Best bank and brokerage firm for relationship banking.

[Anonymous]

I am looking for the best financial firm to use with lowest costs and best relationship benefits.

I see Chase Sapphire banking and You Invest has a competitive offering but I don’t have enough to meet the 75000 minimum at this time.  You invest gives 100 free trades goof for 1 year but I am unclear how product is if I use an external bank account.

My goals are full access to the financial markets, and a true mutual financial relationship with access to capital.  I am not sure if I am better off going to a large bank/brokerage or a smaller firm or dedicated investment house.  There are literally thousands of financial firms but deals tend to favor the institution itself.  

[wasCB14]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I am looking for the best financial firm to use with lowest costs and best relationship benefits.

I see Chase Sapphire banking and You Invest has a competitive offering but I don’t have enough to meet the 75000 minimum at this time.  You invest gives 100 free trades goof for 1 year but I am unclear how product is if I use an external bank account.

My goals are full access to the financial markets, and a true mutual financial relationship with access to capital.  I am not sure if I am better off going to a large bank/brokerage or a smaller firm or dedicated investment house.  There are literally thousands of financial firms but deals tend to favor the institution itself.  

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It's a "relationship" that can the bank can promptly end or drastically alter. You don't even have to default on a loan. The mere concern that you might be too risky can end it.

"Full access to the financial markets"...Do you want to trade options/derivatives/futures/foreign stocks/forex? You Invest looks like it's simply stocks, bonds, ETFs, and mutual funds. I can't find any mention of other investments (like options) on their fee schedule.

"Access to capital"...Business loans? Mortgages for rental properties? Margin loans on securities?

Frankly, even $75k won't open a lot of doors as far as premium options. Within the Chase family, for example, Chase Private Client begins around $250k. JPM Private Client begins around $1M. JPM Private Bank begins at $10M.

You might try Schwab as a brokerage. They have low costs and generally good customer service for everyone.

[Anonymous]

So far I have used Etrade, Schwab and Robinhood. I like Schwab the most. 

They have a checking acct with free international atm withdrawals and also thier customer service is great!

It is  a hard pull to open your first account with them though.

[Anonymous]

With Chase you can work your way up. Premier Plus starts at 15K, that gets you 100 free trades/year. Also, they have lending products.... not sure if Schwab offers mortgages or car loans.

[wasCB14]

It's also worth noting that a lot of the fancy terms just describe brokerage and checking accounts with a few extra perks and great customer service. The ability to borrow a lot of money is another matter.

We need some clarification from OP.

At OP's asset level, a credit union may make the most sense.

[Anonymous]

Chase makes a ton from mortgages and car loans and the like.  But I am not looking for those products.  I am looking for products that benefit me financially such as high returns by investing.  If I bought a car I would pay Cash or lease for the best deal offered likely the finance arm of the auto maker.  I would not use a mortgage to finance a home but would save money, earn extremely high returns on investment and then buy a home all cash.  I would also earn credit card rewards and pay in full as I have always have.

The Chase advantage appears to offer free trades and even etf and mutual funds at one institution where total assets can be used together for greater free benefits for banking and further additional trades.

Chase is a top money manager and has a good reputation for high net worth individuals apparently.  I don’t see other firms offering as competitive a deal as Chase at the moment so I guess I will start small at Chase and see what happens.

[wasCB14]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Chase makes a ton from mortgages and car loans and the like.  But I am not looking for those products.  I am looking for products that benefit me financially such as high returns by investing.  If I bought a car I would pay Cash or lease for the best deal offered likely the finance arm of the auto maker.  I would not use a mortgage to finance a home but would save money, earn extremely high returns on investment and then buy a home all cash.  I would also earn credit card rewards and pay in full as I have always have.

The Chase advantage appears to offer free trades and even etf and mutual funds at one institution where total assets can be used together for greater free benefits for banking and further additional trades.

Chase is a top money manager and has a good reputation for high net worth individuals apparently.  I don’t see other firms offering as competitive a deal as Chase at the moment so I guess I will start small at Chase and see what happens.

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Having access to a lot of financial products is certainly not a guarantee of extremely high investment returns!

However, Chase You Invest will not give you "full access to the financial markets". You'll be limited to most US stocks, ETFs, individual investment-grade bonds, and mutual funds. No junk bonds, options, forex, futures, metals, certain low-priced stocks, or stocks that trade on foreign exchanges.

I'm not saying Chase is necessarily a bad choice for you. I'm just pointing out it's inconsistent with your stated goal of "full access to the financial markets". Maybe you'll reexamine your risk appetite and decide to stick with more conventional products and markets.

Chase as a money manager charges high fees and that service isn't really intended for DIY investors. A DIYer might find it overpriced, slow, and generally inefficient. JPM and BofA's premium services generally involve a choice between paying high fees for someone else to  do it, or low fees to do it yourself on their mediocre platforms.

[bondsandloan]

Best brokerage firm - by far - Interactive Brokers. That's where the pros trade.
You'll get almost every product you want, except maybe buy and sell individual bond CUSIPs.

[Anonymous]

Most online brokerage accounts are so cheap per trade that, unless you plan on daytrading swings of a couple pennies, the fee has no real effect on your returns.

I do not understand.

[wasCB14]

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@bondsandloan wrote:
Best brokerage firm - by far - Interactive Brokers. That's where the pros trade.
You'll get almost every product you want, except maybe buy and sell individual bond CUSIPs.

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Most powerful? Yes.

Best? That's more subjective.

IB is great for sophisticated investors who want to trade exotic products.

Pros:

Vast product selection...really in a league of their own for major brokerages

Extremely flexible and customizable

Modest costs (compared to alternatives) for people who place small-to-medium orders and trade frequently

Cons:

Lots of fees

Hard for a beginner to use

The per-share commission structure means it's not particularly cheap if you're placing large orders

Customer service is limited

If you want to short some stock that only trades on the Australian Stock Exchange, or buy Italian government bonds, IB is the way to do it.

But if you just want to buy $20k of McDonalds stock and sell it in six months, there are better options.

Frankly, I don't think anyone who struggles to come up with $75k of investible assets has any business trading in the stuff a person needs to go to IB for.