Many of these tips will no doubt apply to Computershare US and Australia, etc., too. I’ve been thinking about Computershare again lately as I try to get two more DRIPs up and running (if you don’t know about DRIPs, read about why I think you should be in them or how they’re perfect no matter what your age or investing experience is). One in particular has been going through strange administrative difficulties, mostly due to luck and timing, I think. In none of these cases do I blame Computershare for anything. They’ve almost always been very personable and pleasant enough to deal with if you’re organized and know what you’re talking about. I’ve dealt with Computershare for nine years now and I think I’ve only had one frustrating customer service conversation. Others’ experiences differ, of course, and everyone has their own level of tolerance for different things.

So this is what I’ve learned from the last few bumps in the road:

(1) Always keep a record of your certificate number and the date the certificate was issued (which is not always quite the date you paid for it or ordered it; you’ll have to check your brokerage records and/or the certificate itself). You’ll need these especially as security verifications of your account for those times when you need to get in touch with Computershare about something but your account hasn’t been set up yet because it’s too new and you do not yet have a holder account number. So write these important numbers down AS SOON AS you receive your certificate.

(2) Make sure that you always register each certificate and/or each new account in the exact same name and address, so that you can access them altogether under one online account. If your name is John B. Herrington, make sure you always register new certificates and accounts using that middle initial, otherwise you’ll end up with one online account showing all the shares you registered under “John Herrington,” and another online account for everything you registered under “John B. Herrington.” This may not sound like a big deal, but it is after the fact if you later decide you want to put everything under the same name. You’ll end up having to re-register shares by transferring them to yourself in a process that could take weeks. As an example, I’ve recently been through this process myself, and I am still trying to get a DRIP running for a share that I bought back in April 2008. These comments apply to your address too. If you live on Bonds Street, make sure that you always register things using the same consistent spelling. You might not think it would matter and that everyone would know that “St.” means the same thing as “Street,” but I’ve had accounts go unregistered and share transfers not take place on time because my address “did not match” for this very reason!

(3) If for some reason you need to place a stop payment on a cheque that you had sent in for an optional cash payment, make sure that you also call in and tell Computershare about it before they cash it. This point might apply to using stop payments with all kinds of companies, but this was the first time I’d needed to use a stop payment and was surprised to be charged an extra $25.00 by Computershare because they didn’t know a stop order had been placed and they went ahead and tried to cash the OCP cheque. And I’d already paid $12.50 at my bank in order to place the stop payment in the first place! So this point brings up another one:

(4) Just an extremely simple good budgeting and records tip, here (students pay extra attention!): keep very close track of what cheques you have coming out of your account as well as all other debits that might be coming out. I tend to run my chequing account down to the wire, that is, I don’t leave any cash in there “floating.” All cash goes immediately to bills, expenditures or investments. But this runs me into danger when sometimes I have too many cheques at crosshairs and end up with not enough money in there to cover something. Don’t forget about end-of-month bank fees that might not be withdrawn until 11:59pm or even early morning the next month. For all of these reasons, it might be a better idea to just leave a float of $100 or whatever size cushion in your account just in case. Some people will use overdraft for this purpose, but overdraft often costs you money as well.

(5) If you think you might want overdraft protection on your account, get it while it’s offered (or available) to you. My bank has offered it to me on the phone several times before (you know, at the end of the call when you’re really put off by extra sales gimmicks) but I always turned it down. Then when I really needed it and applied for it, the bank refused me. Needless to say I was overdrawn and had to pay hefty fees around $40.00.

(6) Finally, if you call into Computershare and talk with someone and you receive confusing or less than satisfactory service for whatever subjective reason, (a) don’t take it out on the representative; this will cause angst and that representative might just keep passing that angst on throughout the rest of the day and to other callers (people just like you); b) just call back and you’ll probably get a different agent on the line. This agent might know more or have more experience than the other one and will have a different answer to your question. While this is a simple tip, it helps to keep it in mind. Remember, these are your investments you’re dealing with. You want to treat the people that help you with them with royal gloves (in all reasonableness, of course. If an agent is truly abusive or brunt, it might help to tell someone else about it, but do so in a diplomatic, non-hostile manner). Let’s remember that Computershare provides an excellent service and ultimately I think you want to be thankful about that. At least in Canada, anyways, there are less options for DRIPs than there are in the States, and we don’t want to take it for granted. This is the way I feel about it, anyway.

What about you? Do you have other tips for dealing with Computershare that I’ve left out here? Anything else to tell new “DRIPPERs” about? Leave a comment (or questions!) below or send me an email. Also, don’t forget to subscribe to the free feed to receive future posts.

Andy over at $aving to Invest tagged me with the Single Step Personal Finance Challenge created by Mrs. Micah. The challenge is to find “one step you can take to make your financial system better or more organized.” This is my first tag!:) It’s like finally getting a Valentine’s Day card when you thought no one had thought of you:).

Well, thinking in terms of what is most efficient a move, there are two close contenders for this single step. You’d think one would be just pay off my student loan debt now so that once I am on a salary after finishing graduate school, I won’t be needing to pay over $550/month in loan interest. The only problem with paying off debt, for me, is that it easily comes back. It’s like trying to kill a zombie. I’m almost always going to need some debt. It’s the lubricant or glucosamine of my financial system, helping me move my financial joints when I need some flexibility. And the reward I feel from paying off debt too soon is very ephemeral. I feel like I’ve just “tricked” myself. It’s a mirage. Debt is intangible, disappearing and reappearing like images in clouds.

On the other hand, building income and especially boosting cashflow is extremely tangible to me and feels like a real gain. I feel I’ve really accomplished something when I’ve been able to increase my cashflow. So here I agree with another of Andy’s posts about wanting to increase his monthly cashflow to $300/month from passive income. If you have enough monthly income to live and save money off of, you’re financially free in my books.

So I’d have to say that enrolling in DRIPS (dividend reinvestment plans) is the best single step anyone can take to improve their finances, or what I call their “moneyenergy.”

Four reasons why:

• no fees or commissions
• automatic dividend/distribution reinvestment
• often get discounts (free money!)
• future source of cashflow (if you keep them reinvested until then)

There are other great reasons too, but these are some big ones. If you’ve read my other posts on DRIPs you’ll know what else I have to say about them. I currently own about 15 DRIPs. This is probably a bit too many for where I’m at right now, but that’s ok. I like knowing that I’ve got them set up and ready to go.

If you’re broke, have a tiny income (like if you’re like most students), or a sporadic income, or you have too many debts to pay off all at once, I think that investing in stocks through DRIPs is truly the most efficient way to develop future streams of cashflow. No fees will hold your money back and you don’t need $250 to begin.

I suppose I need to pass along this little tag now, and I think I’ll pass it over to… Sean at Financial Ramblings (if you haven’t done this one, yet, Sean!), The Almost Millionaire and Free From Broke. What do you guys think? What’s your “single most important step?” “The key” to your financial freedom, so to speak, perhaps?

It’s too bad, because eNorthern had really cheap prices on share certificates, which is one of the reasons I was interested in them in the first place.  Only $20.00.  I’m not sure why, but now eNorthern is closing its “doors” to new business.  Here’s what they posted on their site, if you click on “Open A New Account” (why they don’t just put it on the homepage, I’m not sure).

Notice from eNorthern:

“On or about August 1, 2008, eNorthern will wind up its online discount brokerage business.  To maintain uninterrupted access to your trading account, Questrade, Inc., a Toronto-based securities firm, will assume the role of your online broker on or about August 1, 2008.  Questrade is a member of IIROC (Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada), CIPF (Canadian Investor Protection Fund), and a participating organization of the Toronto Stock Exchange, TSX Venture Exchange and the Montreal Exchange. Questrade also offers unique services such as the $4.95 stock trade and USD in RSP. For more information on Questrade, please visit www.questrade.com.

Your account will be automatically transferred to Questrade on or about August 1, 2008. In order to trade in your new Questrade account, you will need to complete and sign Questrade’s account opening documentation. Questrade will provide you with further details on this transfer after July 15, 2008.  If you do not want to transfer your account to Questrade you must inform eNorthern in writing by July 30, 2008 or inform Questrade in writing thereafter by August 31, 2008 and your account will be transferred to another brokerage without charge.  Questrade wants your transition to be as seamless as possible. Questrade has set up a special customer service team for eNorthern clients to answer any questions that you may have regarding the transition. To speak to a dedicated Questrade representative, please call 1.888.QUEST.66 (1.888.783.7866) or go to Questrade’s website to email or start a chat. To speak to an eNorthern representative please call 1-888-829-7929.  Questrade looks forward to serving all your trading needs.”

Questrade Certificate Prices Outrageously High

I keep going on about these certificate prices because they’re one of the ways you can enrol yourself in a DRIP.  Buy a share, then have it certificated.  But the certificate prices at Questrade are something like $300.  It’s like they’re really trying to discourage it for some reason - saving paper?  I doubt it.

I have my own reasons for not following the switch over to Questrade, however.  I’ve read a lot of negative word-of-mouth about their brokerage service.  Enough that I don’t want to try it.  You can always try to convince me otherwise, though.  Right now it looks like I just wouldn’t need them.  I’d go with TradeFreedom before Questrade.  What about you?  Are you really disappointed with this move by eNorthern?  I didn’t have a big account there, anyway, so it’s not going to be a real problem for me to move it out.

One less discount broker in Canada… making some of the others look even more attractive.