By Robb Engen, Boomer & Echo

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

As a Canadian investor, I’ve been pleased to see that most of the big bank brokerages lowered their cost per trade from $29 to under $10. Previously, most investors needed a minimum of $50,000 in assets to qualify for lower trade commissions.  This has presumably levelled the playing field for small investors.

When I first opened a discount brokerage account with TD Waterhouse (now TD Direct Investing) back in 2009, high trading commissions were the norm. I chose TD because I had an existing banking relationship and my $25,000 investment met the threshold to waive the $100 annual admin fee.

At the time I wasn’t aware of online brokerages like Questrade – which offered trades for as low as $4.95 with no administration fees.

High costs for small investors

The costs added up over the years. From 2009 to 2011 I made 36 trades and paid a total of $1,044 in fees. Had I been with Questrade, I would have paid a fraction of that amount – just $178.20 in trading fees. Continue Reading…