Transfer Brokerage Accounts - How Easy Is It to Do?
If you take a look at the number of online traders who transfer brokerage accounts each year, you will see that it is in the 6-8% each year.
While that may not sound like a big number, consider the huge number of people who have an online trading account.
6% of that number is huge.
So there are a lot of traders who transfer brokerage accounts each year for a whole host of reasons.
The number of traders who are seriously considering making that switch is even higher.
The reason they have not pulled the trigger could be the result of many things.
They may be concerned about leaving the trading platform that they already use and having to learn a new one.
That is a nuisance that they may not want to tackle.
They may also think that it will be too much trouble to move from one broker to another.
This would involve opening a new account, moving funds from the old account to the new and closing the old account.
Another concern is that closing the old brokerage account and moving funds from old to new will incur some kind of switching fee.
The good news about that concern is that many of the top online brokers have a program to reimburse the cost to transfer brokerage accounts to them up to a certain amount, usually $100 to $150.
From a financial standpoint, this will make the online trader whole, so they would not be losing money on making the change.
Look at your existing online broker policies regarding switching.
While some do charge a fee to switch online brokers, many do not.
It just depends on who your broker is.
Then ask yourself a few questions to clarify in your mind the reasons that your current broker is not everything that you hoped for.
Try to be as specific as possible.
For example, if you are not happy with the quality of research that is available with your current online broker, that gives you a specific area to focus on as you compare the top online brokers.
The decision to transfer brokerage accounts can be a difficult one to make.
But the actual process to open a new account, move funds and begin trading on the new platforms is not.
Your new online broker may offer the features you need in order to improve the profitability of your trading.
If that is the case, it is definitely work the effort.
While that may not sound like a big number, consider the huge number of people who have an online trading account.
6% of that number is huge.
So there are a lot of traders who transfer brokerage accounts each year for a whole host of reasons.
The number of traders who are seriously considering making that switch is even higher.
The reason they have not pulled the trigger could be the result of many things.
They may be concerned about leaving the trading platform that they already use and having to learn a new one.
That is a nuisance that they may not want to tackle.
They may also think that it will be too much trouble to move from one broker to another.
This would involve opening a new account, moving funds from the old account to the new and closing the old account.
Another concern is that closing the old brokerage account and moving funds from old to new will incur some kind of switching fee.
The good news about that concern is that many of the top online brokers have a program to reimburse the cost to transfer brokerage accounts to them up to a certain amount, usually $100 to $150.
From a financial standpoint, this will make the online trader whole, so they would not be losing money on making the change.
Look at your existing online broker policies regarding switching.
While some do charge a fee to switch online brokers, many do not.
It just depends on who your broker is.
Then ask yourself a few questions to clarify in your mind the reasons that your current broker is not everything that you hoped for.
Try to be as specific as possible.
For example, if you are not happy with the quality of research that is available with your current online broker, that gives you a specific area to focus on as you compare the top online brokers.
The decision to transfer brokerage accounts can be a difficult one to make.
But the actual process to open a new account, move funds and begin trading on the new platforms is not.
Your new online broker may offer the features you need in order to improve the profitability of your trading.
If that is the case, it is definitely work the effort.
Source...