ShareBuilder has announced that as of April 1st, margin rates are changing. Here is how ShareBuilder describes the changes…
How are margin rates changing?
We are moving from four tiers of rates to eight tiers on April 1, 2013. Each tier will still have its own interest rate, which is based on the amount of money you borrow. There will no longer be a discounted margin rate for Advantage customers. If you’re using margin, you may be affected, depending on your balance.
Here’s how it’ll be, starting April 1, 2013:
| Margin Balance | Basic Pricing Program Before 4/1/13 |
Advantage Pricing Program Before 4/1/13 |
Both Pricing Programs 4/1/13 and After |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0 - less than $10,000 | 7.70% | 7.20% | 7.70% |
| $10,000 - $25,000 | 7.70% | 7.20% | 7.50% |
| $25,000.01 - $50,000 | 7.70% | 7.20% | 7.25% |
| $50,000.01 - $100,000 | 6.70% | 6.20% | 6.70% |
| $100,000.01 - $250,000 | 6.70% | 6.20% | 6.50% |
| $250,000.01 - $500,000 | 4.70% | 4.20% | 5.25% |
| $500,000.01 - $1,000,000 | 4.70% | 4.20% | 4.90% |
| More than $1,000,000 | 4.70% | 4.20% | 4.70% |
The real effect for regular customers is minimal and for advantage customers, this is a jump in every tier. ShareBuilder is certainly not among the stock brokers that offer the lowest margin rates. Go here to view our full stock broker margin rate comparison article: