Investing near Carle Place, NY

“I went here today to take care of some paperwork. While I do dislike Fidelity overall I'll have to admit the workers here were very polite and helpful. So not sure about all the other negative reviews. But things were actually good, but again I do dislike Fidelity and moving my business elsewhere in the future. But I'll give them 5 stars because today they deserved it.”

“I've been with David Lerner & Assoc for almost 20 years, with Rich Lerner as my advisor. Needless to say, if I hadn't been pleased, I wouldn't still be there. Rich has always been upfront, helpful, not only regarding my investments with him, but other financial big life decisions, even if he wouldn't benefit. That's the kind of man and professional and now friend he is. During marital crises, health crises, and of course for help for general financial advice, he has soundly, honestly and simply explained my options and guided me in wise decisions. I consider him indispensable and part of my family. My son is now using him and is so impressed and glad he followed my suggestion. Rich took over an hour with him on first conversation just explaining investment basics. What more can I say? I'm well into my senior years and have more peace and security with Rich and Lerner & Associates by my side.”

“Since I am planning an overseas trip I did a little research and found the travel community raves about the ATM features of Charles Schwab's checking account with good reason. They reimburse you ALL ATM fees and NO foreign transaction fees (when you take money out in another currency). In general I found you usually get the best exchange rates withdrawing funds directly from your bank account instead of exchanging money at the booths you find in airports/cities around the world, or bringing a wad of dollars to a bank. That alone was the main reason for opening an account, but I also found they have 24 hour customer service. It is US based and knowledgeable. You can also chat online so no need to speak on the phone. I did find they tend to ask questions about your investment plans and do try to steer you towards their investment products. To open a checking account you also need to open a brokerage account, but there are currently no requirements to fund it. You may want to. In looking over their investment options they have some competitive expense ratios on their mutual funds and ETF as low as .03% beating the low cost investment leader, Vanguard in some categories. Stick with the no transaction fee funds and ETFs, because the ones with fees are pretty high. The fine print states that expense ratios can change at any time, but as of now that is some of the very lowest around. Truly pleasantly surprised by my experience so far. Hoping the good vibes continue when I travel over the summer and actually use my ATM privileges.”