Question about option level 2 from a newbie

[newguy05]

it's all the same shit, to get approved for options trading/shorting and what not. You need to update your profile to meet the legal requirements to be approved. All the brokers do this including IB.

I will let you figure out how to update your own profile.

Calling etrade a shitty platform because you cant get approved is foolish to say the least.

 

[opt789]

Quote from elovemer:

.... tos has shit commish for futures...
.... and they won't negotiate on it.
.... anyone who has found otherwise plese pm me

This isn't really on topic, but since you said it and it is completely untrue I guess I have to respond.

How large is your account, how many contracts do you regularly trade? If you are an active trader they will negotiate. I have my complaints about TOS just like everyone has complaints about every broker, but I have negotiated very good rates with them.

 

[thegazelle]

Quote from elovemer:

.... tos has shit commish for futures...
.... and they won't negotiate on it.
.... anyone who has found otherwise plese pm me

Simply not true. I agree the rates are on the high side for futures, but they will negotiate.

 

[meanboy]

Quote from guy990opl:

Hi there,

I have been having etrade for years and I love it. I also have IB and Man however the other two brokers are best for professional or semi-professional traders. On the broker review part of this site I wrote my opinion on all brokers.

I have level 4 and I understand your frustration with etrade. After 90 days you can change your personal profile. I think that you need to make more than $ 50 k per year to be able to trade at the highest levels and have a capitalized account. Whatever or not you make the 50 k it is your business, but they do all this to protect themselves from lawsuits, and within a certain extent to protect yourself.

If at the time you opened the account you didn't take care of answering the option questions chance are that you do not much about options, so they want you to take it easy.

Belive it or not some miserable idiot in the past not only got the highest level aproval, but after blowing up his account sued the broker and...won !

Think about it, any borker wants you to place as many trades as you can, etrade is no different. That's how they make money, right ? They have no reason for not letting you trade.

All you need to do is to understand how their policy work and act accordingly.

Smart Money just rated Jun 08, etrade as one of the best brokers again and in my opinion they give you a lot of stuff.

Some brokers have trading platforms that have a learning curve, etrade trading platform is highly intuitive, the baby ad they had could not be more appropiate. In about 5 min you will figure it all out by yourself.

In addition to that they give you a credit card, you can spend the money you make in the market right away, or you can easily transfer it to any bank of your choice. Last but not least there is a 3.15% interest of the money sitting in your account. And the web based site, if you want to trade there, is even easier to use then their platform etradepro.

Before making impulsive decisions, it is never good in the market, I would suggest you to take some time to understand how your broker works, then if it is not for you go ahead and look for something else. There are a lot of brokers out there, you should get one that makes you happy.

Good Luck

Thanks for your reply. It's not that I am unhappy with their service or prices. If they gave me option level 2 the second time I requested I wouldn't even think about changing brokers.

You're right, I was not careful filling out my application. I might have put down something they didn't like. I am pretty sure they don't know what I make but I do make more then the 50k you mentioned. However, I do not have any margin on my account. I don't really want any either.

The problem I have with E-trade is that I was turned down and not given an explanation and when I asked twice, I was told they could not tell me. I ask how I could get option level 2, and I don't think I would be able to blow myself up or them by buying calls/puts, and I was told they could not tell me to protect the integrity of the process.

I am not a seasoned trader but I have at least 300 trades since October 2007. I lost a little money, mostly because of two bad trades, and buying etfs shorts too early.

In the meantime, I am paper trading option on the CBOE. I am down a couple of hundred paper dollars and I made the mistake of buying jun instead of jul call. That really pitted time against me. At least, I haven't lost any real money.

I don't really want to want another two and a half months to trade any options. I'll just have to fill out the application a little more carefully whereever I go.

 

[elovemer]

... what are you getting with them ?

Quote from thegazelle:
Simply not true. I agree the rates are on the high side for futures, but they will negotiate.

 

[elovemer]

... what you have negotiated is beside the point....
.... check their stated rates and compare...
.... shit standard commish

Quote from opt789:
This isn't really on topic, but since you said it and it is completely untrue I guess I have to respond.
....
but I have negotiated very good rates with them.

 

[opt789]

Quote from elovemer:

... what you have negotiated is beside the point....

First you say that they won't negotiate, then you say it is irrelevant that there are traders who have negotiated with them. You are not making any sense. I would guess that you are a small trader and no firm is going to go out of their way to negotiate with you. As I have said before, if you are a small trader and just want low rates then IB is a firm you should consider.

 

[Allspread]

Quote from Maverickz:

ThinkorSwim also has no levels or tiers and will match commissions with a lot of other brokerage firms if you request it. They also also provide their software for free and are considered by most as the best platform for options trading (although many here at ET prefer IB). Also if you look at the brokerage ratings here on ET ToS has one of the highest if not the highest rating of all the options brokers listed.

What he said. Real happy with TOS. Actual human beings who know answers for customer service, too. A rarity.

 

[TYtrader]

How can I improve my situation so that they will approve me? Will another broker approved me if I move my account? I am somewhat conservative and I am positive I won't do anything to blow myself up, at least not, right away.

Thanks. [/B]

Open an account with another firm. After almost a year of actual experience, you should be able to trade spreads with most firms. Not sure why Etrade won't let you. Ask again and send them a letter saying you undersand the risks of spread trading and you're willing to assume those risks.

Good luck.

 

[meanboy]

Quote from TYtrader:

Open an account with another firm. After almost a year of actual experience, you should be able to trade spreads with most firms. Not sure why Etrade won't let you. Ask again and send them a letter saying you undersand the risks of spread trading and you're willing to assume those risks.

Good luck.

That sounds like a good idea. I would like to know why I am not able to upgrade to at least level 2. I don't think I can even write anything at that level.