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We rate Charles Schwab
Michael Abramowitz
Schwab.com -- we like you, we really like you. Now,
if we could only afford you.
Charles Schwab's online brokerage site is extremely
similar to that of Fidelity.com. Each company has a functional Web
site that is simple to use, and both charge way too much to trade
online.
For a comparison of the online brokerages we reviewed,
click here.
Schwab's commission schedule of $29.95 per trade is
easily the highest of the five brokers surveyed. Compare this price
to Ameritrade's $8 charge and Datek's $9.99.
When it comes to a minimum deposit, Schwab requires
$2,500. This is $1,500 more than E*TRADE demands, but $2,500 less
than Fidelity's lofty requirements. Not spectacular, but not horrible,
either.
Schwab joined Fidelity and Ameritrade in taking the
longest time -- 14 days -- to confirm funding on our account. This
paled in comparison to Datek, which had our account ready in six
days.
On the plus side, Schwab's system performed flawlessly
while we traded. However, we note that on several occasions in 1999
the company reported that its system crashed during a trading day.
This annoying problem is now all-too common in the online brokerage
industry.
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Charles Schwab: The bottom
line
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Minimum deposit on accounts
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$2,500
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Days to receive confirmation of initial deposit
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14
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Commission on each market order
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$29.95 -- for the first 1,000 shares
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Commission on limit orders
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Same as market order
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Current balance immediately available after trade
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No
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Number of times system rejected trade order
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None
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Free real time quotes
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Limited Number from quote bank
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Still, we stress that we encountered no difficulties
with Schwab during our trades.
The best things in life are free, real-time quotes
Schwab limits the amount of free, real-time quotes
an investor can receive from their "quote bank." Basically, you
start off with 100 free quotes when you open your account. Every
subsequent trade adds 100 more to your pool. We prefer the unlimited
free quotes of Ameritrade, Datek and E*TRADE.
We definitely like the easy-to-comprehend style of
Schwab's Web site. The company won't win any design contests for
artwork, but the system is simple. If you want to trade stocks,
you go to the file that says "trade." That makes sense, especially
for the novice investor.
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Charles Schwab report card
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Performance
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A
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Commissions
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C-
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Ease of use
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A
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Funding requirements/days to fund account
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C
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Customer Service
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A
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Intangibles
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B
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Overall
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B+
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In fact, the person we used to test Schwab's site
had never traded online before. She had zero trouble understanding
how to submit a trade on Schwab.com. Good job, Mr. Schwab!
Overall, Schwab is easy to use, but too pricey for
our cost-conscious budget. We give this online broker a grade of
B+.
-- Posted: Sept. 24, 1999
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