How to choose an Emini SP broker?

Twitter It!

Before you go and click on all the ads that advertise for Emini SP Brokers, here are a few guide lines that would help you to choose one:

1)      Software Selection- Choose a broker that has multiple selections of futures trading software.  In the event one is too complex or too simplified, you can easily switch between one or the others.

We recommend using NinjaTrader Broker as a starting point because you can custom makes it to your needs and requirements. You can trade from both the DOM (Depth of Market) and/or the charts.

2)     Discount Commissions Broker – Does not matter how you slice it or dice it, it is very important that commissions will not eat into your account. A reasonable commission fee for Emini SP is in the $4.00 to $4.50 Range depending on volume and frequency of trading.

3)     Tech Support – All online platforms at some point could experience a technical malfunction. It is important that you could immediately get a hold of your broker to close or report your positions in real time.

4)     Reasonable day trading margins – it is important that you get access to reasonable day trading margins to utilize your capital correctly.  BUT, don’t utilize every single dollar in your account to over leverage.  We can have a whole discussions as to why it’s important not go with brokers that offer margins that are too low, we wrote an article about that here:  Day Trading Margins we recommend to use 1000 per contract to 2500 depending on your experience of trading.

5)     Use your intuition about the people you are about to do business with…call and speak with a broker first. He will be the guy that you will a keep a rapport with over the years….so make sure you have a common language.

How to choose an Emini SP broker? is a post from: Futures Trading Blog for Independent Self-Directed Traders and System Traders