Sharebuilder Helps You Do What It Promises
Written: Nov 13 '05 (Updated Jan 24 '06)
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Pros: Makes it totally easy to build your stock portfolio
Cons: Does not let you buy any and every stock you wish to.
The Bottom Line: There are a few internet trading sites out there that can compete with Sharebuilder, but I feel more safe with Sharebuilder.
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| scapp70's Full Review: Sharebuilder |
I have been a member of Sharebuilder since the beginning of 2002. I wanted to get into the purchasing of stocks and I really didn't know how, I was totally one of those clueless people, and I still am about this. I wouldn't know how to do this in the real world, but the fact is that I do it and it's all thanks to Sharebuilder.
What I like about them
Well, first off you can virtually choose from most of the different type of investment accounts available today. The different types of accounts they offer are these:
Individual Account - which is just what it says, an account opened for one person through the purchasing of stocks and/or investing in a money market.
Joint Account - which is basically the same as individual, except here you have another name on the account. If one of the people dies, the rights to the account go directly under the surviving account holder.
Traditional or Rollover IRA - which is an account where you must contribute money to your account at a set rate to help you secure an amount for when you retire.
Roth or Conversion IRA - this is another retirement account, and they say that certain eligibility requirements that have been set by the IRS must be met in order to qualify to make the necessary contributions to this type of account.
Sharebuilder ESA - also known as the Coverdell ESA, this is a trust that you would contribute funds to regularly for the purpose of paying the qualifying expenses that will occur from education of the designated beneficiary.
Custodial Account - This is basically the same as the Individual and Joint Accounts except this is for a child that will remain under the funds contributing adult until the child reaches the age of majority for their state of residence.
I myself have a Joint Account and a Custodial Account. I like that with each month you can change the amount of how many funds you will contribute to your accounts. I do this most months depending on what I can afford, or on what the current stock prices usually are. Sharebuilder makes it very easy to do this. I like to invest on the first Tuesday of the month, and the third Tuesday for the other account. They take your funds the Friday before the Tuesday that you buy so you have up until that Thursday night to change your order if you wish to.
Plus Sharebuilder makes it incredibly easy to set up the funding process. You can either tie your Checking or Savings account, which is very convenient. That is the option I chose, by the way. But if you choose to you can fund your purchases with your money market account. I did that only once. Each month, I also choose to fund my Money Market account with a few dollars, and now it's grown to a pretty sizable chunk. I guess if you choose to use your money market, you must fund it first, so we're back at the savings and checking account option. To make this long paragraph short, it's easy!
I also enjoy the Research section. Here you could look up and view virtually any stock. You can look at the stock's performance, news, contact info, financial info, and my favorite is the Analyst Info. I would use this a couple of times a month. It's is free which is a huge plus, and it gives opinions of stock professional analysts, they tell you to either buy, sell or hold. Sometimes the analyst opinion is compromised anywhere between one and thirty people, that's the most I've seen anyway. I wish I had realized this feature when I had my MCI stock.
Another feature on Sharebuilder that I visit just about every time I check my stats is called Gain & Loss Tracker. This easy to follow chart lists all of your accounts, assuming you have more than one, and it lists the quantity of stocks, the current quote, market value, what you paid for them, Gain/Loss in $$, and last but not least the Gain/Loss in %. If you click detail on the very end, it loads another page that will give you the history of your purchases, dividends, etc of that particular stock. This feature is sort of not free, but then again, it probably will be. If you are subscribing to the Standard Sharebuilder subscription, then the Gain/Loss Tracker is free. But if you choose basic, it is not free, it will cost you another $2 a month to have this feature. I think it's worth it, as it is probably the most informative tool that you will have at your fingertips.
Different Plans
The different plans are easy to follow, and Sharebuilder makes it so easy to make a choice that's right for you.
They have the Basic Subscription;
With this there is:
no monthly fee
$4 each investment (for example $200 shares of Disney stock, you would add on $4, $150 for Sirius add on $4...)
If you choose to make a Real-Time Market Trade (at current market rate)- the cost is $15.95 per transaction (that is if you can't wait for your predetermined appointed time per month to buy stocks.)
If you want to buy a Real-Time Limit Trade at a specific price set by you - then that fee will be $19.95 per transaction.
What you don't get with Basic is the Gain & Loss Tracker that's $2 extra per month, Portfolio Builder Plus which is expert advice on how to trade each month, the Portfolio Tax Tool which gears you up for tax time, and you do not get the IPO Priority Notification - where you will be notified about an upcoming IPO that you may be able to participate.
Then there is the Standard Subscription;
The monthly fee is $12
You get with that 6 free transactions per month
The Real-Time Market Trades go down to $14.95 per month
The Real-Time Limit Trades go down to $18.95 per month
The Gain & Loss Tracker is free with your subscription.
The PortfolioBuilder Plus is free with your subscription.
The Portfolio Tax Tool is not available with Standard.
The IPO Priority Notification is not available through Standard.
Then the last one is the Advantage Subscription;
Everything is included and the fees change this way:
The Subscription fee rises to $20 per month
You get 20 free transactions and any after 20 cost you $1 a transaction.
The Real-Time Market Trade fees decrease to $11.95 a month
The Real Time Limit Trade fees decrease to $15.95.
The customer service is very good. I have either called or e-mailed Sharebuilder. Sharebuilder reps do not keep you hanging on the phone for a long time, and they have answered my questions always on the first call. They do not make you feel stupid, no matter stupid my questions may have been in the beginning, they always make me feel like a valued customer. The e-mails are usually answered that day or the most I've waited was two days. I say that relatively that this is not too long time to wait.
What I Do Not Like
Well, right off you should know that you cannot purchase any kind of stock you want. Sharebuilder has these standards that any stock must meet in order for it to be available for purchase through them. The standards a stock must meet are the Pricing Considerations set by Sharebuilder, the Market Capitalization, the Average Daily Volume and the stock must be traded on a recognized US marketplace system such as the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ/AMEX.
For example, just recently I started buying this stock that was very cheap, under .50 cents a stock. I bought for about three months, then Sharebuilder had suddenly left me a message in my e-mail and on my Sharebuilder Account page that Sharebuilder cannot handle future purchasing of the stock.
Also when you inquire about this situation to Sharebuilder, they send you a general letter that doesn't answer your question directly. I kept asking the same question, when they ran out of general letters, they simply stop responding.
That is my biggest gripe, but I also feel that the fees to sell are a little high. But then again, I don't know how much they cost in the real world. If I wanted to sell, it would cost me $14.95 for each market transaction, or $18.95 if I wish to set the price, or a limit transaction. I did sell only once, and I am looking to do it again with the stock that I'm not allowed to buy anymore. I can't sell yet, because the selling fee won't cover the gains I've made. Right now, I just have to wait and pray the stock rises again, all I need is like another .25 cents a share, that would be great, come on please.
In Closing
This wonderful website is a great place to build your stock portfolio. It is great for beginners, and it is practical for those traders who esteem themselves as experts. I still view myself as a beginner, and I have a feeling that I'll remain one for a long long time.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
scapp70
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Member: Michael Scapp
Location: NYC
Reviews written: 470
Trusted by: 254 members
About Me:
STOP Obama on 'NET NEUTRALITY'! Too much power = corruption!
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