Free From Broke

A Personal Finance Blog for Regular Folks

Investing

The Best Online Discount Brokerages for Cheap Trades – Investing Doesn’t Need to Be Expensive

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Do you recall the days when you needed to call up a stockbroker in order to make a stock trade?

And you needed to make the trade in a “round lot” (you had to buy 100 shares)?  Did I just date myself? 

Thanks to the internet that’s no longer the case and it’s easy for anyone to invest in stocks with an online brokerage (like, you can do it on your smartphone easy).  And not only is it easy but it won’t cost you an arm and a leg to get started.

“So which account do I open,” you ask?

There are a number of places to go these days thanks to the rise of online trading and brokerages.  I want to make sure you find one that works well for you.

I’m going to tell you about some great brokerages but I want you to first understand what you should look for before you open up an online brokerage account.

Consider the Following When Opening a Brokerage Account

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Loyal3 Review – Is Fee Free Investing for Real? Maybe

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How do you pick a brokerage firm?

Is it based on a funny commercial or the latest print ad you saw?  (I hope you take your retirement more seriously than this!)

Or it is based on a careful analysis of costs, investment options, and overall value?

Here’s the deal: Not all brokerage accounts are the same. Many are similar in investment options and cost leaving only marketing to differentiate them.  Every once and a while you run across a new brokerage that really is running their business significantly different than their competitors.

Loyal3 is one of those firms.  Read on and find out what they are all about and if they are for real in our Loyal3 review.

What is Loyal3?

Loyal3 is a brokerage firm with a different take on investing.
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Betterment.com: Investing in Stocks and Bonds Made Simple – Review

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Have you been wanting to invest your money but haven’t been sure how to go about it?

Let’s face it, there are lots of choices out there when it comes to investing.  Even if you choose a couple of funds to cover everything you need to know which ones and find a brokerage to invest with.

There may be a simpler, easier way to do it for those who those who want to invest but don’t know where to start or think it is too difficult for them.

That answer may be Betterment.

Follow along in our review…

What is Betterment?

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Don’t Forget Your 401(k) When You Leave Your Job! Here’s What You Can Do With It

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A 401(k) plan is an awesome vehicle to save for retirement!  

You get to lower your tax basis (the income you get taxed on).  You might get a great company match… What’s not to like?

But what do you do with your 401(k) if you leave your job? 

Do you take the 401(k) with you?  Where do you put it?  Should you leave it?

You have some choices for your 401(k) which I’ll outline for you below:

Choices For Your 401(k) When You Leave Your Job

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The Grow Your Dough Throwdown – Investing is Easy

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Have you heard of the Grow Your Dough Throwdown?

Imagine being able to pit your investment prowess against other people for a year to see whose investments came out on top.  Those other people are personal finance experts too, so they just might know how to handle money.

Sounds like it would be fun, right?  Well, I think so.  That’s why I’m taking part.

The Grow Your Dough Throwdown – Proof Investing Is Easy

Jeff Rose created the Grow Your Dough Throwdown.  He asked a bunch of personal finance bloggers to join him in the challenge and to help spread the word.  Here’s what the Throwdown is all about…

The goals of the throwdown are four-fold:

  1. Show how easy it is to invest
  2. Give a glimpse into the many options you have to invest
  3. Present a number of different plans you can use when investing
  4. Help make you understand that you can invest on your own.

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