I'm gradually moving to Brown from Dreyfus. Brown is
cheaper for equities; Dreyfus is cheaper for options.
Brown has better margin rates; Dreyfus has better
interest on cash balances. Brown has check writing;
Dreyfus doesn't.
Brown allows naked and spread
web entries of margin transactions; Dreyfus makes
you call a broker. That was the killer for me with
Dreyfus. Hell, they're not giving advice (and I'm
not asking), so if they'll let me enter a naked
position by phone, why not on the web. In fact,
according to their letter in the last statement,
they actively discourage naked options, pontificating
about how dangerous they are. I know they are
required to take a certain position by the SEC,
but they're gonzo overboard IMO.
I rarely short and have not actually used any margin
at Dreyfus, so I don't have first hand info about
their margin requirements. However, I've seen
occasional griping here about it. Also, they don't
update your account equity like Brown does.
I have left Datek. Just got tired of being lied to
about what was coming and when,
and I didn't trust their business practices, even
though I never had a firsthand problem with a trade.
Lots and lots of smoke. Don't like to hang out in
smoky buildings, even if I can't see flames.
Spots
PS. I really don't trade a heck of a lot, so I'd
take this info with a great big grain of salt if I
were you. There are plenty of folks at all three
places that trade more in a week than I do in
several years. |
