Author Archives: BetCrooks

How to Get the $9.95 Trades on CIBC Investor’s Edge Once You Have $50,000

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The regular trading commission at CIBC Investor’s Edge (in October 2013) is $28.95 per trade. If you trade excessively, er, frequently, you can qualify for a lower cost. Most people, however, won’t qualify until they have over $50,000 in their account/s. The $50,000 can be combined across various accounts held by people living in the same household. For example, it could be the total held in a husband’s RRSP and his wife’s TFSA. Once you reach the magic $50,000 at Investor’s Edge what do you do to start getting the cheaper $9.95 trades?
UPDATE: Investor’s Edge now offers $6.95 trades to anyone regardless of their account balance. Be sure to have the minimum account size, though, to avoid any annual fees.

Sorry This Can’t Be Handled Online or Automatically

You’d think that with huge computer programs that can trade stocks down to fractions of a cent in less than a 60 th of a second that they could just automatically reduce the trading commission when your account balance totals over $50,000.

In reality, though, these computer programs were written before they introduced the idea of reduced fees based on the amount of money in the account/s. It’s only through aggressive competition (among banks! imagine!) that these types of reduced fees have appeared. In fact the reduced price for investors with $50,000 is only a few years old. The computer programs have not kept up.

So getting $9.95 trades requires a manual change to the program. And that requires phoning CIBC Investor’s Edge to request the adjustment.

Contacting Investor’s Edge to Reduce Your Commissions

In October 2013, the number to call is 1 800 567 3343 between 8 and 8 ET.

What to Expect When You Call

I had hoped the call would be a simple one minute “Hello. Ok. Done.” Foolish me. Phoning also gives the customer service representative a captive audience for further questions.

First they explained how with $100,000 in accounts with Investor’s Edge and other CIBC divisions, we could qualify for $6.95 trades. Next was a pitch to have my spouse move investments to Investor’s Edge. And a plug to move our mortgage. (We don’t even have a mortgage which is always extremely fun to say!)

However, within 3 minutes, the phone call was finished and the change had been made. Or had it?

Confirming the Trades Now Cost Only $9.95

Not that I don’t trust people but I did check as soon as trading started the next morning what the system said my trading fee would be. (I had phoned my request in at 7:55 ET) To my pleased surprise, it correctly states I am now charged $9.95 not $28.95. Good one Investor’s Edge!

What If I Already Executed a Trade After I Reached the $50,000 Level But Without Phoning

Many people think the $9.95 price will kick in automatically. So they put in an order to buy or sell without really looking. They realize later that they’ve been charged the full $28.95.
If you are one of these unfortunates, just phone Investor’s Edge. They should be willing to credit you back the difference in cost. ($19.) The number is the same: 1 800 567 3343 between 8 and 8 ET.

Enjoy your savings!

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Do you pay $28.95 or $9.95 for your trades at Investor’s Edge? Or are you down to $6.95 because you have more invested or have a large mortgage at CIBC? Please share your experiences with a comment.

Talk to Your Kids About Money: You Never Know. They MIGHT Be Listening

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My kids will be the first to tell you I talk too much. Especially, they say, I lecture too much. Guilty! However I was pleasantly surprised this week to discover that apparently sometimes they are listening when I talk about money.

Library Books are Wonderful but Some Books are Meant for Buying

Having a full family of readers means we have to keep our book buying under control. There are two major problems: the expense and the need for storage space.
After having to up-size the bookshelves in their rooms a few times, my children eventually understood that there really is a limit to how many books you can own in an average home.

I introduced them to my own family’s tactic: only buy a book you want to read more than once. For one-time-only reads, borrow the books from the library. Not sure if you’ll want to read it again? Borrow it from the library and then buy it if you do want it again.

While they have gradually caught on to this tactic, they also had the “outgrowing” advantage during the years it took to catch hold. When you’re growing up there are often books you love but that you eventually outgrow and don’t want anymore. Those can be retired either to the family bookshelves in the basement, or to the various fundraising book sales and donation programs.

How to Curb the Cost of Book Buying

While they still were in the ages and stages of needing to own every book in a series with 20 or more titles, it was important to teach them ways to save money buying books.

They learned

  • to search through books at garage sales, especially local sales where they knew the family’s children were slightly older than they were
  • to check the books for sale at the local thrift stores
  • to keep an eye on the discards and “friends of the library” books sold outside our three nearby branches
  • to save up for the annual Grade-6-fundraising book sale at their school
  • to put new titles on their wish lists for Christmas and birthdays
  • to trade books with friends and relatives

Searching for the Best Price on New Titles Can Save Big Bucks

They also got used to me looking up books online. I would make them read reviews on amazon.com before they committed to an expensive new book.

I would also price check. Usually amazon.ca has the best price for new books, but not always. They also learned that they can look up a book on bookoutlet.com or at abebooks.com.

Apparently They DO Listen and Learn

This week, one of my children wanted to pre-order a book that’s been a long time in the writing from amazon.ca. I was a bit surprised:

  • it’s been a long wait for this one
  • my child knows the book will be sitting on the table at the local book store on Release Day
  • there’s money on a gift card waiting to use for part of the cost of a new book

So I asked, “Why not just get it at the store?”

The answer was a gratifying one: “Because it’s 34% off online. That’s almost enough to buy another paperback later.”

Cool! They really do get it sometimes.

Now if I can just figure out how to get them to clean their rooms….

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Do you have a family of bibliophiles? What tips and tricks do you use to reduce costs and keep the volume manageable? Please share your experiences with a comment.