What are Stock Brokers

If you want yourself to be considered for a better stock broker salary, you need to have a clean records and reputable history of handling client and managing their portfolios.

A confident stockbroker earn his living through managing his business clientele with extreme caution and leadership. The key to your success is that you should be displaying the power to command clients to accept the fact that your expertise will enrich their financial status.

You should also have a good credit history yourself. A good credit history reflects positively on your resume and gives you better chances to bargain for a good respectable salary.

The stockbroker salaries in United States start from $17 000 per year. If you have been working for around five years your salary can shoot up to $30 000 to $49 000 depending upon your performance. Even better ones can bag $60 000 or higher. In UK, the salaries range from £25,000 for a graduate trainee to £100,000 or more.

Bonuses, perks and performance appraisals are independent of the basic salary. They form the part of the package over and above the base stock broker salaries. So all you need to do is to perform well and drive a hard bargain with your employer.

Many investment firms do not pay stock broker salaries right away. In most of the cases and during the trainee period as well, you are hired on commission basis by the investment banks or stock broking firms. An average pay for a trainee at any stock broking firm is around $250- $500 per week.

It is not true that chances of finding traineeship are slim. On the contrary, the stock broking firms are mostly on a look out for new trainees that can be hired on commission basis. If you are just twenty years old, such a pay is not a bad option although it may be a constraint to older and more experienced professionals.

If you are already working for a stock broking firm but are on a look out for better broker salaries, then do not just depend upon the newspaper advertisements to internet openings. Check out new vacancies with different stock broking firms themselves.

Even if they are not advertising, you may never know when you would land up in a good job opening or the stock broking firm might consider you for another stockbroker in their firm looking at your credentials or experience. This would give a chance to bargain for better stock broker salary.

Do you know that when you enter the stock market you would be reaping benefits from the day one? It is a sad fact that things do not take shape as you want them too. First you need to go through gruelling minimum four months training with a stock broking firm.

Then, you need to take the exams for General Securities Registered Representatives examination. In many cases, in certain states you would need to take additional exam for Uniform Securities Agents State Law Examination to successfully register yourself as a stock broker and start dealing in stocks.

Even after passing these exams, you are labelled at trainee only. In most of the firms or investment banks, you are put through a gruelling training session for minimum two years to be labelled as a stock broker and get a broker salary. Thereafter you need to take a look at your career options in the stock exchange.

Stock brokerage firms prefer to hire mature, experienced people who have already been successful in another career. Stock broker firms are always on the lookout for a hard working, entrepreneurial stockbroker trainee.

Licensing requirements

You have to pass stockbroker license exams before you can start working as a broker. You have to pass the Series 7 Examination, which is formally known as the General Securities Representative Examination.

People, who want to work in the securities industry and sell any type of securities, must take this examination after working as employees of registered stock broking firms for at least four months. They are then eligible to register with all self regulatory organizations, for stock trading.

The Series 7 Stock Broker Exam is administered by the NASD (National Association of Securities Dealers), which is the leading provider of private sector financial regulatory services in the world.

Most states also require brokers to take the Uniform Securities Agents State Law Examination, which measures the prospective stock broker’s knowledge of the securities business, record keeping procedures and customer protection requirements.

A college degree can be helpful and the majority of people in this profession have a college degree, though it is not essential to have one to become a stock broker. Employers give more importance to personal traits, than to academic qualifications.

It is essential to be highly motivated to succeed and to have excellent interpersonal and communication skills. Selling skills and the ability to handle rejection can help beginners to establish a clientele.

 Ayna Miah

Brokers who work for brokerage houses are expected to meet their sales targets in terms of trading commissions and brokerage fees. They are not rewarded for helping you to make money on your investments.

To succeed, full service stock brokers must have a large number of active investment accounts and it may not always be possible for them to pay attention to the smaller accounts. In such a situation, the larger accounts get the most attention, while the smaller accounts tend to be forgotten by brokers.

Ask relatives, friends and work colleagues to recommend stockbrokers they have worked with and research your options, before you select a broker. Talk to different brokers and ask questions about their investment philosophy.

Listen carefully to what they say and what they don`t and draw your own conclusions. Look for a competent financial broker who you feel you can rely on to keep your best interests in mind.

 Ayna Miah

You can file a malpractice suit against brokers, who have caused you to lose money due to either negligent or intentional acts committed by them. Brokers cannot make trades that are inconsistent with your directives, or make excessive trades to earn additional commission.

While giving you investment advice your stockbroker must take into account your objectives, financial resources and risk tolerance. A finance broker cannot mislead you about any investment. A financial broker should not sell you products that are not offered by the brokerage firm, or improperly mark tickets to avoid scrutiny into trades.

Brokers must not switch mutual funds only to earn extra commissions. Investment planning and investment management should be done by brokers in keeping with your objectives, financial resources and risk tolerance and they must always keep you informed. Recommending stocks based on the broker`s interests or insider information is prohibited.

If you have been a victim of stock broker fraud, you are entitled to file a malpractice lawsuit to claim compensation

Ayna Miah

If you trust a stock broker to give you financial advice and to handle your stock investments, you will expect that the broker will behave in a reasonable manner, as a stock broker should behave under similar circumstances.

In such a situation, brokers may not be totally committed to acting in your best interests and this can make a big difference to the return on investment you will get on your stock portfolio.

Always remember that you are the customer and make the investments decisions yourself. If your broker disregards your views and you end up losing money due to investment broker malpractice, you are entitled to claim compensation for your losses.