Best for Small Accounts

T

TraderJoe08

So over time on ET i've realized that my $2500 is best put into a retail stock account. Trading futures with $2500 is pretty stupid.

I plan to make 4-8 trades per month. I've read some of these retail firms for small accounts have lagging data.

What firm is best for a small account?

Scottrade?
Ameritrade?
E-Trade?

Any thoughts are appreciated.

We all gotta start somewhere right?
 
Trading futures with 2500 is not stupid. you just have to pick your spots and not day trade as if you had a 50k account. Ask youngtrader kid started with 3k now pushing 6 figures. honestly i think you should go the futs route only because 2500 with stocks is going to be hard to produce gains fighting commission.
 
Quote from TraderJoe08:

Trading futures with $2500 is pretty stupid.
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That's what I started with years ago. Never looked back. You do have to find a broker that will give you a chance to show them that you DO use stops, so they don't need to ream you with insane intraday margins.
 
Quote from GermanTrader:

That's what I started with years ago. Never looked back. You do have to find a broker that will give you a chance to show them that you DO use stops, so they don't need to ream you with insane intraday margins.
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Thanks for the confidence guys. I mean i'm still in college (done in dec.) You really know of companies that will let someone start with $2.5k and with only another $2k in the bank?

Trading is what i want to do, that is why i'm here. :)
 
hey ill tell you my story started with futs with 7k blew up. thats when i learned its about picking wise trades and not just throwing your money in the pit. some days i dont trade because there was no trade to be had. dont think that because the markets open you should be trading. professional traders can go in the market and make money daily. im not a professional and you aren't either. your goal is to build the account. try and set a goal for yourself. a modest goal can be 100 dollars a day. now the market will give you easy set ups that will produce 100 dollar gains. your job is to sit there focus and be patient. and i stress patients. are you willing to put in 8 hours of screen time to make 100 bucks? i was because no part time job i get is going to pay me 100 bucks a day. and if you really love to trade which a lot of us do its a no brainer. if you use your capital wisely you can grow your 2500. when the markets acting crazy and each candle is a 5-10 pt handle red and green stay out, you will get chopped and kill the account. look for set ups that arent in consolidation but trending with the main trend. dont fight the trend. i dont buy in a falling trend or sell in a rising one. lastly if you miss a move dont chase it. there is usually a good set up every hour. is it worth losing money or waiting? sorry if im rabling i just want to help a fellow college trader out from making my mistakes. im a better trader now with less funds than i was with more funds. good luck...oh and i use global futures. some dont like them but i do. my broker is the best. they will help you get your account opened if you choose the futures route. and i suggest you do.
 
Quote from TraderJoe08:

Thanks for the confidence guys. I mean i'm still in college (done in dec.) You really know of companies that will let someone start with $2.5k and with only another $2k in the bank?

Trading is what i want to do, that is why i'm here. :)
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Call the brokers and ask them. Nobody has more accurate current information then the broker whom you may choose to do business with.

I hear that setting up personal futures accounts it helps to tell them you want to "speculate" in futures when they ask what the intention of the account is. If you tell them the prospective account is either for investment purposes or income producing purposes, they may tell you "this is not for you." Just something I heard. Again, every broker is different.
 
Thanks for the reply college trader. Ya my plan was to never "have" to trade everyday. And i agree with spending 8 hours to make $100 because 8 hours in front of the screen is not work, i want to be there.

Bottom line is that i still make <25k as of now. I understand, especially in recent market volatility that small unproven accounts with low income are an extreme liability in terms of creating margin calls.

So if anyone knows of a broker that might open an account for me please let me know.
 
Quote from mgookin:

Call the brokers and ask them. Nobody has more accurate current information then the broker whom you may choose to do business with.

I hear that setting up personal futures accounts it helps to tell them you want to "speculate" in futures when they ask what the intention of the account is. If you tell them the prospective account is either for investment purposes or income producing purposes, they may tell you "this is not for you." Just something I heard. Again, every broker is different.
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So far i've called 3 brokers and the min is 2-5k but they require a minimum annual income of >25k. Frustrating
 
Quote from TraderJoe08:

So far i've called 3 brokers and the min is 2-5k but they require a minimum annual income of >25k. Frustrating
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The smaller brokers are your best bet to shmooze that minimum income requirement down to where you are. Pssst... they don't ask to see your 1040. At least my brokers didn't.
 
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