Online Share Trading - Which Trading Account with Low Fees?

johnn on 07/09/2010 - 14:29

I've been looking into getting into online share trading for a while however I don't know very much, and was looking at the fees for various online brokers and I noticed the Commsec 15 free trades deal (http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/30852).

Now, since I'm only new to this I don't plan on investing a great amount at first, and despite opting for a diversified portfolio I don't see myself making a large number of trades per month. So, what I'm looking for is basically an account with low trading fees, no monthly account fees or misc. fees and basic features.

From researching, Bell direct and Amscot offer around $15 per trade fees whilst Commsec is $20 (with first 15 free), all with no account fees. Does anyone have any experience with these/know of any better deals?

Thanks!

General Discussion

Comments

  • rainmaker on 08/09/2010 - 21:08

    I don't know if this will help very much but I used to live in London and signed up to ii.co.uk about five years ago. They were one of the first online desks and everyone was sceptical. But they have been great to deal with now I'm back in Aus. Similar operations are popping up all over the place and lots advertise regularly in the Fin Review…Commsec look the best to me. Hope that helps

    • patientvalue on 19/09/2010 - 16:42

      Rainmaker, can you confirm the web address you gave, it doesnt seem to work. ta

  • ediot123 on 09/09/2010 - 11:19

    Also check out etrade. The also provide options trading if youre interested.

  • cloudy on 09/09/2010 - 20:27

    etrade are not that flash, slow to execute orders and stuff. comsec are not bad, i would recommend them if they didn't stuff up my transfers and cost me dividends. but they are a friendly bunch, i wish they would treat clients more seriously when it comes to money.
    Bell is cheap, dunno how good thou.

  • Jabba the Hutt on 09/09/2010 - 21:21

    Ironically, the ideal online broker for you is probably the one with the least attractive and most cumbersome website. You'll be less tempted into playing poker with the experts, and more likely to stick to your sensible long-term buy-and-hold strategy.

    I have accounts with Bell Direct and Netwealth. Both do the job, but Bell's site is more modern while Netwealth hasn't really changed much in 6+ years.

  • arthurbach4 on 19/09/2010 - 09:28

    http://www.rivkinsecurities.com.au/fees-and-charges.aspx

    Rivkins Securities have just dropped their charges for internet orders to $9.90

    It's $59.95 for phone orders but it's totally worth it. I have been with them for about 6 months now (mostly trading CFDs) and I have found their level of service to be insanely good.

    They also have the Rivkins Trading Report which may or may not suit your investing needs (there's a 4 week free trial, which convinced me to eventually subscribe to it).

    The service is so good you can even have a chat with Oliver, who is the dude who writes the daily report. I have had several 15 minute talks with them about everything to do with their site and investing in general and they never pressure you to get off the phone.

    By the way, i have no affiliation with them - it's just that when you find a quality product or service you can't help but get a little excited!

    • Trance N Dance on 19/09/2010 - 10:56

      wasn't rivkin jailed for something a few years back?

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