Hi there and welcome to this article on credit spreads. In a few words I’d like to express the risk involved in this type of option spread just in case you are new to trading options. The reason I would like to bring this up now is because I have had many phone calls from option traders who lost huge chunks of their trading portfolios in October of 2008. Some traders lost up to 80% of their trading capital using this strategy, and the reason is because although this trade has a 90% probability, the risk and the stress involved is not often addressed correctly.

The credit spread is one of the most popular option spreads traded today. The reason is because the credit spread is simple, it makes money over time and it is a trade with a high probability. But this probability rating can be very misleading. The dangers of the credit spread are rarely addressed in books and online credit spread courses. The sad truth is that most people teach the credit spread because it’s a good business, but not because it’s a good option strategy. It’s actually a very risky trade and very directional. [youtube:hc5zbA70-38;Trading [link:Option Credit Spreads];http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hc5zbA70-38&feature=related]

It’s well known that an option trader can enter into a credit spread with a 90% probability that he will make money on the trade. That is well known. That is the popular belief, especially amongst beginning option traders. This is true, but do not ignore the other side of the picture. Even though you have a 90% probability to make a profit on the trade, you must consider what goes on while the trade is in play. People don’t talk about the level of stress involved.

People don’t talk about how they can be way behind on the trade sometimes the whole time they’re in the trade. People don’t talk about how they get down to the very last day and they are risking 90% just to make a small 10%, and they don’t talk about how they can’t sleep at night and how they are praying to God that their stock might go up tomorrow. Finally, one of the most important things that nobody tells you about the credit spread is that a 90% probability doesn’t mean that you’re going to make money nine times in a row and then lose one time. The sad truth is that you might lose 90% on your first trade. This happens all the time.

The problem with the credit spread, in particular, the short-term credit spread, is that it’s a very directional trade. Even though it has Theta on its side, it has Delta and Gamma working against it. For the small amount of Theta that you get from a short-term credit spread, you are picking up even more danger by trading this option spread with very high Gamma. What this means is that as the price of the underlying changes, the profit and loss on the trade also changes very quickly. This type of trade is a lot more volatile and risky than most beginning option traders know.

In conclusion I would just like to say that the credit spread definitely has a place in my options trading portfolio, but I only use credit spreads in conjunction with other option strategies. As a standalone strategy the credit spread can expose your trading capital to enormous risk. So if you insist on trading credit spreads, then please make sure you are trading safely by hedging them with other option spreads.

Learn Maximum Reward Option Credit Spreads in our Live Options Trading Rooms at San Jose Options.