Whats the best way to start buying stock/mutual funds online? Also what site e-trade, yahoo...?

Question

I'm obviously new at this. Any help will be appreciated

Answer 1

which company to use is NOT the place to start. How to decide what type of investment is right for you IS. You really should go into the bookstore and get something like "Investing for Dummies." It really is a decent book and will answer most of your questions.

Some basic help though:
1. It is generally a very poor idea to invest in individual stocks unless you have a good sized amount of money to invest - minimum $50 - 100K. Why?

a.Because you need to be well diversified (different kinds of companies in different industries) to both improve your odds of gains AND reduce overall risk of loss.

and
b. Trading costs will eat up a large percentage of a small transaction and make it very tough to make a good profit, especially after taxes.

It just isn't worth the added risk for the potential gain.

2. Mutual funds will give you instant diversification and there are a lot of different kinds, some of which will let you begin to invest with as little as $50 a month. You can get into no-load mutual funds which means there is no sales charge so more of your money is working FOR you. Yo u can buy a no-load fund directly from the fund company and bypass a broker who will want to make money off you too.

One company that sells no loads with very low minimums is T. Rowe Price. There are a few others that will let you start low. Morningstar.com is a good place to look. Some of the best no-load companies have minimums in the $2-3000 range, but if you can give them that much over a year you may still be able to qualify.

The other problem you have here is that when you are a really small investor, getting professional advice is hard because no one works for free. So....again investing in a good book or taking an investing class first is definitely worth your time.

Another option, there are a few firms that will take a small account and still give investment recommendations and advice. NONE of the ones you listed give any advice. You will be on your own. The only big name firm I know of that has no account minimums is Edward Jones. They would be appropriate if you still feel you want genuine advice.

Don't be trusting message boards with your future. Do your own homework.

Answer 2

The invention of the Internet has brought about many changes in the way that we conduct our lives and our personal business. We can pay our bills online, shop online, bank online, and even date online! We can even buy and sell stocks online. Traders love having the ability to look at their accounts whenever they want to, and brokers like having the ability to take orders over the Internet, as opposed to the telephone. Most brokers and brokerage houses now offer online trading to their clients. Another great thing about trading online is that fees and commissions are often lower. While online trading is great, there are some drawbacks. If you are new to investing, having the ability to actually speak with a broker can be quite beneficial. If you aren’t stock market savvy, online trading may be a dangerous thing for you. If this is the case, make sure that you learn as much as you can about trading stocks before you start trading online. You should also be aware that you don’t have a computer with Internet access attached to you. You won’t always have the ability to get online to make a trade. You need to be sure that you can call and speak with a broker if this is the case, using the online broker. This is true whether you are an advanced trader or a beginner. It is also a good idea to go with an online brokerage company that has been around for a while. You won’t find one that has been in business for fifty years of course, but you can find a company that has been in business that long and now offers online trading. Again, online trading is a beautiful thing – but it isn’t for everyone. Think carefully before you decide to do your trading online, and make sure that you really know what you are doing!

Answer 3

Before you go into buying and selling, there are several seminairs that you can take to identify which stock are good buys and which ones you should stay away from. Take one of these seminairs. Going into investing cold turkey can get you into a lot of trouble. Avoid the large brokerage firms until your portfiolio is larger than you yourself can manage and above all do not go into margin accounts. Although the interest on margin accounts is negligible, why owe a brokerage firm more than you need to.

After you have loaded your investing guns than open up an online trade account. Etrade is pretty good. I prefer Ameritrade. Just remember to print your buy and sale confirms as you will need those for tax purposes.

Speaking of tax purposes, make sure you get a good tax consultant. There are many listed in your phone book. These men and women are invaluable to your investing and tax health.

Answer 4

Ameritrade and e-trade are 2 of the best companies to deal with

Answer 5

ameritrade, scottrade, charles schwab, fidelity are all good.

I would steer clear of e-trade though. The customer service is really horrible if you ever try to call them.

Answer 6

Ameritrade.com or Scot trade.

Answer 7

Listen to Lori*