Violating the pattern day trading rules brings swift retribution at PointDirex.
This afternoon I could no longer make any trades, and upon enquiry I was informed that Southwest Securities (PD's clearing house) had "closed" my account for violating the pattern day trading rules. No warning. No second chance. PD says that it is "out of their control"...
So be forewarned - if you have an account balance under $25,000, watch those day trades.
I have been using PD Level 1 for a couple of months. This was my first Direct Access broker, and I felt that the product was merely average. Orders seemed to go through reasonably well, but I could not claim to have "lightning response" as some other users have described. The order entry screen could not be modified, and the included chart is hopeless.
The bid/ask figures are prone to freezing, even though time&sales is working. (This can cause incorrect prices to pop into the limit order box. You have to double check the limit price before sending the order, or you could be in for a shock.)
There is a severe limit on the types of orders you can place, and you can have only one order at a time for any stock. Error messages can be cryptic.
Obtaining trade confirmations and account balances has not been reliable. Account balance information, when available, is confusing.
On the plus side, connections have been reliable (no downtime), and the commission rates are good. Customer service (up till today) has been good.