How to transfer a brokerage account

[disneysteve]

I've had an account forever with H&R Block. It was Olde back when I opened it. Well, they keep hitting me with a quarterly account fee of $15 because I don't meet whatever their minimum balance is to waive the fee. I was wondering if it made sense to transfer the account to another discount broker, like Ameritrade or something similar. Would it cost me anything to transfer my holdings? Do the online discount brokers charge fees like H&R?

My other option, which I'm strongly considering, is just liquidating my holdings. It's only a matter of less than 20K in 4 stocks. That might just be the easier way to go, though I like the idea of keeping an active brokerage account in case I decide I want to buy something in the future. It just isn't worth paying $5/month to keep this account open.

I appreciate any thoughts.

[TeenInvestor2688]

Re: How to transfer a brokerage account

I had the same problem with my account at a different brokerage company. What I did was switch everything to Scottrade who does not charge any fees for minimum balances, inactivity, or switching. My old broker did charge me $50 to switch but it was worth it because they didnt charge fees plus commissions were much cheaper. As to the 2nd paragraph, I am not qualified to answer that but I would think it would depend on how old you are and what your financial situation was. Hope this helps

[poundwise]

Re: How to transfer a brokerage account


From TD Ameritrade FAQ:

How much will it cost to transfer my account to TD AMERITRADE?

We do not charge clients a fee to transfer an account to TD AMERITRADE. However, there are sometimes fees attached to holding certain types of assets in your TD AMERITRADE account. For example, non-standard assets—such as limited partnerships and private placements—can only be held in TD AMERITRADE IRAs and will be charged additional fees.

Delivering firms will usually charge fees to transfer the account out, which may result in a debit balance once your transfer is completed. To avoid transferring the account with a debit balance, contact your delivering broker to clear up any fees before transferring the account.


Re: Maintenance

Clear and simple pricing

You'll always get low, flat rate $9.99 commissions on all your Internet equity orders with no share limits. And, you won't be charged a maintenance fee. It's that simple.


Of course, there are other potential fees.


I think you'll find most discount brokerages to be similar on these points.