Birchtree's Account Talk

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Steady,

Bank of America Investments online charges either $5 or $7 depending on the level of service one utilizes. So if I buy a 50 share position in a stock it will cost me $7 and if I sell a 1000 share position it will still cost me $7. The fee is not based on the dollar amount but rather per trade. The 606 trades I've made on the buy side have cost me $4,242. If you put up $25,000 on the banking side you will get 30 free trades per month before the $7 fee per trade kicks in. I'm now a margin player so I have much more flexibility in pushing money around - taking some profits will guarantee my total margin expense tax deduction. I have not put up the $25,000 yet because I've been reducing my credit card debts so the sacrifice is I pay a little more in my fees. But eventually I'll give them the $25,000 - the account is already opened but not funded. My plan is to shift some profit returns to this account over the coming years for safety reasons primarily for the wife.

 

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Steady,

To answer your primary question - it's never a good idea to put someone else's account in the adviser name. All you have to do is open an account and then give the adviser your ID and password - that way the client can always see what is happening in the account. When I make a move in an account the client is always notified by mail from the provider. Everything is kept visible to all involved.

 

[mayday]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Steady,

To answer your primary question - it's never a good idea to put someone else's account in the adviser name. All you have to do is open an account and then give the adviser your ID and password - that way the client can always see what is happening in the account. When I make a move in an account the client is always notified by mail from the provider. Everything is kept visible to all involved.

Not like Bernie Madoff.

 

[Steadygain]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Steady,

To answer your primary question - it's never a good idea to put someone else's account in the adviser name. All you have to do is open an account and then give the adviser your ID and password - that way the client can always see what is happening in the account. When I make a move in an account the client is always notified by mail from the provider. Everything is kept visible to all involved.

That's GREAT Birch !!!

Thanks --- I just remembered to F/U with this.

Much appreciated ~~ and you answered some of my biggest concerns as well.

Have a good night my friend

 

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Steady,

If you want to look into Bank of America here is the website: http://www.baisidirect.com

I went back into the market and did a little more selling: sold some AEO, AE, and CSX. That brings my total sales to $130,914 for a total fee of $70. This nice buffer will provide the golden opportunity I see approaching - it may start tomorrow. You have to appreciate the emotion that goes with this selling and recognize this is what the market does. I'm ready to finish working on my current buy list.

 

[Steadygain]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

The 606 trades I've made on the buy side have cost me $4,242. If you put up $25,000 on the banking side you will get 30 free trades per month before the $7 fee per trade kicks in.

Birch -- do the MATH

If the dollar amount doesn't make any difference ...

you've spent only $4,242 -- with only 2 months to go....

why waste $21K -- you're better off doing it the way you are.

 

[Steadygain]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Steady,

If you want to look into Bank of America here is the website: http://www.baisidirect.com

No -- I'm strickly thinking down the line ...

when I retire and you're in the Lakeside Home; if you're still in the bizz

I won't be doing any 'buying or selling' ~~ will leave that up to you

 

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

The $4242 in fees bought me more than $1M in stock purchases. I'm not sure where the figure of $21K comes from. I just sold in two days $130,914 and it cost me $70. When I get the opportunity to trade the free 30 shares my costs will decline. If I had those free shares available I could have saved $70. Anyway 30 free shares a month adds up to 360 trades a year. I plan to be buying this market for years and every now and then I'll take some sweet profits like today. I may violate the wash sale rule and buy these positions back sooner than 30 days from original sale - how will the IRS know the difference. Starting in 2010 the provider will be obligated to send both sales and purchases to the IRS so there will be no wiggle room.

 

[tsptalk]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

I just remembered to F/U with this.

You remembered to, what?

 

[coolhand]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

You remembered to, what?

You can tell I'm a sailor, I only saw one meaning to that statement. :laugh:

 

[Steadygain]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

The $4242 in fees bought me more than $1M in stock purchases. I'm not sure where the figure of $21K comes from.

Birch -- runnning late

you're only paying roughly $4K right now -- without 'free trades'

you're talking about spending another $21K - to get free trades

Course I could be mid reading (and I must be)

but you're way better off paying the small token and having $21K left over

am I missing something ??

 

[Steadygain]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

You remembered to, what?

:embarrest::embarrest:

Hmm Tom -- am always using that as I type each encounter

F/U -- is 'Follow Up' -- will F/U in 3 months ....

 

[Diesel]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

You can tell I'm a sailor, I only saw one meaning to that statement. :laugh:

Me to Coolhand, Me to. Retired US Army.

 

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Steady,

Now I understand - the $25,000 will earn a very small return and one reason I decided to let it slide for now. But having an extra free 360 trades during a year is tasty especially the way I accumulate my positions. Can you imagine throwing $25K at a stock and pay no fee. So a $7 hit is really only a small aggravation. Today has presented me with some excellent prices and if we continue to consolidate the prices will only get more tasty. I always look at these drops as golden opportunities. I mean I could spend $100K on a stock and it would only cost $7. What a deal to assume some risks - no pain means no gain.

 

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Another mother of all buying opportunities has arrived. I regard myself as an average investor and inorder for someone to play my game you must be able to suffer through further mark to market losses and ignore short run volatility in the stock market. You must have money to invest so that you can purchase assets the suddenly risk averse are trying to unload. Remember big bull markets always find a way to keep you frightened and out. Big bull markets are devils with no conscience - to get in you have to close your eyes and just do like tataberto did today - impeccable timing I must admit. He has just destroyed any chance of my catching him on the tracker. That was not an easy move, but in this business nothing is easy except losing money. During a secular bull market, the cyclical, or shorter, bull markets within them gained 110% on average and lasted at least three years and longer. The economy is healthier than widely believed and exports will provide a bigger boost than in the past. If the market is poised for a multiyear run, investors should be more aggressive about diving into stocks - any takers? Snort.

 

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

"Further weakness in the DJTA (Transports) would confirm a double top and signal greater market deterioration ahead. Whether or not the Transports put in a double-top will likely be decided tomorrow given the all important Q3 GDP report. Thus, tomorrow should lead to some fireworks one way or the other, with bulls hoping for a positive surprise."

http://www.financialsense.com/Market/cpuplava/2009/1028.html

 

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Anybody seriously interested in making money during this bull market took some body blows today and suffering is allowed and tolerable. It's actually good for the portfolio - it means I might just get a few more purchases of the C fund in the $12 range before $13 shows up. One of the notable features of extreme overbought is that investors rarely have much opportunity to get out, just like the fast and furious advances that clear oversold conditions tend to occur too quickly to capture unless one has already established a position. We are now oversold and ready for the next leg up - stay long and stay strong.

I posted this awhile back but is still pertinent today especially to the emotional investor. In order to succeed in investing, you need to understand your own risk tolerance, have a long-term plan, and have the right expectations for your investment strategies. This will not only ensure that you will not sell your stocks or funds at the worst possible time, but that you will not be taken out by large losses. More importantly, assuming you have a proper asset allocation to begin with, you will be able to utilize any decline as an opportunity to put more of your investments into equities to take advantage of the great companies that are selling at large discounts to their historical valuations. I've taken out $131K in the last two days as a sacrifice and am now prepared to water a few wall flowers as I bring them into the portfolio over the next several weeks as we head back to SPX 1100 and far beyond. If the market has correctly priced the start of the coming recovery then the recovery is expected to be very strong and lasting. If that is the case, stocks will continue to rally for many more months and likely years as earnings pick up, and there will be lots of opportunity for investment. The current 5% correction is a classic example of golden prices offered up on a platter. Come on GDP. I do wish I felt better about taking profits but I will buy everything back as we proceed up the trend line. Snort.

 

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

One more bit of manure - you must be aware and understand the fact that we are going to see frightening retracements the higher up we go. Bull markets do not like company and the higher we go the stiffer the pullbacks will be to make sure that not everyone is participating as we continue to move higher and higher. Under Elliot guidelines breadth should now start to expand exponentially and if you look at how the NYAD line has been moving up over the last 8 months, this is the kind of thing that should continue for awhile. At the beginning of last week 90% of stocks were suspended above their 50 and 200-day moving averages - that has now been unwound but not to stay unwound. I'm still working on the big V to take me all the way back to October 2007. I for one like to act out of patience and courage, not panic.

 

[fedgolfer]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

we didn't panic and 1019... why should 1040 scare a buy and holder or an intermediate trader when the dollar is still the name of the game?

I think the big boys used this to buy in and do another bear trap just like they did at the 1019 turn. MEASURED BULL MOVE in play but not readily visible. GDP will keep surprising... stimulus in not full spread... Fed agencies, didn't get the bulk out until last weeks of Sept... disbursements on it haven't even been significant yet... the inst or businesses that rec'd those funds haven't even turned around and spent 'em yet.

 

[Birchtree]

Re: Birchtree's account talk

Not to sound too optimistic - but could I get a 200 point Dow gain today. Yesterday is forgotten and the bears will start to cover their short hairs. Be right and sit tight.