ETRADE Promo – Get 60 Days of Free Trades | Bonus Promotion

Tired of having those pesky stock trading commissions cut into your investment profits? Then get 60 days of free trading through the latest ETRADE Promotion.

When you open a new Power ETRADE Account and fund it with $2000, you will receive free trading for up to 6o days from the account opening date. The total number of free trades cannot exceed 500 within those 2 months. Accounts must be opened by December 31, 2010.

The clock on the 60 days of free trades starts on the day you open the account so it is best to fund the account immediately during the opening process with a linked checking account.

ETRADE normally charges $9.95 per trade, so if you were to make 500 trades within 60 days you could potentially save $4975! I think all those day traders out there are getting excited about this. See the promotion page for more details.

If up to $5000 in free trades isn’t enough to get you excited, then check out the $100 cash you can get through the latest OptionsXpress Promo

Free Pastry from Starbucks on March 23rd

Starbucks is giving away free pasties to customers on Wednesday March 23rd in their US and Canada stores. You need to print out the coupon below and take it in to your local Starbucks.

According to the text on the coupon, you will receive a free pastry when the purchase of any “handcrafted, brewed or iced beverage”.

This offer is good from 4:30am – 10:30am or until the all pastries are gone.

(click the coupon for full size image to print)

Free Investing Book Download

A reader (thanks mrgl23!) tipped me off to the fact that Vanguard.com is letting you download The Elements of Investing which was written by former Vanguard board members Charles Ellis and Burton G. Malkiel. According to the description on the download page, the book “distills investing into five fundamental principles: save, index, diversify, avoid blunders, and keep it simple.” I haven’t downloaded , since I had purchased it from Amazon.com last week. If you are just getting started investing, it never hurts to get information from the pros, especially when it is free. I am not sure if this download was meant for everyone or just customers, but I would download it while it is still available to all.

Amazon.com curretly is selling The Elements of Investing for $14. 15 reviewers of the book gave it an average of 4/5 stars, so it would seem that it might be worth a look. I haveb’t gotten around to reading it yet, but should by the end of next week. One item on my to do list is to rediversify my portfolio since it hasn’t changed in a very long time, so now might be the chance to do it.

Alliant Credit Union Savings Still at 2%

If you are still looking for a high yield savings account that hasn’t had a rate drop in over 3 months, then you may consider Alliant Credit Union. Their Savings account is still sitting at 2% APY for the past 3 months without a drop. To get the 2% you must maintain a balance on $100 or more in the account

Their checking account is also at a decent 1.75%. To get the 1.75% you need to opt out of paper statements and have at least one monthly electronic deposit. They have an ACH feature that allows you to push and pull money to other linked accounts, which makes moving money around very painless.

Alliant is more of a cutting edge credit union, meaning they have features and benefits that other credit unions don’t. My favorite is the e-Deposit Plus. This allows you to deposit checks into your account by using a scanner. No more trips to the bank to deposit checks. Since Alliant is not located where I live, having an ATM, Checks and free online bill pay for taking money out of my account and direct deposit and e-Deposit Plus to put money back in, I never need to even go to the branch.

They don’t offer any debit rewards programs like other banks, but the high interest rates alone make up for that as you know most of those debit programs conversion rates are terrible.

Alliant Credit Union is based out of Chicago. To join you must be a member of a qualifying organization. A $25 one time membership to the National PTA is good enough to get you in which is how most people are allowed to join that don’t live or work in the Chicago area.

I have had a checking, savings, HELOC and HSA with Alliant for over 2 years now and use them as my main bank. They have excellent customer service and are always competitive with their rates. IF you have had it with banks that just offer teaser rates, or are tired of jumping through hoops in reward checking accounts to qualify for the high APY, you may take a look at Alliant Credit Union for your banking needs

$100 OptionsXpress Promo – 2010 [Promotion Bonus]

There is a new OptionsXpress promo where you can get $100 when opening a new account.

You need to open an account (using the link below) with at least $500 by December 31st 2011 and execute 3 trades within 12 months of the account opening. The $100 bonus will be deposited into the new optionsXpress account within one month after meeting the terms and conditions of this offer

Learn how you can get $100 when you open up a new optionsXpress account.

OptionsXpress is a online brokerage that allows you to trade options, stocks, futures, mutual funds, bonds and more in one account. They have a flat rate of $14.95 / trade for stock, but what is even more enticing is that if you are an options trader they charge $15 or a 10 contract option order. Most brokerages charge a flat commission for options then charge an extract dollar per contract. OptionsXpress has included 10 contracts in that price which helps keep commissions low when trading options.

I have an OptionseXpress account that I use for trading options and really like their service. They have an ACH feture where you can link your checking account to move money in and out of your optionsxpress account. They have a fast trade execution which is always important to me when I am trying to put in orders at or near the current stock price.

Another great feature they offer is a virtual trading account where you can practice with fake money. This is nice if you are new to the market and want to play a bit before investing real money.

They have also rolled out an easy to read options naming, where you can easily distinguish your options holdings from your stock holdings. I have never had to deal with their customer service so I cannot comment, however live chat and calling their 1-800 number for help is always available.

If you are looking for a great brokerage and a quick $100 to help with future commisions, then sign up today:
Learn how you can get $100 when you open up a new optionsXpress account.

Online Checking Account from Ally Bank

Ally Bank, which has always been known for their best savings account, has a new Ally Bank Interest Checking Account which offers unlimited ATM rebates. So not only do you not get charged by Ally bank when using an ATM, but Ally also rebates you the fees charged by the ATM.

In addition to the free ATM usage, you get free checks and unlimited check writing. The interest rate is dependant on the amount of money you have on deposit, for balances less than $15,000 you will earn .05% APY and for balances $15,000 and greater you will earn 1.05% APY. (Rate as of 03/19/2010) The account also offers free Online banking and Bill Pay as well as free overdraft protection. Ally Bank has an ACH feature where you can transfer money in and out of your linked accounts for free and you can also set up direct deposit if this is going to be your main checking account.

All of this with absolutely no fees or minimum balances. This isn’t even an Ally Bank Promo! The ATM rebates alone can save you quite a bit of money if you tend to use ATM’s often throughout the month. For those of you that are sick and tired of being gouged by fees from other banks and the dismal interest rates that they offer, this is definitely an account that can help you save.

Check out the Ally Bank Interest Checking Accountpage for more details.