Trading Can I start buying shares without a broker?

Hi all.
I've got a bit of money sitting idle in the bank, and think it's about time I started investing in the stock market. My question is... where to start?

What's the easiest / cheapest way to trade shares? Can I do it directly, or do I have to go through a broker?

Thanks all... I'm totally clueless!!

 

1. I've got a bit of money sitting idle in the bank, and think it's about time I started investing in the stock market.

That is a good news for anyone who could have some idle money and think about to make more.

Before you start to put the idle money into the market, I suggest you question yourself first, such as "is it better to lose the idle money or leave it idle in your bank?" This question is very important for long term and then you need another question how to make the money only in the market rather than lose the money?

2. My question is... where to start?

Start to know more about the stock market and yourself, the risk management, and how to find the chances and take the chances with affordable risks. We have more chances to lose money than make the money.

80% of market players lose the money and after 15 years in the market I still wonder how to make the butter and milk in the market.

Don't mistake I want to stop you. You could be the best in the market. We just need to learn enough about the driving before we jump into a car!

3. What's the easiest / cheapest way to trade shares? Can I do it directly, or do I have to go through a broker?

Never lose too much and then pay less brokerage fee for buying and selling your shares plus legally paying the tax as little as possible.

If you are confident to make the money in the market, you just need to find a on-line broker to play such as applying for a trading account in https://www.comsec.com.au/default.aspx

Good luck!

 

The fact that you're asking these questions, to me is a clear sign that you shouldn't put a single cent into shares yet.

You'll be better off doing the following - get yourself educated on the Australian sharemarket, how it operates, how shares operate, how to buy and sell them etc. I can highly recommend Roger Kinsky's books for beginners to the Australian market:

Shares Made Simple: A Beginner’s Guide to Sharemarket Success RRP $27.95 or
Online Investing for the Australian Sharemarket RRP $29.95

Once you've read up, you can join some brokers for free, but some others might require opening an account with a minimum of about $5000 balance on them. Go for a free one, and do what they call Paper Trading, where you basically, pretend to buy and sell shares, but track them against the real prices.

Be careful though, paper trading rarely reflect real actions, but for a beginner its a good start, as long as you stick to your rules for when you want to buy and when you sell (on paper that is).

I've been trading shares semi-fulltime for the past two years, and have been learning about shares for about 4yrs before that, and have held shares (basically buying and holding on for long term) for about ten years before all that.

I've walked away from the long term buy and hold strategy these days, but i'm very much learning things every day, every trade.

 

As an start read a few books about trading and find out if trading is for you.
Not everyone can be a successful trader.

Few books to consider:
Christopher Tate - "The Art of Trading"
Daryl Guppy - "Share Trading" + "Chart Trading" + "Trading Tactics"
Douglas Mark - "The Disciplined Trader"
Dr.Alexander Elder - "Trading For a Living"
Stan Weinstein - "Secrets for Profiting in Bull and Bear Markets"

 

Tropo, i certainly agree this books are good, have a few of them myself. I think the original poster needs guidance more on the mechanisms for purchasing and selling shares, and an understanding of how to participate in the market. The books above would be a bit more about strategies and trading concepts which i believe is the next level of education. Well suited to be done in parallel with paper trading.

 

Well, in my view buying/selling process and how to participate in the market is the second step.
Knowing/understanding what trading is all about, how to prepare for buy and sell process and how to evaluate risks is a first step.

 

Hi everyone. Thanks so much for your responses. I have applied for a Commsec account. I've spent a bit of time researching, and I'll just invest very small amounts of money to start with and get a feel for how it all works. I certainly won't go crazy!

 

Very small amounts of money are still money and are our own hard earned money! In the market all of us find our own excuses to lose our own money.

Nearly all of losers including myself gamble the small amounts of money first and then if we win some little money we would assume we could win forever even though we just enjoy the lucks of the laymen for sometimes! If you win don't believe you are invincible or assume it is because you have done great research and acted in the market as genius!

The market rewards the wise fools rather than the idiotic genius!

Good luck!

 

Good luck with it, if in doubt stay out. Ask plenty of questions but one thing you'll start realising is that most answers you get will always be someones opinion (eg "I believe this stock will trend etc.."), and it'll be upto you to form your own opinion.

 

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Should give you all the info you need to know!