How does five contracts for $5 sound? Or how about 100 contracts for $23.50? Basically, for the price of lunch downtown you can trade 100 options contracts using one of the most powerful options trading platforms around. Unlike other discount brokers and full-service brokers, OptionsHouse is option-focused and created by options traders for options traders. This discount options broker provides flexible pricing, quick trades and a customizable trading platform, and with breathing room it slides into our number one spot to earn our TopTenREVIEWS Gold Award for online options trading.
This options broker has a location advantage. Peak6 Investments, the founder of OptionsHouse, is headquartered on the original Chicago Board of Trade trading floor (the CBOT is the world's oldest futures and options exchange). They reside deep in the heart of options country not only in the same building that the CBOT has resided in since 1930 but also only a half mile from the Options Clearing Corporations (OCC). This has provided Peak6 with the opportunity to commandeer top options talent and options-specific trading technology insight.
OptionsHouse just launched their new trade platform that provides more customization options, faster data streaming and speedier order creation. Their trade platform is web-based; however, you can also trade using their iPhone app, Android app or via a web-enabled device using their mobile site. They also provide virtual trading, risk assessment tools and options-specific research tools. Equity trade orders are also easy to place and only $3.95 each.
Whether you trade a little or in volume, OptionsHouse has the lowest option contract prices. Even complex orders such as spreads, straddles and combos with up to four legs (except covered calls and puts) are only $10 for 10 (each additional contract for $1) or $12.50 plus $0.15 per contract for over 10. Basic options orders are five for $5, 10 for $10, or $8.50 plus $0.15 per contract for over 10. The rate you pay depends on the options commission plan you choose. One plan is more suitable for those who typically trade fewer than 10 contracts at a time, and the other is more beneficial to those who trade over 10 per order. You can change which plan you want to use up to once per day. Covered calls and puts are treated as a single-leg options trade plus $3.95 for the stock leg. Exercises and assignments are only $5 each and stock trades are only $3.95. They do not charge extra for broker-assisted orders; this is nice because some brokers charge as much as $45 for broker assistance.
Margin rates are also low. On loan balances under $49,999 it is 4% (fed fund rate plus 3.75%), and on balances over $1 million it's only 1.5% (fed fund rate plus 1.25%). Other fees are also lower than many brokers. Domestic wire fees are $15, mutual funds are $9.95. IRA closures are $20, outgoing ACAT transfers are $50, and they do not charge for partial account transfers. Though they require an initial funding level of $1,000 for cash accounts, this is on par with many of their competitors.
OptionsHouse just launched their new trading platform, and it is slick. The new platform supports customizable trading views, faster data streams, new trading tools and improved ordering tools. The trade ticket can be launched from most windows, and it can support advanced orders such as order cancels order, order triggers order, under trigger OCO and order trigger two orders. You can also trade spreads from the options chain with one click. This is the only service we reviewed that will let you fully customize the platform layout so you can view only the features/widgets you are interested in and exactly where on the screen you would like them to display.
The strategy and research tools OptionsHouse provides include investigators, calculators, generators and screeners. The spread investigator scans for call and put opportunities, the trade generator will create a list of trade ideas based on your parameters, and the stock screener scans for stock based on a wide range of filter options. Their profit and loss calculator analyzes stock strategies including complex options strategies. This service also provides up-to-date market news, quotes, company information, streaming charts and volatility charts. For full portfolio assessment, it has a risk viewer that can help you estimate your potential risk.
OptionsHouse supports most popular mobile devices and has apps specifically designed for the iPhone and Android mobile phones. Using these apps you can view quotes, create and cancel orders, view watch lists, monitor your portfolio, trade options and monitor positions. They also have tested various mobile devices' abilities to use their mobile trading platform via a web browser and have discovered that that Android phones, iPhone, Palm Pre and a variety of Blackberry smartphones have the ability to access and successfully use their mobile site. Mac machines can run the trading tool successfully using Safari, Firefox or Google Chrome. We asked OptionsHouse about the iPad and they said that the iPhone version will run on the iPad but it is not ideal. They are currently developing an application specifically optimized for the iPad.
No matter how you like to interact with your broker, OptionsHouse supports that method. You can contact them by telephone, email, mail, instant chat or even by fax. We contacted them by telephone, email and instant chat and experienced their staff to be responsive, patient and knowledgeable. Their customer support staff is also located in the original Chicago Board of Trade building and their telephone support hours are Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Central time. However, like all brokers, they can only handle time-sensitive requests such as the buying and selling of securities by telephone.
Since this service was primarily created for self-directed traders, their educational opportunities are not as extensive as some other full-service brokers. However, they do post a blog and host webinars periodically. They also provide a virtual trading platform seeded with $5,000 of virtual money for testing strategies, and their parent company Peak6 Investments provides the free service We Seed. We Seed lets you search for stocks, test strategies, manage your portfolio, take classes online and interact with other traders virtually. It is a good place for beginners to test out their stock market prowess.
When it comes to options trading, numbers count. Even small additional broker fees can add up quickly with large orders and eat away at your profit. OptionsHouse understands the numbers and keeps their stock and options commissions low and uncomplicated. They also provide a trading platform tailored to options traders' needs as well as a team of options experts ready to assist you in the options capital of Chicago. You will be impressed with how far $5 will get you with OptionsHouse.
