Planning on moving? There are a lot of factors to consider that may be unique to your situation. Some of us have children, pets, valuable art and lots of plants. Others have a suitcase and a job acceptance letter. Whether it is cross town or cross country a little bit of planning can go a long way.

One of the initial decisions you will need to make is how you will be moving. Would it make more sense to rent a truck and move yourself or find a company to do it for you? Moving companies are well known for taking advantage of consumers, so do a lot of research before employing one. Be very careful, this is one of the most crucial steps of your move and one of the easiest ways to be taken advantage of. Beware of moving companies that you have never heard of that contact you through the Internet. Instead talk to your friends and colleagues about whom they have had a good move with on a previous move. For additional info on what you need to know about moving companies and common scams go to www.movingscam.com.

If you are doing the move on your own shop around for truck rental specials. You may want to purchase your own moving supplies instead of buying them from the truck rental company. It is common to see low rental rates and very high packing and equipment rates. You will need at least one dolly or hand truck, blankets for furniture and valuables, and an assortment of straps and twine. Inspect the vehicle thoroughly including the tires, wipers, and lights. Organize everything by labeling all of your boxes beforehand.

One of the best times to consolidate your belongings is during a move. You may find you have one vacuum cleaner too many or an extra Betamax machine. Contact a charity to arrange for a pick up or a drop off of these items. Make sure to file the receipts of the donations for tax time. The other fun family alternative is to have a garage sale.

Make sure all of your important phone numbers are not packed and readily available. If you just sold your home you will need to contact the utility companies to turn off services, call your insurance company to terminate the policy at your old address, and go online or call the post office to notify them of a change of address.

Ready to go? It is likely you will spend the entire moving day at home. If you are using a moving service, do not leave them unattended. Don’t leave your house until the movers have presented you with a bill of lading and thoroughly review the document. Make sure the drivers have your contact info in case there is an emergency. Get the movers mobile numbers as well so you contact them on the road. Lock all your doors and close your windows for the last time. Say goodbye to all of your neighbors and give them your plants as a farewell gift if your are using a moving company. Now it’s time to take a deep breath and to get excited about your future home.

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Moving may not happen often in your life but many people end up paying more money than they should because they are usually frustrated and tired by the end of the day. Here are some areas to check out if you are looking for a cheaper way to relocate.

The worst part about asking your friends to help with moving is that you have to treat everyone to dinner afterwards anyway, which cost just as much money. You might as well hire professional help to do the job instead.

Unlike the actual moving part, I strongly suggest that you pack your own boxes for your move. Professional packers are not for the average person because they might spend days doing it for you and it will cost you.

When you move, organize your boxes so they are close to the front door. This way, it takes less time for the movers to move everything and while it takes work to do this, it’s worth all the money at the end.

You may not like the movers on that day but since you are stuck with them, treat them nicely. They can break your furniture and worst yet, slow the move way down costing you time and money.

One person should know the move inside out and can answer every question that the movers will have. Ideally, it would be bets if everybody knows and don’t contradict each other.

Some movers will allow you to negotiate a final set price before they move. These might be the way you want to go because at least you know what you are getting yourself into before you move.

Negotiate. The owner is used to people asking for a reduced price so don’t be afraid to ask. Let them know that you are looking for a fair price and can recommend them to your friends if the work is good and cheap.

Look around for different movers before you settle on one. In addition to price which is obvious, check ratings, speed and whether they are careful with your stuff or not.

Some movers will move your drawers and desks without asking you to clear them out. This is great for people who are lazy and might even save some time. Remember time is money.

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Among the so many varieties of credit cards, one of the most underestimated is the value of a business credit card. Many people do not choose to apply for a business credit card because aside from having a definite target market” the business owners or business executives”it seems to be complicated to use.

Basically, business credit card is for the business peoples consumption. Compared to the regular credit card, a business credit card has a high limit plus low interest rates. Depending on the manner of choosing, a business credit card may also bring a lot of automatic benefits.

Since it is targeted towards businessmen or those people who are heading towards building a business, a business credit card can definitely benefit these small businesses. A business credit card helps the budding business by extending payments while improving the cash flow.

Another good way to hunt for real estate investment opportunities is by using the services of real estate brokers. Some people use real estate agents as their first (and maybe the only) touch point for getting real estate investment opportunities.

Aside from offering safe, secured, and simple processes that are designed help you take care of your starting business, most business credit cards online offer accessible features for the convenience of the business credit card holder like the online payment and reporting.

Multiple listings service is another good way to find real estate investment opportunities. Since the multiple listing book is provided only to the real estate agents and not to the general public (unless you are very lucky), all the cream (good real estate investment opportunities) would have already been taken before you get to see the book. The key here is to look for expired listings that didnt get converted to a deal.

Some of these business credit cards offer small businesses a line of credit up to $100,000 at a competitive APR as low as prime + 1.99% for both cash and check purchases; 100% of the line is available as cash and no collateral is required.

Whether you opt to go directly to the bank or apply for a business credit card online, a number of premier business credit card suppliers are there to help you find the right credit card product as easy and convenient as possible.

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At first glance, TradeKing vs OptionsXpress isn’t even close. In fact, the TradeKing did a quick tally and although bias, the results heavily favored the cheaper discount broker. However, upon looking into it further, you can see why there are still so many people who love OptionsXpress. Here’s a comparison guide that you definitely should take a look.

TradeKing vs OptionsXpress – Trading Commissions Comparison

Equity Trades

• – $4.95 a trade, same price for a broker assisted trade
• OptionsXpress – $14.95 per trade, with no additional fees on broker assisted trade

Options Trades

• TradeKing is $4.95 + 0.65 per contract
• OptionsXpress is $14.95 minimum, then $15 per 10 contracts

Margin Rates Comparison

The numbers below represent TradeKing and OptionsXpress Margin Fees Schedule respectively.

• $0 – $49,999 – 6.50% vs 6.25%
• $50,000 – $99,999 – 5.50% vs 5.25%
• $100,000 – $249,999 – 5.50% vs 5.00%
• $250,000 – $499,999 – 4.50% vs 4.75%
• $500,000 – $999,999 – 4.50% vs 4.50%
• $1,000,000+ – 4.50% vs 4.00%

With the exception of one range, OptionsXpress’ margin rates are consistently lower than TradeKing’s rates. At over $1 million, the rate is significantly lower.

Other Features of the Two Brokers

Barron’s rank better in terms of customer support, research and trading platform. In my opinion, both trading platform is superb and it almost comes down to personal preference. TradeKing’s customer support is ranked higher, although I’ve always gotten my questions answered at both of these stock brokers. At the end, it may come down to price, which TradeKing clearly wins, except for those that want to borrow money through margins.

A brilliant idea that only OptionsXpress has is that they allow you to open a practice account and trade with virtual money. This way, you can get used to the trading platform without putting any of your real money on the line. Readers have told me that it’s also great for beginners, because it gives them a closer look at the market when they first start out. You can click here to learn more about the free practice account.

So TradeKing or OptionsXpress?

For some people, it’s all about the price so the answer is easy – go with TradeKing. For almost everyone else, what seems to work for them is to just open an account with both and play around with the platform for a while to see which one they like since it’s free to do so. The other advantage of doing this is to attend the free webinars and educational videos which are very valuable.

The bottom line is that they are both solid companies that will be sure to please your trading needs, so it all comes down to personal preference.

Special Bonus Available Today

To make the offer more enticing, both brokers will reimburse your account transfer fees from your current broker if you switch to them.

• For , they reimburse you up to $150.
• For OptionsXpress, the reimbursement is up to $100.

In addition, OptionsXpress is giving away a free guide on trading options.

• Get a Free Investment Book from OptionsXpress on Trading Options When You Open and Fund Your Account

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Related Articles at Investing School:

• Best Stock Brokers
• OptionsXpress Promotional Code and Review
• TradeKing vs Scottrade – Online Stock Trading Comparison
• Etrade vs Tradeking vs Zecco – Trading Commissions Comparison
• ShareBuilder Review – Stock Broker for Automatic Investing

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Final review on FxBossTrading. Come here and see if you should join this service.

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