Scottrade

I have had a great experience with the entire staff at this branch. Everyone has been very helpful, even though all I have needed have been countless administrative tasks. Thank you!

This branch is fine. It’s great to have a storefront for an online broker, and every time I walk in here I get prompt, considerate service. I do sometimes get unsolicited phone calls but probably the instructions to do so come from higher up.
In general I’m happy with Scottrade, but I have a large caveat; do NOT short stocks through Scottrade. More than once I’ve received emails, then phone calls, saying the company could no longer lend me shares and I may be forced to cover. In all cases the timing couldn’t have been worse.
Take the case of Netflix — I shorted about a two weeks before it topped out and plummeted. If I could have held my position I would have made thousands on it, instead, I lost hundreds being forced to buy back near the all-​time-​peak.
If you want short exposure on Scottrade, learn how standard options work and buy a put option. (Their options maneuvers are also quite limited; the only options you can sell to open are covered calls.)