Paying monthly fees for online brokerage firm? Get a new broker
— -- Q: Do any online brokerage firms have no minimum balances nor monthly or quarterly fees?
A: If you're paying a monthly or quarterly fee to your broker, you need a new broker.
Intense competition between online brokers has resulted in one of the broadest arrays of brokerage firms for investors to choose from since the dawn of electronic trading.
There are plenty of brokerages willing to accept smaller accounts and not hammer the beginning investors with unnecessary fees.
Since it sounds like you're going to start out with a modest amount, my recommendation would be to check out the deep-discount online brokerages. Some of the top players in this field are brokerages like ING's ShareBuilder, SogoTrade, TradeKing and Zecco.
Each of these brokerage firms have slightly different offers that appeal to slightly different customers. The brokerage firms listed above don't charge monthly or quarterly fees. You'll just want to compare the commissions and website capabilities to see which one is best for you.
Matt Krantz is a financial markets reporter at USA TODAY and author of Investing Online for Dummies. He answers a different reader question every weekday in his Ask Matt column at money.usatoday.com. To submit a question, e-mail Matt at mkrantz@usatoday.com. Click here to see previous Ask Matt columns. Follow Matt on Twitter at: twitter.com/mattkrantz
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