Who should I use to replace Etrade?
As you've read in one of my recent blogs, I am really unhappy with Etrade's customer service. I have a friend who just switched to Credential Direct and he's really happy with their service. The user interface for their web platform seems really good too. I am wondering if I should switch to these guys or to Questrade...
He had filled a Questrade form but then canceled it when he realized there was a 5000$ account minimum where there's no minimum with Credential Direct. The funny thing is that Questrade called him a few weeks later to say they had lowered their minimum, but too late :-)
I had found Credential Direct tanks to Million Dollar Journey's excellent review of discount brokers.
12 comments:
CMBR,
I'm a fairly new member of Questrade and so far, it's been pretty good. $1k minimum deposit, no annual fees, $4.95 /trade up to 495 shares and $0.01/share after that. Or the $9.95/trade unlimited.
Real time charts for US stocks, but not CAD stocks. $1 /trade surcharge for venture exchange trades.
If you open an account with a min of $10k, I could refer you, and you'll get a $50 credit to your account.
All the best,
FT
I've used TradeFreedom for a corporate account in the past. I didn't have any problems with them, and their minimums and fees have been reduced since I last used them. Their real-time platform was pretty nice, although I only used the basic features. I also like that they have options, bonds and forex available too.
I use credential direct, and have been happy with them. Plus, they're owned by a group of credit unions, so there's a 'feel good' component - ie., the profits that don't go back into building C.Direct go out to various not-for-profit communities.
FT: thanks for the offer. I have to also consider Etrade account closing fees... I'll be in touch if I decide to switch.
Investoid: thanks for the tip, it's the first time I hear about these guys. I'll investigate them as well.
Nancy: It's good to know that CD is credit union based. That would be a refreshing change from the greedy Etrade ("let's spend on marketing but be cheap on customer service")
In response to the message: "Who should I use to replace Etrade?" I would like to say that Questrade has had a $3000 minimum for at least 6 months. About 3 weeks ago we lowered the minimum to $1000. To maintain an active status on the platform the minimum is only $250.
One thing that the investors/traders must keep in mind is that with Questrade you are not forced to make a minimum number of trades per month in order to get the commissions that we advertise. Trade for as low as $4.95 with no monthly, platform or inactivity fees.
Thank you,
Emil Vojkollari
Senior Sales Representative
Questrade Inc.
416-227-9876 x 380
1-888-783-7866 x 380
evojkollari@questrade.com
www.questrade.com
hi Emil ..thanks for the update .. now that's customer service :-)
I have my RRSP account with Credential Direct and a RESP account with TD Waterhouse. I strongly recommend Credential Direct. they have good trading fees, great research, stock and mutual fund scanning tools. Customer service is great also. That's my 2 cents worth.
thanks for the comment Dan ... great customer service and low fees are my main criteria at this point
I don't have an account yet at either Credential , or Questrade. I am at the preliminary research stage.
I can say however, Credential has answered both of my emails the same day they were sent.
That's good customer service. Plus being owned by credit unions is comforting as well.
It's looking like Credential for me.
Credential Direct is misleading when they said free real time quotes. There is actually a limit of 1000 real time and Level II quotes combined. Everytime you refresh it count as 1 real time quote and next you find yourself with a message telling you exceeding your monthly limit. That sucks. Plus never sell at market price with Credential Direct, they always sell at the lowest bid price. I learned it the hard way. No wonder they are called CanoCrap (Canaccord Capital)
I have had nothing but problems with Scotia iTrade from day one.
Took them three weeks to not set up my account but to re-recieve my application which they lost twice? Then the RRSP account took another two tries.
Then I bought a stock that was called DXO:NYSE all good and done online but then they bought DOU:TSE instead same stock but on different exchanges. DOU gets ~50000 vol a day and I bought 20000 shares. Any trader should see the problem here.
I decided to get a margin account so they shut down my cash account in the middle of the trade day. I literally lost $1.5K plus because. When I called to have this resolved the supervisor wouldn't talk to me & the reps are all ESL's. Where do they get these people!
Useless Bloody Scotia Itrade
Scotia Itrade is much much worse than Etrade ever was, and they were pretty shabby.
They repeatedly make errors on my account and now they have lost my TFSA . I can't get through by email or on the phone. This is the third day of no access. They state that they will get back withing 48 hours by email, which is a pretty long time when they've lost an account, and it's been well over that. It was almost two weeks in December. Why are they permitted to state one set of performance promises and then toss the responsibilities off as if they were not obligated.
I have heard that there is a class action suit against Scotia Itrade. Can anyone verify this?
I would never suggest this lot to anyone looking for a reasonable online brokerage.
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