Financial Help For Single Mothers

Financial aid for single mothers is available either through federal welfare services or through private organizations.

Who is qualified?

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Not all single mothers can take advantage of special financial help packages. Only those whose earnings fall below a certain level are considered low-income individuals and qualify for welfare benefits. To find out if you qualify for and may avail yourself of federal welfare services, you must complete the application form available at your local welfare office.

Financial Help For Single Mothers

Each program has its own income limits. Whether or not your income falls within the limit depends on the type of income you have, your family's expenses, and any other special circumstances your family may have. Each program also has resource limits. Things that can be converted to cash (bank accounts, stocks, and other properties) are considered to be resources. Only certain non-U.S. citizens may receive welfare benefits. Check with your local office for details.
What happens if you are not qualified?
If you do not qualify for welfare benefits, or if your needs are not covered by any specific welfare program, you may take advantage of grants offered by the U.S. government to single mothers. In exchange for the grant, you must perform some service or task required by the grant terms. There are 900 grant programs offered by 26 federal grant-making agencies. Some grant categories are agriculture, art, and education. You may visit http://www.grants.gov and http://www.neh.gov for details on grant application.
Other sources
Many schools offer scholarships specifically to single mothers. In order to find out about these, you may visit the financial aid office of the school you are currently attending or wish to attend.
There are also some private organizations that give grants and financial assistance to single mothers. Singlemom.com has a "financial gifting program." It awards cash grants to deserving single mothers every month. Many other similar organizations have grant and financial aid information on the Internet.
Financial Help For Single Mothers
Financial Help [http://www.e-FinancialHelp.com] provides detailed information on Financial Help, Financial Help For Single Mothers, Free Financial Help, Temporary Financial Help and more. Financial Help is affiliated with Independent Financial Advisors.

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Management - 8 Key Competencies of Successful Managers

Management is a diverse role with a range of responsibilities and challenges that need to be addressed. Competency as a manager is an important part of achieving. So what 8 key competencies do successful managers have?

Competency 1: Results Focus

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Successful managers know that at the end of the day it is not what you do but what you deliver that matters. Having a results focus is about knowing what outcomes are required and focusing yourself and those that you manage on delivering the results. This results focus keeps you on track and reduces the scope for distractions.

Management - 8 Key Competencies of Successful Managers

Competency 2: Making Change

Leaders regularly set out requirements for change. It might be in terms of process, people, service, ways of doing things to name just a few. While leaders will set out the overall direction, managers are the people who need to make the change happen on the ground. This requires them to overcome the obstacles that without doubt will appear as they try to make change.

Competency 3: Planning

Managers do not have the luxury of just having one thing to do. They have to manage money, people, processes, projects, customer relationships and themselves. This requires them to be able to plan effectively so that they get the best results possible.

Competency 4: Team Development

Managers cannot do everything on their own. They need a team around them that can help them to deliver results. Successful managers recognise that team development is an ongoing activity. People come and go from teams and the dynamics that this creates need to be managed. Many team members want to progress and so creating opportunities for growth and development is important.

Competency 5: Risk Management

All areas of business face threats and managers need to become competent at identifying and responding to risk. These risks can range from losing key staff to health and safety issues. Successful managers recognise the importance of identifying and proactively responding to risk.

Competency 6: Decision Making

Until a decision is taken, nothing happens. Managers who procrastinate are a source of frustration to staff. The staff might not always like or agree with the decision that you have made but they will prefer you to take a decision rather than procrastinate.

Competency 7: Communication

Successful managers are effective communicators in 3 areas. They are effective speakers and can put their points forward clearly. They are also effective at getting their message across in writhing whether it is an e-mail or report. Finally, they are effective listeners.

Competency 8: Customer Service Focus

Successful managers recognise that they have customers, even if they are not working directly with the end consumer or user of the product or service. Successful IT Managers see the users of the systems as customers. Accounts Department Managers see budget holders, employees whose salaries they process and suppliers they pay as customers.

Successful management requires you to have a range of competencies. So where are you highly successful and where do you need to develop to be an even more successful manager?

Management - 8 Key Competencies of Successful Managers

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements (G&A) works with individuals, teams and organisations to develop their management and leadership capability.

With 25 years business experience in a range of sectors, he understands first hand the real challenges of managing and leading in the demanding business world.

You can learn more about Duncan, Goals and Achievements services and products and sign up for his free e-course and newsletter at http://www.goalsandachievements.co.uk/

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Trendline Forex Entry Signal - Two High Probability Setups

A reliable Forex entry signal usually involves a combination of factors which all come together at the same time.

No single indicator can provide the ideal entry level and the new Forex trader has to grapple with this stark reality. Many find this hard to accept and spend countless weeks and months and hard earned cash in search of what could be termed the 'holy grail.'

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Learning to trade the Forex is hard work and needs to be treated like a business, the same as any other business. It requires a large investment of time, energy, mental discipline, and a cautious investment of cash until the necessary skills are acquired.

Trendline Forex Entry Signal - Two High Probability Setups

Trendlines are just one of the tools seasoned traders use along with other indicators to provide a reliable Forex entry signal.

Here we spell out two distinct ways in which trendlines can be used safely. Using a higher time frame candlestick chart such as a 60 minute, 4 hour, or even daily chart, a trendline is drawn along the most significant lows in an uptrend or across the most significant highs in a downtrend.

1. Momentum Combo

As price moves upward in an uptrend or downward in a downtrend, it will retrace and bounce off the trendline at certain times. However, using a trendline bounce by itself as a Forex entry signal is too risky. There have to be other factors.

Once you have drawn the trendline you now have a graphical representation of price movement and you will be able to see where price has to retrace to test the trendline once again.

Now use other indicators to see if that level where price would need to retrace to test the trendline combines with other factors.

Calculate your daily pivot points and draw horizontal lines on your chart to mark them.

Run your eyes left on the chart and note if there were any significant highs or lows that formed support or resistance within the last few days. Support and resistance on higher time frames usually provide more substantial reference points.

Use the Fibonacci tool on your charting software and mark retracement and/or extension levels on a variety of swing highs and lows and see if any intersect the trendline.

Also make sure you have the 200 EMA (Exponential Moving Average) line shown on your charts and note whether this also intersects near or at the trendline.

Now if you have a combination of two or three of the above indicators meeting at the same place you have now identified a Forex entry signal that can be regarded as high probability.

Put in your entry order to be take in long at this point where the trendline intersects with the other indicators and set a reasonable target limit for what probably will be a profitable trade.

For a downtrend, simply use the above indicators going the other way.

2. Break Combo

The second way to identify a reliable Forex entry signal using trendlines is to watch for a break of a trendline on a higher time frame such as the 60 minute, 4 hour, or daily chart.

Some traders sent an entry order to go long or short once price has broken the trendline by a few pips. That works for some.

There is however a safer way to trade a trendline break.

It will be observed that often (not always, nothing is absolutely certain when trading the Forex) once price has broken a trendline and moved 15-30 pips, it will come back, retrace, and test the backside of that trendline.

This is where again you use the combination of factors mentioned in the previous strategy.

Look to see if the point at which price may come back to test the backside of the trendline coincides or combines with factors such as:

Pivot points Previous swing highs or lows marking support and resistance Fibonacci retracement or extension levels 200 EMA

Now when you place an entry order to be taken in at that level you are doing so on the basis of a clearly defined Forex entry signal.

For a graphical example of the above, see the resource box below.

Be aware that trading trendline signals on lower time frames such as 30 minute, 15 minute, or even 5 minute charts are very high risk trades. Price will break these short term time frames frequently during the course of a day and catch a new trader frequently by luring them into a trade they later regret.

Be patient and wait for things to setup as described in the two methods above for high probability trades triggered by a combination Forex entry signal.

Trendline Forex Entry Signal - Two High Probability Setups

For an actual trading example using the trendline strategy above click here:

http://www.vitalstop.com/Forex/trendline.html

Click here to learn how to use another indicator, the 200 EMA, in a simple yet powerful way:

http://www.vitalstop.com/Forex/Advisor/200EMA-forex-strategy.htm

For the best free economic calendars plus a free pivot point calculator and Fibonacci calculator click here:

http://www.vitalstop.com/Forex/tools.html

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Canadian Banks - The "Big Five Banks"

The "Big Five Canadian Banks" term refers to the top five banking institutions in Canada. These banks are Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto-Dominion Bank, Scotiabank, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, and Bank of Montreal. The big five Canadian banks dominate the Canadian financial markets having a combined market share of over 90%. These banks are in reality international banks with market share in USA, the Caribbean, Latin America, and Asia. They have thousands of employees across Canada and worldwide. You might encounter the "Big Six Banks" term as well, which is the "Big Five Banks" and the National Bank of Canada, which mainly servers customers in Quebec.

RBC Financial Group or simply Royal Bank of Canada is the largest Canadian bank with headquarters in Toronto, Ontario. The bank was founded in 1864, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Royal Bank has over 70,000 employees worldwide with offices in more than 30 countries and operates 21% of all Canadian ATMs. Royal Bank common shares are listed on Toronto Stock Exchange, Swiss Electronic Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange.

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Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD Bank Financial Group) is the second major Canadian bank headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. The bank was founded in 1855 in Toronto. TD Bank has over 58,000 employees, serving 14 million customers worldwide. The TD bank Financial Group common shares are listed on Toronto Stock Exchange, New York Stock Exchange and Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Canadian Banks - The "Big Five Banks"

Scotiabank previously known as The Bank of Nova Scotia is the Canadian bank with strongest international presence. The bank was founded in 1832 in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Scotiabank does business in over 40 countries, most notably in the Caribbean, Central and Latin Americas, Mexico and Asia. Scotiabank has over 12 million customers offering personal, business and investment banking services. The bank has 57,000 employees worldwide. Scotiabank common shares trade on both Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.

The Bank of Montreal marketed as BMO Financial Group is Canada's oldest bank, established in 1817 in Montreal, Quebec. The bank has 35,000 employees and provides a wide range of financial services to its customers in Canada and USA. BMO is listed on Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange.

CIBC (Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce) was founded in 1867 in Toronto, Ontario. The bank has its headquarters in Toronto, and has over 37,000 employees worldwide, providing a wide range of financial services to over 11 million clients. CIBC is the smallest of the "Big Five" Canadian banks. CIBC is listed on Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.

The Canadian banking system is well established and developed and Canadian banks are one of the important pillars of the Canadian economy and society. Canadian financial institutions maintain a network of over 7,500 bank branches and over 17,000 ATMs. The top five Canadian banks are all members of the Canadian Banker Association and Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Canadian Banks - The "Big Five Banks"

Peter Todorov writes for Canadian Banks - an informational site about the Canadian banking industry and Loans in Canada - a Canadian loan directory.

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Macroeconomics - Understand the GDP, Business Cycle and Equilibrium

Since we have discussed the consumer price index, inflation and unemployment in the last article, in this article we will discuss the economic growth, the business cycle and macroeconomics equilibrium in one nation economy.

1. GDP

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This measures all income and output through a series of national accounts. At the end of their fiscal year, all cash flow in and out is added up to determine the GDP. Real GDP is the adjustment for the distortion caused by inflation by measuring the fiscal output of goods and services in a given year against the prices of a base year while nominal GDP measures output using current year prices.

Macroeconomics - Understand the GDP, Business Cycle and Equilibrium

2.The business cycle

A country economy moves in a familiar pattern of four cycles
a) contraction:slow down in growth or recession.
b) trough: bottom end of the cycle
c) expansion: growth increases or recovery of the economy.
d) peak: top end of the cycle.

The normal business cycle experiences continuous fluctuations with one cycle leading - no matter how prolonged - to the next and the recession is defined as 2 consecutive quarters of declining growth in real GDP.

When the economy expands: unemployment decreases,inflation begins to increase and the real GDP rises.

On the other hand, when the economy contracts: unemployment increases, inflation decreases and the real GDP falls.

3. Macroeconomics Equilibrium

Instead of targeting any one price or supply as in microeconomics the economist apply the measurements against the price level and output for the entire economy. This is accomplished by adding up all the totals for the entire period.

a) Aggregate demand curve (AD)

The AD measures the relationship between the total amount of all output that consumers are willing to purchase and the price level of that output. AD is the sum of what consumers, governments, business and foreigners, through exports and imports spent in the nation economy.

b) Aggregate supply curve (AC)

AC correlates the relationship between the total amount of final goods and services all producers plan to supply at a given price level.

The two curves are used to predict changes in the real GDP and price levels and the curves reflect what occurs in macroeconomics measurement curves.Where this two curves cross over shows macroeconomics equilibrium.

I hope this information will help you to understand more about macroeconomics, if you need more information of the above subject, please visit my home page at:

Macroeconomics - Understand the GDP, Business Cycle and Equilibrium

Kyle J. Norton

http://lifeanddisabitityinsuranceunderwriter.blogspot.com/

http://financialinvesting03.blogspot.com

All rights reserved. Any reproducing of this article must have all the links intact.

I have been studying natural remedies for disease prevention for over 20 years and working as a financial consultant since 1990

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Why Hedge Foreign Currency Risk?

International commerce has rapidly increased as the internet has provided a new and more transparent marketplace for individuals and entities alike to conduct international business and trading activities. Significant changes in the international economic and political landscape have led to uncertainty regarding the direction of foreign exchange rates. This uncertainty leads to volatility and the need for an effective vehicle to hedge foreign exchange rate risk and/or interest rate changes while, at the same time, effectively ensuring a future financial position.

Each entity and/or individual that has exposure to foreign exchange rate risk will have specific foreign exchange hedging needs and this website can not possibly cover every existing foreign exchange hedging situation. Therefore, we will cover the more common reasons that a foreign exchange hedge is placed and show you how to properly hedge foreign exchange rate risk.

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Foreign Exchange Rate Risk Exposure - Foreign exchange rate risk exposure is common to virtually all who conduct international business and/or trading. Buying and/or selling of goods or services denominated in foreign currencies can immediately expose you to foreign exchange rate risk. If a firm price is quoted ahead of time for a contract using a foreign exchange rate that is deemed appropriate at the time the quote is given, the foreign exchange rate quote may not necessarily be appropriate at the time of the actual agreement or performance of the contract. Placing a foreign exchange hedge can help to manage this foreign exchange rate risk.

Why Hedge Foreign Currency Risk?

Interest Rate Risk Exposure - Interest rate exposure refers to the interest rate differential between the two countries' currencies in a foreign exchange contract. The interest rate differential is also roughly equal to the "carry" cost paid to hedge a forward or futures contract. As a side note, arbitragers are investors that take advantage when interest rate differentials between the foreign exchange spot rate and either the forward or futures contract are either to high or too low. In simplest terms, an arbitrager may sell when the carry cost he or she can collect is at a premium to the actual carry cost of the contract sold. Conversely, an arbitrager may buy when the carry cost he or she may pay is less than the actual carry cost of the contract bought. Either way, the arbitrager is looking to profit from a small price discrepancy due to interest rate differentials.

Foreign Investment / Stock Exposure - Foreign investing is considered by many investors as a way to either diversify an investment portfolio or seek a larger return on investment(s) in an economy believed to be growing at a faster pace than investment(s) in the respective domestic economy. Investing in foreign stocks automatically exposes the investor to foreign exchange rate risk and speculative risk. For example, an investor buys a particular amount of foreign currency (in exchange for domestic currency) in order to purchase shares of a foreign stock. The investor is now automatically exposed to two separate risks. First, the stock price may go either up or down and the investor is exposed to the speculative stock price risk. Second, the investor is exposed to foreign exchange rate risk because the foreign exchange rate may either appreciate or depreciate from the time the investor first purchased the foreign stock and the time the investor decides to exit the position and repatriates the currency (exchanges the foreign currency back to domestic currency). Therefore, even if a speculative profit is achieved because the foreign stock price rose, the investor could actually net lose money if devaluation of the foreign currency occurred while the investor was holding the foreign stock (and the devaluation amount was greater than the speculative profit). Placing a foreign exchange hedge can help to manage this foreign exchange rate risk.

Hedging Speculative Positions - Foreign currency traders utilize foreign exchange hedging to protect open positions against adverse moves in foreign exchange rates, and placing a foreign exchange hedge can help to manage foreign exchange rate risk. Speculative positions can be hedged via a number of foreign exchange hedging vehicles that can be used either alone or in combination to create entirely new foreign exchange hedging strategies.

Why Hedge Foreign Currency Risk?

John Nobile - Senior Account Executive
CFOS/FX - Online Forex Spot and Options Brokerage

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Automated Stock Trading Software - How to Choose the Best

Get the Information You Need to Evaluate Stock Trading Software

In today's market, investors are wondering if they should even buy stocks and if they can make money. The answer to both is "yes." Stock market trading is a wonderful opportunity now, with prices lower and volatility higher than in many years. Stock trading online has never been more popular.

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Automated trading platforms, robotic trading programs, online day trading systems-there are many terms used to describe the stock trading systems that can help you to make a stock investment and to grow your money. Review the criteria below and understand your own personal preferences by talking with other stock traders. Identify the facts you need to compare programs. You'll need a good understanding of the automated trading tools' features and costs before you make a decision.

Automated Stock Trading Software - How to Choose the Best

Many types of companies offer stock trading advice and stock trading strategies. They run the gamut from educational programs that aim to teach you how to trade, to a list of recommended stocks to buy and sell at certain triggers, to brokerage firm proprietary software, all the way to fully automated robotic software. Prices can vary from thousands of dollars to less than a month for some auto trading software. With such a variety, how do you choose? This article will guide you through the features and benefits of the programs that are available for online stock trading. We will not discuss trading software for options or Forex trading. Many of the programs are geared towards "day traders," who technically open long positions (buy) or short positions (sell short) and close these positions the same day. Not everyone who uses these programs closes out their positions by the end of the trading day--sometimes they hold their positions for days, weeks or months. We'll call this "active trading." Sometimes this is also referred to as "swing trading."

The essential features of a stock trading program include a data feed for stock quotes and indicators, stock charts or charting capability of major indicators, current balance and positions and an order entry system. The order entry system should allow stop (loss) orders, stop limit orders and trailing stops. A trailing stop limit is similar to the stop (loss), except its loss will be measured from the stocks highest point achieved. The preferred method would be to keep the trigger prices in stealth mode, not viewable by the market makers, rather than as actual orders. Most automated trading software should include a watch list of the stocks to potentially trade based on the parameters the stock trader has entered.

Exchange Traded Funds (ETF's) can be part of an efficient trading strategy. These are mutual funds that are traded intraday on the stock exchanges, unlike traditional mutual funds that are a basket of securities priced at the close of the market. Online stock trading systems should also include trading capabilities for ETF's.

Other features to look for include safety measures that stock traders may take, such as establishing a profit goal--the minimum price increase a trader would expect a stock to gain before closing their position. Also highly desirable is a form of profit protection for your investments, which is the reduced profit goal. After the stock reaches its profit goal and continues to rise, the stock trading software should wait and let the profit increase. If the stock price decreases or pulls back, the online trading program should close the position and lock the profit. This pullback value should not have any effect before the profit goal is reached and is intended to improve stock performance. More sophisticated auto trading programs will also offer the percentage gain from stock trader's entry price, and the trader can also specify a minimum amount in case the percentage gained is too low.

Check the Features and Ask Questions

Number of Technical Indicators - There are literally hundreds of indicators that stock traders can use to determine which stocks to buy and sell and when. The most robust programs will offer hundreds of indicators for technical analysis, such as Bollinger Bands, and some will even include indicators for Candlestick Chart formations. Robotic programs use these indicators to set conditions under which online investing will occur.

Complexity - Automated stock trading programs vary greatly in ease of use. Some online stock trading systems do require actual programming expertise. Others are simply point and click. Check out the online demo to see that it fits your level of comfort before making a commitment. Talk to others who are currently using the auto trading websites and check out their online communities for more comments.

Number of Long and Short Strategies Per Account - Due to the size of the online trading platform, there may be a limit to the number of strategies that you can have loaded on each account. If you want to run, say two long trading strategies, then you may need two accounts. Also confirm if you have enough memory on your computer for two or more accounts. Experienced active traders may run two or more live long and short strategies, while having additional accounts for strategies that they are testing in a simulator mode.

Find Out How Advanced Your Software Can Be

Recommended Additional Features - The best automated stock trading software will include additional features that active traders will find invaluable once they have begun automated trading.

Additional strategy and order entry features include the ability to add to a position as a stock goes up, or as the stock declines, as well as a minimum purchase interval that the stock price should drop before it begins purchasing additional shares. A maximum bid/ask range will also be helpful, as the size of the spread can directly impact a swing trader's ability to make profitable trades.

If there are hundreds of indicators, as is the case with robotic traders, see if the definitions of the indicators are readily available. The definition or formula for indicators may vary from one electronic trading platform to another, so be sure you understand them first.

Recommend you have a program that displays current Profit and Loss (P&L) on your open positions and the status of the rules on your watch list. For example, if a stock on the watch list hasn't traded, is there a feature where the trader can pull up the rules and indicators to see which one(s) is preventing the trade?

Some automated stock trading programs visually display the percentage of symbols up and down in each sector from the specified time frame to the current time so you can see how the market is turning. Does the platform include the ability to block certain symbols from trading? If you're running a long trading strategy, you won't want to be buying ETF's that short the market.

Day traders will want automated trading software that tracks and displays the number of day trades remaining. Day trading is regulated by the SEC, so it's important to understand if you will be day trading first.

Orders in Stealth Mode - A standard feature of many trading software programs is the ability to enter limit, stop and stop limit orders. While it is important to have an exit strategy from your positions, telegraphing it to the institutional traders in the form of publicly viewed limits is not. It's a little like poker--whoever can see all the hands has the advantage. Instead, newer programs allow the user to enter these price points in the auto trader system, but trigger a market order when the conditions are met. This is one advantage of a truly robotic stock trading program.

Automatically Executes Your Trading Strategy Even While You're Away From Your Computer - Very few stock market trading systems can actually do this. For those that do, it's done based on the trader selecting technical indicators, comparison operators and numerical inputs that will activate opening, adding to, or closing stock positions. Essentially, it's a rules driven software system. The trader can select from hundreds of historical indicators representing the stocks' previous conditions. The indicators should be updated daily using the latest data. Programs that can trade automatically are the cream of the online investing software crop. They take the emotion out of investing. Long time traders report that the simplest strategies, when left to run on their own for long periods perform best. The program should also have a manual override so the stock trader can manually place a trade as well. Specifically ask if the system has this capability. Many market themselves as "automated trading" but are not truly automated.

Ability to Simulate Strategies In Real Time Before Running Live - Most traders would agree that they'd like to "test drive" a system before using it. Some programs allow this through "back-testing," in which the program uses past data to execute the trades and show you what they would have been. This is not always accurate, as there is much data needed to perform a thorough back-test and it's nearly impossible to replicate all the circumstances with just the historical data. In addition, how the system performed in a market last month or last year does not indicate how it will perform in the here and now.

There are a few systems that allow the stock trader to simulate strategies, but this is done mostly with paper tickets, rather than through the software package. The best stock trading software will let you practice stock trading using a live real-time data feed during market hours. This is the preferred method, as it gives traders a very realistic view of how their trading strategy is performing and the ability to feel the highs and lows of daily trading without investing real money. If you can simulate trades, you won't need to open an actual brokerage account until you go "live" with real money. Ask if there is a limit on how long you can run in the simulation mode.

Shows You How to Create A Stock Trading Strategy - There should be a step by step walk through to show novice traders how to create a trading strategy. Are there off-the-shelf strategies that are available for your use? Are there any fees involved or are they offered for free? Can you modify the off the shelf strategies? Note that firms should not be guaranteeing you a certain return. The best firms will have long and short stock trading strategies available at no charge and will allow the stock trader to create their own. Some firms will even allow you to copy strategies from a "friends" list. One size does not fit all. If the company doesn't tell you the details of the strategy or why they selected or recommend a certain stock, then it's not advisable to use it. You may overpaying for "proprietary" services and may be able to obtain free stock market tips and recommendations online that will perform comparably.

Tech Support and Customer Service - The best automated stock trading software firms have an extremely high "up-time" and are very rarely out of service. Check on the firm's record--how often have they had outages? The software should be easy to install and should work with a variety of operating systems (Windows XP, Windows Vista, etc.). If you have questions, is there a knowledgeable and helpful staff to provide service? How quickly do they respond, if by email?

Commissions - Trading commissions can eat into your profits if you are not careful about choosing a plan that fits your needs. Commissions can vary greatly from broker to broker, depending on the number of shares traded, whether the shares are in round lots of 100, price of the shares traded and the number of trades you place each month. Stock traders may even want to have more than one account if they have a trading strategy that normally trades 100 shares lots and another that trades 1000 share lots. It pays to read the fine print.

Number of Broker Choices - If you have a proprietary brokerage software product, then you'll only be able to trade through that firm. The best online trading includes the lowest commissions for the typical trades for each strategy that you use. There are other programs whose software has been integrated into the order placing functionality at a variety of brokerage firms. Commissions will be one consideration in choosing a firm. Another is the margin rates. If you choose to have a margin account and borrow against the value of your securities to open more positions, you will be charged margin interest. Rates will vary by firm. Typically, firms with the lowest commissions won't pay you interest or offer a money market fund for your uninvested cash. This is how they keep their costs down. If you anticipate having extra cash that you won't use for trading, you may want to keep it in another account where it can earn more. You should also check if there is a minimum to open an account or a minimum number of trades required.

Check the Costs and Software Support

Initial Software Fee and Monthly Fees - Ask is there is an initial fee to buy the software package. Is it thousands of dollars? If so, find out what you are really getting. Much of what you can obtain from some of these programs can be found in inexpensive books or on the Internet for free. Is there also a monthly fee? If so, what does it cover? In reviewing online trading services, more expensive software is not necessarily better. Some active investing services are less expensive because they have more subscribers.

Data Feed Fee - Does the program include real time data feeds for stock quotes and indicators? Is there an extra fee for this or is it included in the basic monthly fee? This is the biggest component cost in developing automated stock trading programs. Or, is the data delayed by 20 minutes? Is it only the end of day data? If so, even in a simulation, old data is not good data. Many brokerage firms offer free Level II quotes to qualified active traders who trade a specified number of trades each month.

Stock Charts Fee - How will you review the major indicators that you're using to make trading decisions? Some programs include stock charts with their fee, others charge a separate fee for it. Depending on the platform you choose, you may or may not need a charting package. Find out how much is it and how much you can customize the stock charts to track your favorite indicators.

Ongoing Support Fee - Ask is there are any other fees. Hidden fees will definitely each into a stock trader's profits. If you're not in the market to make money, then you shouldn't be in the market.

Long Term Contract - Is the fee you're paying upfront for a year's contract? If so, is it automatically renewed every year?

Training Fee - Find out if there is a separate training fee. For programs that market themselves as financial educators, there will be a fee, sometimes hundreds or thousands of dollars, as this is how they make their money. The best automated stock trading software programs provide free training.

Training Formats - Is the training in the form of a live seminar? Webinar? Are there extra materials such as DVD's that you must buy to find out all the information advertised? Or, is live training available in the company's office?

Minimum to Invest - Brokerage firms have their own minimums but there are also account minimum balances required by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for what it calls "pattern day traders." A day trade occurs when a trader opens and closes the same position in a margin account on the same day. A pattern day trader is any person who executes 4 or more day trades within 5 business days in a margin account, provided the number of day trades is more than 6% of the total trades in the account during that period. All pattern day traders must maintain a minimum of ,000 in equity at all times.

System Requirements - The more robust the trading system, the greater the memory requirements. Check this before you sign up or purchase a new computer. If you sign up for more than one account, will your machine have enough RAM to run both or will you need to purchase an extra computer or more memory? If you have a Mac, ask if the software works on Mac, as not all do. You may want to have one computer dedicated only to your automated stock trading programs and not run other word processing or spreadsheet programs.

Reports - The best automated stock trading software will include a reports function, that allows the stock trader to pull up trades by time frame, security, long vs short, open vs. closed and P&L. For truly active traders, this information is an easy way to track trading for tax purposes.

Trading Strategy Statistics- In addition to Reports, another great feature is strategy statistics. They will tell the serious stock trader the number of trades executed and break them down by profitable vs. unprofitable over various intervals. Reviewing the strategy accuracy increases the odds that a stock trader will be profitable.

Online Trading Community - Trading platform developers who are truly proud of their work welcome comments and questions from users. Take some time to read their stock trading forum and see what other stock traders are saying. There are even a few automated stock trading programs that will take requests for additional indicators from their users.

Take the Right Steps as You Choose Stock Trading Software

Be wary of those who tell you that you must follow their stock trading system using only their tools. This is about you having control over your financial future. There are as many successful stock trading strategies as there are active traders. Experiment, talk to others and do research. You will find what works best for you.

Use caution when signing up for anything long-term, even if a 30-day free trial is offered. Some firms may request a large down payment or full payment in advance and pressure you on the spot, promising a discount if you sign up immediately. Some consumers have reported difficulty in obtaining refunds even when they have followed the procedures exactly.

Happy trading!

© Copyright - Regina Guinn. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

Automated Stock Trading Software - How to Choose the Best

CoolTrade™ Fully Automated Stock Trading Software benefits include Power Research Tools. The CoolTrade™ Strategy Wizard allows you to rapidly filter through all 8000+ NYSE, NASDAQ, and AMEX stocks for only those that meet your investment criteria. 100% point-and-click, requiring no programming knowledge. Fully Automated Stock Trading Software. A real-time Market Simulator allows you to run a strategy that you select in simulator mode during live market hours. This is not a back-tester. It runs in real-time so you can see how your strategies perform during actual market conditions. The Reports option will provide you with your strategy statistics. Switching from live to simulator mode is done with a simple click of the button. The Robotic Trader may be set to start by itself in the morning and trade the market all day 100% unattended.

CoolTrade

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