This could be good news for anyone just starting out with investment accounts. Schwab lowered the minimum starting balance to $1,000 from $2,500 (or $2,000 for IRAs)and removed below-the-minimum fees for all their investment accounts as long as at least $100 is deposited into the account on a monthly basis. (Source: BusinessWeek.)
I recently opened a new SEP IRA with Vanguard. I chose Vanguard this time around because my fee-less TIAA-Cref account has too many problems.
Vanguard requires a $2,000 or $3,000 initial deposit (depending on the fund), but a minimum balance of $5,000 per fund to avoid maintenance fees. I’ll have to bring that balance up in the new few months.
Updated February 6, 2012 and originally published April 20, 2007. If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to the RSS feed or receive daily emails. Follow @flexo on Twitter and visit our Facebook page for more updates.
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Luke Landes founded Consumerism Commentary in 2003 and has been building online communities since 1990. Luke, also known as Flexo, has contributed to PC World Magazine, US News, Forbes, and other publications. 
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I wish Vanguard would do that, if only for one month per year, or if only for new investors/investors with low AGI. They suddenly raised the minimum from 2K to 3K right before I decided to start investing, and it created a little bit of strain for us to scrape up that extra $1000. Why not make it easy for new customers?