Frequently Asked Questions
Below is a list of the most Frequently Asked Questions. Please read through each question and answer before contacting us. If you have a question that is not answered below please feel free to contact us at .
- Any questions concerning your investment and/or trading account must be directed to your broker. Crowder Investment Research, LLC and/or its associates/representatives cannot give personal advice as to how to invest as we are not brokers and/or investment advisors and the SEC forbids us from doing such.
- If you wish to have your account Auto-traded, you should be aware that it is an agreement between you and your broker.
- Why is your performance based on $5,000?
- Are your published performance records actual real time trading results or are they results of back-testing (i.e. hypothetical)?
- Are the published results before commissions?
- How much should I allocate for trading the Premium Strategy?
- How much can I invest in your strategies?
- Are your services appropriate for an IRA?
- Do you send out emails to exit or adjust a position? If so, is it sent out intraday for immediate action, or at the end of the day for action the following day?
- I am completely new to options. Is there anywhere on your site where I can learn about them?
- Can I reinvest my profits each month?
- How much capital do you use with each recommendation?
- Are positions ever modified or adjusted?
- Do you tell us when to exit a trade?
- How many positions are open at once?
- What do I need to auto-trade?
- Are there any extra fees to auto-trade?
- Do I have to dedicate an entire account to auto-trading?
- Do you limit your membership size?
- Do you use stops to protect positions?
- Do you offer a free trial?
- Can I get out of the program at any time?
- Is there a limit to how much I can invest?
- Can I use your system in Canada?
Why is your performance based on $5,000?
We want to show interested subscribers that our strategies can be successful with lower account values. The strategies can actually work with less capital. I have seen the strategy work with account values as low as $2000. However, when starting account values are lower than $5000 commissions can have a detrimental effect on gains if your broker has a minimum amount per trade. Make sure to clarify the commission rates at your brokerage.
Are your published performance records actual real time trading results or are they results of back-testing (i.e. hypothetical)?
We trade all of our suggestions in real-time. The $5,000 account (starting value) is fictional but the performance and trades are real based on our recommendations. We trade all of our published recommendations.
Are the published results before commissions?
As the performance page clearly states, our published results are net of commissions (included in the performance). Commissions are an important part of trading and should be included in the performance of any strategy.
Unfortunately, by law we are not allowed to give individual investment advice. Risk tolerance is a key issue when deciding allocations towards any investment. Therefore, you should consult your investment advisor/broker when deciding upon allocation.
How much can I invest in your strategies?
It is your account. Therefore, it is your decision as to how much you wish to invest in any type of investment.
Are your services appropriate for an IRA?
Yes, however; this will vary from broker to broker. Consult your broker.
Do you send out emails to exit or adjust a position? If so, is it sent out intraday for immediate action, or at the end of the day for action the following day?
Yes. We send out real-time alerts to subscribers and participating auto-trade brokers. Sending out intraday alerts is an important aspect of our service.
I am completely new to options. Is there anywhere on your site where I can learn about them?
We provide some excellent educational sites in the “Crowder’s Toolbox” area of the site. As far as our strategies go, we provide specific guidelines on how to enter and exit our recommendations.
Unlike the Gap Fade strategy, our proprietary model, ETF Extremes, does not include guidelines on how to trade the strategy, although as a subscriber to the strategy we provide real-time alerts to enter and exit the strategy. This gives you the ability to trade and profit from this strategy without actually understanding the intricacies of the system. Or you can choose to participate in auto-trade eliminating the need to learn the specifics of our strategies.
Can I reinvest my profits each month?
Yes. Only one trade is open at any given time per strategy so you can invest the profits from one trade into the next.
How much capital do you use with each recommendation?
Only one position is open at a time per strategy. If you reference our performance page you will notice that we trade approximately 35%-50% of our trading capital to each trade per strategy. For example, if your available trading capital is $5,000, generally we would spend $1,750 to 2,500 per trade for each strategy according to our guidelines. Ultimately, it is up to the subscriber as to how much he/she wishes to allocate per trade. You must decide the amount that is right for you.
Are positions ever modified or adjusted?
No. We do not roll over a position to the following option cycle or double up on a position. There are occasions when we might close out a portion of the trade to lock in profits.
We recommend a trade and then give a stop loss order. Either the stop loss order is hit and the trade is closed or the trade is profitable. We tend to like the latter.
Do you tell us when to exit a trade?
Yes.
How many positions are open at once?
One per strategy.
What do I need to auto-trade?
You need an active subscription to the Gap Fade strategy or ETF Extremes strategy. In addition, you need a brokerage account with one of our participating auto-trade brokerages.
You must be an active subscriber to one of the strategies mentioned above before signing up for auto-trading through one of our participating brokerages. Otherwise, your auto-trading request will be declined.
Are there any extra fees to auto-trade?
No. Crowder Investment Research, LLC nor our participating auto-trade brokerages charge extra fees for this service. However, you are still responsible for commission charges.
Do I have to dedicate an entire account to auto-trading?
No. When you configure your auto-trading parameters at our participating brokers you decide exactly how much of your account balance is used for auto-trading with our service.
Do you limit your membership size?
Yes. We understand that maintaining a small subscriber size is imperative to keeping our service successful. After working at the medical division of W.L. Gore & Associates (Gore-tex) for seven years Andrew Crowder quickly learned the importance of providing a high quality product and excellent customer service.
Once we reach our limit, new subscribers will be placed on a waiting list until we have an opening available.
Do you use stops to protect positions?
We always use stops to protect our positions. Sometimes we use mental stops and other times we place stop-loss orders at the same time our recommendation is made. Capital preservation is the key to success with both of our strategies.
Do you offer a free trial?
We offer a free newsletter, which includes a free options strategy report and a monthly expiration report. At this time we do not offer a free trial for our paid services, only our paid subscribers have access to our strategies.
Can I get out of the program at any time?
Yes, you can cancel this program at any time. You must cancel with Crowder Investment Research, LLC in writing (by email) and you must also delete the Auto-Trade selection from your brokerage account.
Is there a limit to how much I can invest?
No. There is no limit to how much money you can invest. In fact, we know nothing about your account or how much investment capital you have devoted to our strategies.
Can I use your system in Canada?
At this time there are no brokers (that we know of) that offer an Auto-Trade service.