Datek Vs. Scottrade

K

ksthomsen

I have a question- I currently have my account(s) with Schwab, which has been fine, but I am now starting to swingtrade in earnest with a small account. Schwab with Velocity is fine, as I am looking at real time quotes when I place a market order, and am not concerned about a few cents here and there. The problem is that the commissions are killing me. My IRA and kids college accounts will stay with Schwab, so I will have access to their outstanding research reports.

I am looking at Scottrade vs Datek for my active trading. I have read the comments re Datek on this site, and have read critiques of both on other sites. There is a Scottrade office near me, but that is not a primary consideration. I am looking for good streaming (both support Quoteracker, which I like a lot), and good order execution. All in all, they seem similar, but I am sensing that Datek may be a better choice.

I have also considered IB, but cannot trade lots of 100 shares at this time.

Again, I am looking for a good small account swingtrade style broker, and would appreciate all comments. Thanks in advance!

Kevin
 
Kevin

Can't answer your immediate question, but I was wondering what you meant when you said you couldn't trade 100 shares at a time. Do you mean you need to trade more shares or fewer shares? Regardless, you can trade any share amount, whether it's 1 share or several thousand, through IB. If you're trading 100 shares or fewer, you can't beat $1 per trade.
 
mjt,

Per IB's website, NYSE stocks can't be traded in odd lots, less than 100 shares. A 100 share trade would risk more than I am prepared to allow in my position sizing model.

I agree that you can't beat $1.00 per trade, but their policy would limit me for the time being, to NASDAQ stocks. If I am able to grow my account enough, then I would switch over to IB. Now, it's tough.

Kevin
 
Right now, I'm paper trading, but I don't want to limit myself to just NADAQ. Thanks for your comments though, I appreciate it.

Kevin
 
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