Marsco Review: They are one of the oldest online brokerages also known as Marsco Investment Corporation. This company is a deep discount brokerage founded in 1986 and located in New Jersey. The are good for a number of reasons. They have been in the business a long time and are SiPC insured for 500k.
Also:
- No inactivity Fees Ever
- No handling fees (middleman fees)
- There are no Share limits so you can place large block orders.
- $0 for stock trades for market or limit orders in real time
- no software fees
- easily one of the easiest platforms to use for all ages
The company caters to self-directed traders of stocks, ETFs, options, bonds, and mutual funds. And it enables investors to trade in a broad selection of securities without paying a lot in fees. Read below for a quick breakdown on their best features.
Yes there are many different brokers available to you. But let’s get into this Marsco review and see if this is a possibility for your trading or investing style.
Marsco provides a free, web-based trading platform that’s user-friendly yet rudimentary. Sometimes simple is better. Information overload for some people will be overwhelming.
The platform provides real-time quick quotes and market data and the statements are extremely simple to read.
And you get customizable watch lists, screening capabilities, news and research, a symbol lookup search feature, and basic charting. The home page displays a summary of your accounts and customized market data. If you’re looking for more advanced charting, you have other options, such as stockcharts.com, Tradingview, and Trendspider.
Snapshot of the Marsco watch list
And the platform enables you to place trades and view your positions in real-time. Likewise, your cash and securities summaries and buying power are also available in real-time in a simple to read format.
Detailed Reports
Moreover, the platform provides printable detailed reports on your realized and unrealized gains and losses. It generates estimates of your portfolio’s dividend and interest earnings.
To place trades, simply use the drop-down menus and fill in the fields. The platform enables market, limit, stop and stop limit trades.
Here is a snapshot of what trading looks like inside Marsco.
While the platform is sufficient for casual traders or beginners, the lack of advanced features may make it less suitable for active and experienced traders.
Direct market access is not available, and it does not offer hotkeys or advanced charting capabilities. However, the platform is intuitive and easy to use with good portfolio management features. For Direct access routing and hotkeys you need to use a broker that hooks into DAS Trader.
Accounts
The accounts offered by brokers are important and you want to know what your current and future options are before you open abrokerage account. Our trading service looks at what this broker offers in this Marsco review below.
Marsco Investment Corporation offers individual, joint (JTWROS or JTCOM) and custodian (UTMA/UGMA) accounts. Additionally, Marsco offers traditional, rollover, ROTH and SEP IRA accounts.
The minimum amount to open an account is $2,500 in either cash or securities. $2,000 is the minimum requirement in equity for margin accounts. If you’re looking for a no minimum account you might want to look at interactive brokers. We have a whole course on IBKR.
And day traders must maintain a minimum equity level of $25,000. Fund your account via check, electronic funds transfer (ACH), or transfer your account from another financial institution or brokerage. If you need to transfer accounts from one broker to another, make sure you do it carefully or you could pay a big tax penalty.
Marsco enables traders to open new accounts either online or by printing and mailing in applications. Marsco provides forms, applications, and agreements that you can download, print, and fill out easily from home.
To visit the Marsco Form Center, go to their website. Additionally, Marsco offers check writing service, interest on free credit balances over $1,000, and dividend payments. Sweet!
Again, the brokerage is a member of the SIPC (Securities Investor Protection Corporation) which protects account securities up to $500,000. In addition, Marsco is a self-clearing member of the DTCC (Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation). Stuff like this provides some peice of mind.
Here’s what the Marsco home page looks like.
What Are Marsco’s Fees and Commissions? (Pricing Review)
- The rate for stocks and ETFs is $2.50 with no trading minimum and no share limits.
- The rate for options is $2.50 plus $1.25 per contract.
- For mutual funds, the rate is $15 for no-load funds and $0 for load funds.
- Margin rates range from base rate + 2.00% to base rate + 3.00% depending on the debit balance.
Fees and commissions are important to customers. Our Marsco review delves deeper into what they offer. Marsco offers attractive commission rates and charges no inactivity fees.
Bond trades require the assistance of a broker. Marsco provides multiple ways to reach their brokers and customer or technical support. Just call, fax, or use email or mail. Their support is very good and incredibly knowledgeable.
The rate for corporate and municipal bonds is $5 per bond. For T-Bills, notes, and bonds, the rate is $35 per trade. And the rates for all fixed income securities depends on the net yield basis. Visit Marsco for more information on fees and commissions.
Marsco Stock Price and Symbol: Are They Publicly Traded?
Investors cannot purchase shares of Marsco because the company is privately held.
Marsco Review Final Thoughts
What does this Marsco review tell us? The Marsco Investment Corporation brokerage’s strong point is its deeply discounted commissions. And their platform is free and easy to navigate, though lacking in bells and whistles. Again for high tech charting you’re best served by something like Trendspider.
