Online brokerages generally charge transaction fees per trade. This means that a $5,000 stock purchase is charged the same fee as a $100 stock purchase.
Go to the following online brokerages and compare their transaction fees: AMERITRADE, E-TRADE, and ScottTrade.
Which has the highest transaction fee?
Assuming you had $200 to invest, and assuming the expected return in the stock market is 5% over one year, does the transaction cost affect your decision to buy stock?
(Remember, you get charged the transaction fee for both the buy transaction and sell transaction.)