have significantly in excess of the amount of capital you mentioned that I use for risk capital. So the direct clearing firm relationship you suggested might make sense. When you get a moment, could you tell me how that works or where I might go to get...

Oy!! That would make my unfortunate experience at, in turn, SSB, Goldman, and Lehman, where I was charged exorbitant commissions for poor execution, a complete ignorance of options, and irrational margin treatment of iron condors, etc., pale by comparison. Thanks again for warning me before I...

Thanks Pabst. That's pretty much the impression I got from the boards. Still, despite my obvious niaivete regarding how the prop world works, I thought I'd pose the question anyway given the various outlandish claims about the endless benefits of prop shops from the myriad recruiters that...

I've been trading limited risk volatility-based options strategies with a positive theta bias for several years now. Given the positive theta profile, I typically hold my positions for 2-4 weeks. While I have sufficient capital to achieve my targeted returns on my own, a little more wouldn't...

OptionVue can do what you want -- analyze a list of securities and, based either on a projected target price/volatility level, price range or a bell curve, provide recommendations on position alternatives based on highest expected return, probability of profit, best case return and worst case...

Thanks Lescor. Yes, I can certainly see the benefits to anyone, even a relatively well-capitalized trader, of being able to reduce the percentage of one's total capital used for daytrading while concomitantly being able to increase the percentage of total capital that can be allocated to...

Sorry Limitdown. I guess I haven't yet learned the proper etiquete of this site. It was an honest question from an individual trader without any affiliation to (or, frankly, much knowledge of) the proprietary trading world. Perhaps one day when I'm an "Elite Member" like yourself, I'll know...

Since leverage is apparently the main benefit of associating with a prop firm, it seems that reasonably well-capitalized traders (mid six figures-plus) would be better off remaining on their own. Is that correct or are their some other advantages of trading with a prop firm that would outweigh...

Thanks for the thoughtful response. I've no doubt that what you say is true. Indeed, I run into similar skepticism all the time regarding my ability to generate consistent profits trading options. And yet I've done it long enough now to have a reasonable degree of confidence in my ability to do...

Hi all, I'm new to this board, but not to trading, having traded options primarily using volatility-based approaches with a fair amount of success for several years. More recently, I've begun dabbling in daytrading stocks with some "play money". While I enjoy the instant gratification as...