Hi all
Let me chip-in. I started investing for the first time ~2 years ago and after evaluating many options I decided for TW. Through research I knew that IB and other options were cheaper after reaching a certain amount of money invested (there’s actually a good post in this same website), but for me personally TW had a lot of advantages:
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IB is cheaper only if you are ready to lump-sum invest large amounts. With TW you can use dollar-cost-averaging and the fees are included in the 0.5%. Since I wanted DCA for the peace of mind it gives me (I know that lump-sum is actually better, but it was my first time investing and with DCA I feel more confident in case of a big crisis). With TW I can DCA relative small amounts without paying exorbiting fees.
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At the time I wasn’t sure if I was ever goint to pass the threshold were IB and other brokers are cheaper than TW, and even if it was, it wouldn’t have been for some years.
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TW gave me the confidence also regarding taxes. I had never invested and had no idea how to file taxes, and no one to ask for (without paying). With TW I get a document and instructions for how to file my taxes.
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The company made me a great impression. Before investing I have sent an email called “2 questions about investment start and fees”; it ended up being a 50+ email conversation about all the questions I had. The support was amazing in answering all my questions, and it continued even after I invested with them. The guy from support even invited me to grab a coffee, and I was only investing the minimum to join them, I am not a big fish or anything like that.
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If you want you can create your own portfolio (it’s what I did), I asked them a list of their ETFs and picked the ones I wanted in their app. My total cost is 0.61% if I am not wrong. In my personal opinion ok for my situation described above.
TW definitively helped me pull the trigger on investing for the first time by giving a lot of confidence. I can not recomend it enough if you are in a similar situation. If you are a seasoned investor with relatively high amounts to invest, ready to lump-sum it, then go with IB or other brokers. If you’re relatively new, want to DCA and/or in general don’t plan to invest that much, then TW is a good alternative, at least for starting out.
p.s. if anyone is interested write me for the referral, someone already mentioned it, it’s 50% off on 1 year of fees, so only 0.25% + your TER.