Conference nyoss1::market_investing

    Can you please post the phone number for this place?

    Corrections:
    
    The name of the company is
    
    	Montano Securities Corp.
    	1-800-542-7424
    
    Intro course [2 hours - free of charge] to be held
    
    	Danvers
    	Sheraton Tara Hotel & Resort
    	Aug 31
    	Tue Sept 28
    
    	Framingham
    	Sheraton Tara
    	Sep 1
    	Sep 29
    
    	Newton
    	Sheraton Tara
    	Sep 2 & 30
    
    	all start at 7:30 pm
    
    	Call 1-800-542-7424 to confirm attendance & get more info

    Correction - all seminars/courses, including into., start at 7:00 pm
    _not_ 7:30pm

    Also for those who are unable to physically attend they offer as an
    alternative a Video-based course.

    Who would want to do business with a "part-time stock broker".  One
    either gets an investment advisor who will do research, answer
    questions, etc. with a bit more qualifications that they passed the
    exam or one gets a discount broker and do the work themselves.

I went to the Montano intro in Danvers, MA last night.

To get a stockbroker's license you need to
	. Pass a difficult test
	. Pass a less difficult test
	. Be sponsored by a Securities firm

Once you have the license you can sell securities as a broker. If you leave 
the brokerage company you have two years to get hired again or you need to
retake the test and be re-sponsored.

Montano offers the following:
	10 week course - meet 1 night/week
	sponsorship
	Full or part-time employment as a broker once you pass the test

The course is $495 - pay Montano
It's divided into modules. Start anytime. If you usually go to, for example,
Framingham on Thursday's to take the class but can't on a particular week
then you can go to Danvers on Tuesday or Newton on Wednesday and take the
same module the same week. The modules are independant of each other and you
can start anytime. They offer a monthly 'cram weekend' the weekend before the
monthly SEC test which is given in Waltham.

The test is $490 - pay SEC
You take the tests - 6 hours.  If you pass you get a license and a broker #
with Montano.  If you flunk you get to retake the test for $170 at a later date.
In the meantime you can continue to go to class as often as you like - no extra
charge.

You get your license
Montano gives you a broker # and the SEC gives you a license.  You work for
Montano full or part-time. Your choice. Montano has orientation after you
get your license - how to use their Research, how to develop a client base,
what to fill out to effect a sale etc.
You can work full time in Boston or at home. They pay commission only, no
base salary.
Montano has no sales quota to keep employment.  This means you can just
manage your own portfolio, sell to your brother-in-law, your club, you
sphere of influence [whatever that means], or cold call. Up to you. You have
full resources of Montano at your disposal regardless.

You can also go work for someone else. You can set up an office in your
home. Whatever.

Once you pass the tests it's good for life and you never have to take it again.
[Unless you quit]

Montano participates in IPO's, Bonds, Margins etc. It's a full service brokerage
house. They provide portfolio assistence for clients of yours etc.

Of the 25 people last night two signed up to take the course.

All the above is what I was told - I make no claim it's factual. This is not
a recommendation or not not a recommendation - it's just what I heard. 
They gave out an information packet which was pretty detailed about the
course and gave a free paperback written by Dan Montano [had a $24 price tag]
on what he perceives as the near future to 30 years for brokerage.

> Montano has no sales quota to keep employment.  This means you can just
> manage your own portfolio
    
    This is an interesting possibility.  Can you give me an idea of what
    the NET cost would be to buy, say, 100 shares of MSFT?  If the cost is
    low enough, an active trader might be able to reduce commissions enough
    to make in-out trading profitble.
    
      John

    
    Do you have any more interest on costs of services once you become a
    licensed broker?
    
    For example, if I had a client that wanted to open an account, what
    fees are associated with opening/maintaining the account?  Do they 
    prepare statements for clients?
    
    Question 2; how does a part-time 'at home' broker enter an order?
    Do I call an 'order taker' at some headquarters operation?
    Do they accept various trade orders (limits, stops)?  Do they trade
    options (and does that require additional licensing?)  
    
    And, of course, I second HallyB's question about commission rates --
    what would it cost to buy/sell something in my own account?

    re: -1
    
    I called their phone number in California. As far as the "part-time"
    and working at home is concerned, they "suggested" something like a 
    dial-in modem. But, I was never able to get a direct answer such as
    "this is how we do it". I was also told that they only have office in
    California. So, if you operate anywhere else, you have to do it
    remotely. The guy I talked to on the phone was very nice and helpful.
    
    Mike

    I was told that they opened last week on 2 Wall St., NY,NY. They will
    open this October in downtown Boston.
    
    About all the other questions etc.  Don't have the answers. I believe
    that there is a meeting tonight at the Sheraton Tara in Framingham at
    7:00pm. If you really want to know go down and get a seat early. 
    You'll get the same spiel I did - or if you learn more or differently
    that would be interesting to know! And you'll get a free paperback
    written by the owner - Dan Montano - which explains more than you
    really care to know about him etc.
    
    Also there's other meetings later on this month - see a previous note.

    
    I called checking into commission schedules.  It gets a little
    complicated, and I'm not sure I have the answer correct, but...
    
    The basic story is that commissions are split between broker and
    Monsato based on a sliding scale of 5 levelts; ranging from a 40/60
    split (you/Monsato) for commissions < $1000/month, to 70/30 split
    for commissions > $20000/month (i.e. mega-heavy duty commissions...)
    
    I got a few sample commisions rates:
    	100 shares @50 - $77
    	500 shares @20 - $170
    	
    But... you apparently substract 40% from these numbers if you are
    a 'broker', with the result being split between you and Monsato.
    
    This gets complicated, and I'm not sure I have it correct, but the
    best I can figure would work at like this:
    
        100 shares @50, $77 commision, - 40% = $46
    	   assuming a low volume trading, <$1000 month, at the end of
    	   the month you'd get back your share of this $46 (40%),
    	   making the total cost $27.
    
        Not bad.  A dollar less than Brown and Company.
    
        Using the other example, 500 shares @ $20, yields a total net
        cost of $61.  Again this isn't bad, but Brown & Company would
        charge $40 ($25 + 0.03/share, for NYSE)
    
    I should emphasize, however, that I'm not sure I got this correct.  The
    broker who spoke with me didn't seem to understand how it all worked --
    and this is how he gets paid!
    

>    But... you apparently substract 40% from these numbers if you are
>    a 'broker', with the result being split between you and Monsato.
    
>    This gets complicated, and I'm not sure I have it correct, but the
>    best I can figure would work at like this:
    
>        100 shares @50, $77 commision, - 40% = $46
>    	   assuming a low volume trading, <$1000 month, at the end of
>    	   the month you'd get back your share of this $46 (40%),
>    	   making the total cost $27.
    
I don't think that's right.  Being pretty familiar with this stuff,
I bet it is more like this:

Take 40% of the $77 commission and split that 50/50 with Monsato.
40% of $77 is $30.80.  Half of that is $15.40.
RESULT:  You pay a $77 commission on the trade, but you get back
         a check for $15.40 (which is taxable income).
         Net commission is $61.60 (or higher after tax)

Or..maybe he meant the 40% went towards the clearing costs with
the result being split 50/50 between the broker and Monsato.
$77-30.80 clearing costs= $46.20  $23.10 goes to broker.
RESULT:  You pay a $77 commission, get back $23.10 of taxable income.
         Net commission is $53.90 (or higher after tax)

Anyway, I know the clearing cost must be AT LEAST $25, and then the
broker would need to pay Monsato their share of the remaining split
on top of that.

I attended the "Complimentary Seminar" in Newton at the Sheraton Tara
last night.   A rambling presentaion was given to perhaps 40 people.
Basically, the material in the stuff already handed out or mailed was
reiterated in the presentation, which was given by a self-proclaimed
ex-insurance man who had come to "see the light" after studying the
PASS TRAK Series 7 Prin. and Practice book ($50 in bookstores) in the
Montano course (given "free" with the course).

Several, including myself, tried to ask him about commissions but he
simply refused to elaborate on the numbers written on a piece of paper
he picked up.  These numbers were the percentage figures already given
in previous replies here, i.e., 40% for the first $1000, etc..

Either he didn't know anything more specifically, or he had been told
not to discuss commissions.   Several people began to walk out after
these questions received no clarification.   But I noticed that at least
three or maybe four people were signing up to take the course.

All in all, very strange.

-- Marden

    
    It sounds like they've discovered a marketable business...  they seem
    to be selling sponsorship for the broker exam; current market price for
    such sponsorship is evidently about $500.
    
    I wonder what the requirements are for being a sponsor?  Could anyone
    with a brokers' license start up a company and sell such sponsorship?
    

    fwiw, the 'clearing house' apparently charges a $7.25 fee.

>    fwiw, the 'clearing house' apparently charges a $7.25 fee.

Hmm...I don't see how this can be done so cheaply unless they are not
fulfilling all the normal functions of a clearing firm.   I wonder if
Montano is big enough to clear their own trades and they just allocate
the $7.25 for clearing?  Did they say who the clearing firm was?

Now that my interest has been piqued, I think I'll give them a call
and find out.

    The expression "clear through" is not used to refer to the
    clearinghouse but to the member firm of a clearinghouse.
    
    Membership in the clearinghouse is rather expensive and all smaller
    firms clear through larger ones.
    
    "Clearing" is necessary because without it, every transaction would
    involve physical exchange of securities and cash.

    I believe the clearinghouse is RKS

    Has anyone signed up for this course and if so what are your
    impressions of it?
    
                                                      JRW

    
    A sponsor probably has to have a seat on the stock exchange or be able
    to work with someone who does.  This is how they make their trades.
    
    I looked into one of these with Quest Capital in California and to
    execute trades, you could just call on the phone.
    
    I think if you did frequent trading, you may be able to save money on
    the commissions.
    

    I don't think that a sponsor probably has to have a seat on the stock
    exchange or be able to work with someone who does. No one has a 'seat'
    on NASDAQ, for example. Montano does not have a seat on any exchange. I
    believe that you need to be sponsored because you need to be bonded,
    and you need to be bonded to protect the investors.