Only the rich make money trading options, right?
Wrong.
But, how much money do you need to sell options and be successful?
David Jaffee of BestStockStrategy.com has proven that you can make money selling options with a smaller account.
Small accounts with less than $10,000 or $15,000 can make a profit with options trading.
Even if your account has a minimum of $2,000 you can target a return of about 3% a month by trading options.
Yes, it's true that you will not turn your $2,000 account into a million dollars overnight.
But, with discipline, patience, and the right trading strategy, you can earn a steady profit.
Keep reading for David Jaffee’s top five tips to trade with a smaller account.
Limit the Amount of Information You Consume
First, you have to avoid information overload.
When you look for articles or videos about options trading, you will find a lot of misinformation.
Too often, people tend to look for articles that support their existing ideas. This confirmation bias does not provide you with accurate information on trading options.
You may feel positive affirmation that the position you entered was worthwhile, but that feeling will disappear when you start to lose money.
Consuming too much information is a waste of time, and it will only stress you out.
David Jaffee believes that you can make more than $1 million each year trading options as long as you're disciplined and patient.
By limiting the amount of information you consume, you can save yourself both money and time.
Craft Your Watch List
So, how do you make money trading options if you are not staying up to date with the latest news?
David Jaffee recommends crafting a watch list and trading a maximum of two to four securities.
Trading Facebook, an industry leader like Amazon, or Mastercard are great places to start if you are trading options with a small account.
You can even trade just one underlying stock and get comfortable with it to make the most of your smaller account trading options (read options trading tips).
Trading too many underlyings at once burdens you with too much responsibility, and you could end up losing money.
David Jaffee believes that even if you have a multi-million-dollar options trading account, it's still best to be disciplined and only have positions on four or five securities at a time.
Learn the Trading Ranges of Your Stocks
Limiting your securities enables you to learn and closely monitor the trading ranges of your stocks.
Because you are only focusing on a few securities, you can quickly get a feel for the low and high-end ranges.
David Jaffee can easily rattle off the trading ranges and current prices of the securities on his watch list because he follows them so closely.
When you are comfortable with the trading ranges of your stocks, you can easily recognize when they reach the lower end.
If you notice a stock is trading at the low end of their range, you can trade and sell put options for income on that option. Learn more here about put selling strategies.
This options trading strategy minimizes your risk while maximizing your probability of profit.
Get Comfortable Trading Naked Options
David Jaffee believes that trading naked options is a better strategy than vertical credit spreads (especially when the VIX is trading over 20).
Selling spreads when VIX is below 20 is worthwhile because it'll protect against portfolio volatility.
David Jaffee shares his trades on his YouTube channel to show how you can win up to 98% of your trades using this options trading strategy – you can also watch his recent live options trade alerts and signals.
There are very few situations where being long stock is better than selling naked puts.
Selling naked options can mitigate your risk when you sell far OTM options.
When the VIX is high, you can maximize the credit received when compared with trading spreads.
Trading naked options also stops you from from trading too many contracts because naked options require more buying power.
When people trade verticals, there is not a substantial buying power reduction and they may end up trading way too many contracts.
When selling naked options you do not have to fight the inherent greed most human beings experience.
Also, naked options are easier to manage and roll a position than vertical options.
If you win 95% of your trades by selling naked options, you can manage the remaining 5% more easily.
You can learn how to trade options because David Jaffee's online option trading course can help investors become profitable traders.
Plus, if a stock is oversold, by selling an OTM put option, you can take ownership of that stock and participate in the upside once you've been assigned.
Become Extremely Disciplined When Selling Options
If you are blocking out the news, focusing on your watch list, and selling naked options, you can earn a profit each year by trading options with a small account.
However, you have to continue to be disciplined when trading.
It is easy to get swept up and enter trades when you shouldn’t.
If you know the trading range of a specific stock, like Facebook, and it blows past its high range and starts trading up every single day, you can just let it go - or fade the rallies by selling call options.
During a euphoric uptrend, you can sell calls and wait for your existing put positions to expire worthless – or you can close out your existing put positions early.
To reduce portfolio volatility, it's best to buy put options during periods of euphoric bull markets because bull markets are followed by pullbacks and bear markets.
If you want to consistently make money by trading options then you have to be extremely disciplined to earn money trading options.
Learn the best and safest options trading from Beststockstrategy.com
You can also read reviews of David Jaffee and BestStockStrategy.com
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How Much Money Do You Need to Sell Options?
You'll need a minimum of $2,000 to sell options.
How Much Money Will I Make by Trading Options?
It's best to target a return of 3% a month. While we all want to make as much money as possible, if you try to earn more than that then there's a good chance that you'll end up losing money.
Should I buy options?
Yes, you can buy options. But buying options is a low probability trade.
As a result, it's best to buy options during market extremes.
You can buy put options when the market is overbought and you can buy calls, preferably LEAPS, when the market is oversold.
When to sell options before expiration?
You can sell options any time prior to expiration. Some option traders choose a DTE of 45, or even 90, and some choose a 0 DTE strategy.
Is it possible to sell option premium for a living?
Yes, definitely. But you need a large account and you'll need to manage your risk so that you reduce portfolio volatility.
Selling options for income?
Yes, it's definitely possible since when you sell options you collect premium.
Selling weekly put options for income?
Yes, it's a good strategy to sell options on stocks with strong brands that you want to own while collecting option premium.
Options income strategies?
Selling puts and calls are a great way to generate income by selling options.
When to sell call options?
It's best to sell call options when you feel that a stock is overbought. That way you an sell an OTM call option and as long as the underlying stock doesn't penetrate the call strike at expiration, then you'll keep all of the premium.