I have two individual accounts that are set up as trading accounts. They both have an assortment of stocks and funds I have acquired over a period of about fifteen years. They are not retirement accounts and hold no IRA's, SEP's, 401k's, etc. A number of years ago there was a reason to keep the accounts and their contents separate. The reason no longer applies. Can anyone think of a reason not to combine the accounts now? Any advantages/disadvantages to having two accounts rather than one at the same brokerage firm? (I also have Schwab accounts, mostly retirement accounts.) I'd like to consolidate account information and minimize paperwork.

I'm thinking mostly of potential issues of access to the account(s) in the event of any type of internet or even just in-house interruption of service. From a tech/computer standpoint, is there any scenario in which one could log on, but find that there was only access to one account, but not the other? Or to put it differently, if there was just one account, that you couldn't get into that account, whereas you might be able to get into a different/separate account if you had two? TIA.

If you’re trying to limit loss from unauthorized online access, you would need to have different authority / ownership for those separate accounts. If someone is able to access your online ‘profile’ (I’m borrowing that word to distinguish between an online “account” and a brokerage / bank account), that individual will be able to access, trade and / or withdraw for any included accounts, consistent with the ownership / authority on record with Fidelity for each of those accounts.

Call a Fidelity rep and explain your concern and he / she will be able to guide you better.

I don’t use Fidelity but the above comments are pretty universal with banks and brokerage firms.

I follow your idea, but I'm not thinking of unauthorized access; authorized access (me) that has difficulty "getting into" the account(s) available. Yours is good info, too, though. Thanks.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: amals,

If the original reason to have two accounts no longer applies I would consolidate them. I used to have quite a few different accounts with mutual funds, consolidation has made my life easier.

I would not be concerned about access. You can always access your accounts by phone.

If they were two separate accounts with two separate institutions, then one system might be down while the other was up. I don't see a system access reason to keep two different accounts at one institution.

RE: other conceivable reasons. With two different accounts, each could have different inheritance setups. Or, you might have two different investment goals and use one account for each, for tracking purposes.

Otherwise, I'd consolidate them.

I have three accounts within Fidelity; one taxable brokerage, one rollover IRA and one Roth IRA that are all accessible and viewable together within a portfolio account. You should be able to at least combine your two that way and maybe that's good enough.

If you have some of the sakes stocks or funds in each, you may want to track each basis if Fidelity doesn’t.

Speaking of Fidelity, what is a boring, super secure fund to use for a new investment?

How about FTANX? Fidelity Asset Manager 30% ?

You might check out the following advisors that recommend model portfolios for Fidelity funds. Annual fee but I think it’s less than $150. You get a weekly market update and advised when trades are suggested for a given portfolio. I think they also provide their ratings for other Fidelity funds.

My Dad used them for years. Much cheaper than paying an asset-based fee and fits those investors that don’t want to be an amateur fund manager / analyst.

https://www.fmandi.com/

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Speaking of Fidelity, what is a boring, super secure fund to use for a new investment?

How about FTANX? Fidelity Asset Manager 30% ?

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Dollar cost average into an Index Fund, if you are going into stocks.

Vanguard has the cheapest annual fee,but I am sure Fidelity has something comparable.

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Originally posted by 6guns:
I have three accounts within Fidelity; one taxable brokerage, one rollover IRA and one Roth IRA that are all accessible and viewable together within a portfolio account. You should be able to at least combine your two that way and maybe that's good enough.

I have a similar setup at Schwab. I understand how it works when it works; my question has to do with the (far-fetched) scenario of a situation that allows you to log in at the institution, but not access all accounts. Like, say, you click on an account and it doesn't come up, then try clicking on a different account and it does come up. My guess is that it would never happen that way, but I'm not tech savvy. And if it wouldn't/couldn't happen--access to one account but not to another--then I have no reason not to consolidate.

quote:

I have a similar setup at Schwab. I understand how it works when it works; my question has to do with the (far-fetched) scenario of a situation that allows you to log in at the institution, but not access all accounts. Like, say, you click on an account and it doesn't come up, then try clicking on a different account and it does come up. My guess is that would never happen that way, but I'm not tech savvy.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Anything is possible I suppose. Just use the phone in that case.

Right. There's that, I guess.

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Originally posted by amals:

quote:

Originally posted by 6guns:
I have three accounts within Fidelity; one taxable brokerage, one rollover IRA and one Roth IRA that are all accessible and viewable together within a portfolio account. You should be able to at least combine your two that way and maybe that's good enough.

I have a similar setup at Schwab. I understand how it works when it works; my question has to do with the (far-fetched) scenario of a situation that allows you to log in at the institution, but not access all accounts. Like, say, you click on an account and it doesn't come up, then try clicking on a different account and it does come up. My guess is that it would never happen that way, but I'm not tech savvy. And if it wouldn't/couldn't happen--access to one account but not to another--then I have no reason not to consolidate.

I've never had that issue with Fidelity, but ultimately you have to be comfortable.

Forged ahead and consolidated accounts. I think my concerns about access are probably more theoretical than practical. Thanks to all for the input.

I’ve been with Fidelity primarily for years, every interaction I’ve had has been stellar, whether online or by phone.

At one point, I had 3 regular accounts with Schwab in addition to IRA accounts. Later, they closed one account.

I keep track of my finances on Quicken so separate accounts aren’t an issue. If I were you, I’d keep the two accounts to give you flexibility. You should be able to transfer money and securities between the two accounts.

Also, look into how the accounts are titled. Schwab let me keep the two accounts because one was a joint account with my wife and the other was under mine.

Seems you've made your decision and consolidated. This should be fine.

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Originally posted by NavyGuy:
Seems you've made your decision and consolidated. This should be fine.

Well, I did, but I haven't closed out the second; it's just showing zero balance at the moment. Rey HRH makes good points, too. I'll probably keep it open if Fidelity doesn't care.

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Originally posted by amals:

quote:

Originally posted by NavyGuy:
Seems you've made your decision and consolidated. This should be fine.

Well, I did, but I haven't closed out the second; it's just showing zero balance at the moment. Rey HRH makes good points, too. I'll probably keep it open if Fidelity doesn't care.

I've had an account open with $.01 in it for many years. A money market fund that was a sweep account until I changed to one with better returns. I asked my adviser and he said not to worry about it. I wonder what would happen if I withdrew the penny?