Open a Trading Account

To this point, any trades you’ve executed are likely to have taken place in simulated environments using an informal account set up with the sponsoring organization. Real trading requires a brokerage or trading account. You get the most control and pay the lowest fees when you execute your trades through a discount broker. Accordingly, your first step is to identify a discount broker.

Identify Discount Broker

Since you will be executing your own trades and you know it is safest to ignore self-serving advice from brokers, you’ll most likely want to open a discount brokerage or trading account. Some companies that provide discount trading services are listed below in alphabetical order:

Alternatively, your employer may have made an arrangement with a brokerage firm to manage 401K or other retirement or pension funds. In such cases you will be setting up (or may have an account already) with the provider your employer has selected. Tax advantaged investments such as those contributed by you and possibly matched by employer to a pension or retirement account must be managed separately from non-tax advantaged money. It’s reasonably common for a person to have one 401K account managed by a broker engaged by one’s employer and a separate trading or brokerage account set up independently by the individual.

People who have switched jobs several times may find they have several different 401K accounts, each through a different provider, and their own individual investment account on top of that. In such situations it is typically advantageous to consolidate 401K plans by rolling them over into an investment retirement account (IRA). IRA accounts tend to be more flexible, allow wider range of investments, and you can ensure they are managed by a provider of your choice, who will allow you to trade at fees you feel comfortable with (i.e., as low as possible). The decision to roll over retirement plans should ideally be made with guidance from a tax professional.

You may find the Investopedia article “10 Tips For Choosing An Online Broker” of interest as well.

Follow Account Application Links

The links below are provided to help you reach the correct forms. Please note that links do change over time so you may need to navigate in order to find the correct web screen. Brokerage firms’ number one priority is to gain more customers so they usually make it quite easy for you to find the new account setup screen.

Before you can access the account forms, you may be required to indicate that you have read an account prospectus or customer agreement.

These links are provided for your convenience. Their inclusion should not be interpreted as endorsement, although my personal experiences with these providers have been favorable:

Complete Account Application (click here)

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