Where the Real Action Is

Many People over react in the stock market, just like many other things in life. In the stock market though, their nest eggs and life savings are at risk. There are many kneejerk reactions. 3rd Quarter Earnings were worst than expected the stock falls and probably harder than it should. Buy when you think its at the bottom and watch it go up tomorrow morning.

If you are new to the stock market I would suggest picking a few stocks and just watch their movements throughout the day. Some stocks are traded in high volume and their price fluctuates a great deal throughout the day. It is interesting to see some patterns develop.

1.The game is a full go from 9:30-4 M-F. If your down you can still come back. A loss of $200 in one week can be a gain of $200 the next week.
2.Your odds are better. Just like in regular gambling at a casino or your bookie you have to lay odds. The odds you lay are on the trade commissions. This is about $20 for the purchase and sale of stock. The difference here is that your not -110. You can buy $500 worth of stock of $5,000 and your still in for $20.
3. It's legal gambling but you have to pay taxes on winnings.


Easy Rules to follow.
1.Buy in multiples of 100. Example 100 shares, 200 shares, not 151 shares because its what you can afford. This is because it can be difficult to dump these shares into the open market.
2. Do not reinvest dividends. This would use the money you have earned on dividends to buy more shares of stock. Keep your profits.
3. Have a minimum of $3000 to invest.
4. Do not buy or sell when Market is closed. You never know what the market is going to open the stock price at. You can end up paying much more than you anticipated, or receiving less than you expect for the sale.

Which Discount Broker is right for you?

If you are new to the game I would suggest TD Ameritrade. Great promotion right now. If you deposit $2,000, you get free trades for a month. If you deposit $25,000, you get free trades for a month and $100. TD Ameritrade has no hidden fees and is $9.99 per trade. Their user interface is superior to sharebuilder and that's why it gets the nod here.
-ETrade has hidden fees that you have no business paying. Avoid it at all costs.
-Sharebuilder is good- 9.95 per trade. Automatic Investing is available for $4.- This involves choosing a stock and purchasing a few shares at a time. This could be an advantage if this interests you.
Scottrade is $7.99 per trade but I'm not sure what the deal is. I hear good things though.