
Start Here
Platform

Tour
Bots 101How it worksLive demo
Tools
Automated tradingOptions backtestingWatchlist scannerPrivate community
Use cases
New investorsStock tradersActive tradersPassive investorsSwing tradersAlgorithmic traders

Templates
By trade type
Stock trading botsOptions trading bots
By strategy type
Bullish options strategiesNeutral options strategiesBearish options strategiesHedging strategies
By style
Active and high frequency botsEvent-based botsTrend trading botsMomentum trading botsStatistic and probability-based botsTechnical analysis botsEarnings strategy bots

Integrations

Pricing
Education

Courses
Overview
By experience
Beginner
What is an options contract?Stock trading vs. options tradingOptions contract specificsCall vs. put options basicsBuying options vs. selling optionsOptions profit and loss diagramsOptions pricing tablesOption moneyness (ITM, OTM, and ATM)Options pricing and the "Greeks"Options expiration and assignmentWhat's our "edge" trading options?Single vs. multi-leg options strategiesSmall account options strategies
Intermediate
Fearless, confident options tradingHistorical volatility vs. implied volatilityPredicting market movesTrade size and capital reservesPortfolio balance and beta weightingHow to choose the best options strategyHow far out to place trades?Strike price anchoring with probabilitiesTips on getting your trades filledAdvanced and contingent orders7 step options trade entry checklist
Advanced
Developing a daily trading routineHow to avoid "Black Swan" eventsAdjusting and hedging option tradesExiting options trades automaticallyOptions strategies we don't adjust (and why)Big picture adjustment strategyWhen to adjust or notAdjusting straddles and stranglesAdjusting credit spreads, iron condors, and calendarsSmarter stop-loss ordersBuilding a diversified options portfolioRolling options trades for duration and premiumOptions expiration week position checklistDealing with stock assignment and dividendsHow to free up trading margin and cash
By subject
Options basics
Why options vs. stocks?What is an options contract?Smart use of leverageOption strike priceOption premiumOption expirationOption contract multiplierProfit and loss diagramsLong call option explainedShort call option explainedLong put option explainedShort put option explainedATM, ITM, and OTM optionsCash vs. margin basicsHigh probability trading definedHow to buy a call optionHow to buy a put optionSingle-leg vs. multi-legWhat is the VIX?Is fundamental analysis dead?
Entering and exiting trades
Game of numbers7 step entry checklistStrong liquidity examplesPicking the next directionScanning for tradesOption pricing table basicsSetting up your trade tabPinning your probability of profitUsing delta for probabilitiesBuy to open vs sell to openBuy to close vs sell to closeMarket, limit, stop loss orders5 types of contingent ordersLimit ordersMarket ordersLimit on close ordersMarket on close ordersAdvanced contingent ordersTaking profits before expirationMechanics of rollingConsider future events
Options expiration
Options expiration explainedWhat is the Options Clearing Corporation (OCC)?Physical vs. cash settlement optionsAmerican vs. European style optionsWeekly options expirationWeekly expiration tags/codesOptions assignment processOptions exercise processTrading timeline (duration)
Bullish options strategies
Bull put spreadBull call spreadLong callShort putBull call backspreadPut broken wing butterflyCall calendar spreadPut diagonal spreadCustom naked putCovered callSynthetic long stock
Neutral options strategies
Short straddleLong straddleIron condorsShort strangleLong strangleIron butterflyUnbalanced iron condors
Bearish options strategies
Bear call spreadBear put spreadLong putShort callBear put backspreadCall broken wing butterflyPut calendar spreadCall diagonal spreadCustom naked callCovered putSynthetic short stock
Portfolio managmeent
No guaranteed tradesDon't do something, sit thereAccount size adjustmentsAvoiding stock market overloadStocks, indexes, & ETFsMonitoring positionsCreating automatic alertsIndividual stock betaPortfolio betaBeta weighting your portfolioUncorrelated industries/sectorsSystematic vs. unsystematic riskEfficient portfolio frontierLimiting undefined risk tradesEconomic calendarConcept of legging
Options pricing and volatility
How to find option price quotesUnderstanding the mathIV vs. IV percentileProbability of profit vs. probability of touchOption probability curveBid-ask spread definedIV expected vs. actual moveThe "Greeks"Fatal pricing errorsInverse ETFsOptions parity
Adjusting trades
#1 adjustment for any tradeWhen to adjust a tradeSingle options trade vs. overall portfolioLeveraging the analyze tabCall spread adjustmentsPut spread adjustmentsShort strangle adjustmentsIron condor adjustmentsShort straddle adjustmentsCalendar spread adjustmentsDebit spread adjustmentsButterfly adjustmentsUsing stop lossesDelta hedgingRolling positionsPairs hedging

Strategies
Long callLong putShort callShort putCovered callCovered putProtective putCollar strategyLEAPSBull call debit spreadBear call credit spreadBull put credit spreadBear put debit spreadLong straddleShort straddleLong strangleShort strangleCall calendar spreadPut calendar spreadIron condorReverse iron condorIron butterflyReverse iron butterflyCall butterflyPut butterflyStrapCall diagonal spreadPut diagonal spreadCall ratio spreadPut ratio spreadCall backspreadPut backspreadLong box spreadShort box spreadReversalStock repair

Topics
OverviewAsset allocationAutomated tradingBehavioral financeBrokersCandlestick patternsChart patternsDividendsEconomic indicatorsEquity investmentsExercise & assignmentFinancial analysisFinancial historyFinancial marketsFinancial modelingFinancial theoriesFundamental analysisFuturesInvestment accountsInvestment taxesInvestor biasesMarket holidaysMarket hoursMarket indexesMarket indicatorsMomentum tradingOptionsOptions pricingOptions settlementPortfolio managementRisk managementStocksStock marketTechnical analysisTechnical indicatorsTrading commissionsTrading platformsTrading psychologyTrend trading
Resources

Workshops

Podcast

Blog
Support

Help Center
Overview
Getting started
What is a bot?Creating a botAutomation typesAutomation editorBot dashboardBot positionsBot logTemplates and cloningKey conceptsSafeguards and limitsPower of botsBest practices
Bot automations
What is an automation?Scanner automationsMonitor automationsEvent automationsEditing automationsReusing automationsCopying automationsOrdering automationsUsing custom inputsBot level inputsAutomation statusesAutomations library
Bot actions
DecisionsOpen positionClose positionNotificationsLoop symbolsLoop positionsBot tagsPosition tags
Bot examples
Genesis 1.0 botGenesis 2.0 botGenesis 3.0 botTrend trading with stocks botPortfolio trend trading botTrend trading with options botMultiple moving averages botTechnical swing trading botTrend and momentum botWeekly credit spread botRecurring iron condors botThe "Honey Badger" botHybrid spreads botHigh IV rank iron condor bot
Decision recipes
Comparing underlying symbol priceEvaluating symbol typeComparing underlying symbol propertiesEvaluating underlying symbol performanceEvaluating underlying symbol standard deviationComparing underlying symbol price to an indicatorComparing multiple underlying symbol indicatorsEvaluating underlying symbol implied volatility rankEvaluating underlying symbol earnings reportingEvaluating underlying symbol price probabilityEvaluating underlying symbol probability within rangeEvaluating bot propertiesEvaluating bot available capital for opportunitiesComparing bot position count to position typeComparing bot position count to underlying symbolEvaluating bot position count to position type and underlying symbolEvaluating bot last position activityEvaluating bot last activity with underlying symbolComparing bot active orders statusComparing bot active orders status with underlying symbolEvaluating bot position availabilityEvaluating bot tagsEvaluating opportunity availabilityEvaluating opportunity return expectationsComparing opportunity attributesComparing opportunity leg attributesComparing opportunity bid-ask spreadEvaluating opportunity probabilitiesEvaluating position performanceComparing profit target to trailing valueComparing position time to expirationComparing position durationEvaluating position underlying symbolComparing position propertiesComparing position leg propertiesEvaluating position typeEvaluating position sideComparing underlying symbol price to position legEvaluating position tagsEvaluating underlying symbol indicator propertiesComparing multiple underlying symbol indicator propertiesEvaluating MACD technical indicatorComparing Bollinger Bands to symbol priceEvaluating stochastic technical indicatorComparing VIX propertiesEvaluating market time of the dayEvaluating days of the weekEvaluating bot switches
Position statement
Activity summaryPosition detailsTrade detailsOpened positionsClosed positionsCanceled positionsOverride positionsExpired positionsPosition historyManually open positionManually close positionImport position
Order pricing
SmartPricingFinal price settingsPosition summaryOrder detailsWorking ordersManual override
Bot templates
Creating new templatesUpdating existing templatesDeleting templatesSharing templatesUpdating shared templatesTemplate best practices
Cloning bots
Cloning existing botsCloning from templateCloning from shared template
Troubleshooting
Using bot logsTesting your botsNot enough capital warningDaily position limit warningTotal position limit warningPricing anomaly warningMissing or invalid input errorDaily symbol limit errorExcessive errors failsafeOverlapping strikes failsafePrice exceeds strike-difference errorOptions expiration protocolDuplicate orders errorOptions approval level errorBot event loopsStock splits and corporate actionsSupported browsersSupported countries
Community forum
Community guidelinesCrafting your introductionSending group messagesSending private messagesAttaching bot templatesReceiving bot templatesAttaching automationsReceiving automationsFollowing tradersPosting publiclyEditing posts and messagesSubscribed discussionsUsing bookmarks
Using backtester
Running a new backtestBacktesting results summaryModifying existing backtestsMy backtestsBacktesting research databaseTop backtestsBacktesting errors
Account settings
My profileTrading accountsConnecting to TDAmeritradeConnecting to TradeStationConnecting to TradierIncompatible accountsPassword managementSession timeoutTwo-step authentication
Technical docs
Infrastructure and securityAutomation structureAutomation behaviorData feedsOrder handlingTrade enforcementsBroker rejection errorsBot limitationsProfit and lossFair value pricingDecision propertiesDecision calculationsParameter selectionCalculating probabilityPlatform indicators

Contact
Send FeedbackReport IssueEmail Us
Option AlphaOption Alpha

LoginSignup
EducationCoursesNeutral Options StrategiesUnbalanced Iron Condors

Neutral Strategies
Lesson
7
of
7


Short Straddle
7:11


Long Straddle
7:25


Iron Condors
3:37


Short Strangle
8:21


Long Strangle
7:56


Iron Butterfly
9:12


Unbalanced Iron Condors
7:12

Unbalanced Iron Condors

Unbalanced iron condors are very similar to balanced iron condors, but can be set up with a slight directional bias. The strategy still profits from decreasing volatility and minimal stock movement.
Kirk Du Plessis
May 20, 2022
•
7 min video





Unbalanced iron condors are only slightly different than a regular (or balanced) iron condor. These strategies are best used when you want to be slightly directional in your setup but also want the ability to profit if the stock remains range bound. To build these condors and create skew to one side you simply widen out your strikes on one side of the trade. Take your time with understanding skew. For example, a stock is trading at $50 and you wanted to skew your strategy towards the bullish side. You would widen out your strikes on the put side. Maybe instead of selling the $45/44 puts you sell the $45/40 puts. This creates more risk on the lower side of the trade therefore removing risk on the top side (bullish skew). You would do the opposite to get bearish skew, widening out your call strikes.

Transcript

In today's video, I want to talk about creating unbalanced iron condors. Unbalanced iron condors are only slightly different than a regular or “balanced iron condor.”

These strategies are best used when you want to be slightly directional in your setup, but you also want the ability to profit if the stock remains range-bound, so you want the best of both worlds.

It’s a fairly neutral strategy, but you can get a little bit directional with it. So, to build these condors and create skew to one side, you just need to widen out your strikes on the other side of the trade.

Again, if you want to create skew to the bottom side of your trade, you would widen out the strikes on the topside. If you want to create skew to the topside or the call side, you widen out the strikes on the bottom side or the put side. Take your time in understanding these, and hopefully, this video is going to be a great guide for you.

In our case, if we wanted to setup a strategy where we were skewing our position to the topside, what we would do is we would sell an out of the money put.

We would then buy an out of the money put that's at two times wider strike than the following two trades that we’re going to make which is selling an out of the money call and buying one out of the money call one strike higher.

Whatever the width of the strikes is on the call side, you’re going to do just a little bit wider, maybe two times wider on the put side, so that you have a little bit more risk on the put side.

We're going to skew it to the topside, and you can see that’s where we get that dotted line here on the profit loss diagram from a regular iron condor which is that red solid line to that dotted line which is just a little bit more skewed to the topside of the market.

What’s the risk? Well, your risk is limited to the width of the widest strikes on either end. In this case, we’ll use an example where we have a $2 wide width less the credit that you received.

If you took in an $80 credit, then your maximum risk would be only $1.20. Should the stock remain neutral in trading at the short strikes, you could make at most the net credit received from entering the trade.

That's ideally what we want to see happen, is still the stock trade in between those short strikes that we sold on either end. But if it does move outside of that range, then we have the potential to lose depending on which side it moves to.

An increase in implied volatility has a negative impact on this strategy everything else being equal and that’s because we’re short two credit call spreads on either side of the market. We ideally want to see implied volatility drop.

This is why we said at the beginning of this video tutorial that it's important that we add these strategies when implied volatility is very high. The passage of time does help this position. Theta decay is going to help us since we’re net sellers of the option premium.

The closer we get to expiration, the faster a profit will start to materialize. As far as breakeven points, they’re pretty easy to calculate. We’re going to take the short at the money strikes on either end and add or subtract the credit that we received to get our breakeven points.

Again, there are two breakeven points on these strategies. If you want to calculate the higher breakeven point, then you take the short at the money strike of the call spread, add the credit that we received.

If you want to calculate the lower breakeven point, you’d take the short at the money strike of the put spread and subtract the credit that we received. That’s exactly how you get both of those breakeven points.

We’re going to go ahead and build one these strategies right now in our broker platform in Thinkorswim. We’re going to build it two different ways, and we’ll show you what the chart looks like first.

This is a chart of SLV. SLV is a silver ETF, and it’s got currently very, very high implied volatility up in the 71st percentile. You can see graphically down here that implied volatility is here, so going back historically, this is pretty high over the last year.

It’s been high relatively of late, but right now, it's very high as far as implied volatility is concerned, so that meets that requirement for this trade.

We want to be fairly neutral to this trade, but we are going to play it either way, and I’ll show you how you can play it directionally bullish or directionally bearish.

The first way that we’re going to do it is we're going to play it directionally bullish. In this case, we’ll sell these 16/14 put spread below the market, and that’s going to be our $2 wide side of the trade.

You can see here that our 16/14 position has a $2 wide width in strikes and we’re going to take in a nice healthy credit of $.21 to do that. On the topside, we’re going to be a little bit more conservative and just have the 19/20 call spread above the market.

We’ll just adjust our strikes to 19/20, and you can see that that’s only a $1 wide spread. Since we have a wider spread below the market, this gives us a little bit of a bullish tilt to this strategy.

Here's what the profit loss diagram looks like. You can see that it's an unbalanced iron condor because we lose a little bit less money on the right side of this payoff diagram as the stock continues to move higher. This is our 1 point wide side.

Here, the spreads are just 1 point wide and below; the spreads are 2 points wide. You can see we’re fairly neutral. We still want the stock to trade between about 16 and 19, but we have more risk to this side of the trade because we have wider strike prices.

We can do completely the opposite here. We can narrow the width of the strikes on the put side, so I’ll just do that right now. We’ll do the 16/15. This is what a regular iron condor would look like. On the topside, we can widen this out to the 19/21.

In this case, we widened it out to the 19/21, now we have less risk to the downside, and we take more risk to the topside of the trade. This is where our $2 wide strikes are, and this is where our $1 wide strikes are. We still want the stock to trade between about 16 and 19, and now most of our risk is to the opposite side.

It’s unbalanced with most of the risk higher and less of the risk lower. It’s a cool strategy, very easy to setup. We like doing these, and we’ve currently got a trade right now in SLV that mimics this exact strategy that you see here.

We’re getting this thing and being a little bit directionally bearish on it because we think the rally up has been a little bit too far too fast and we want to take this trade just a little bit directionally bearish.

Alright, as far as key takeaways here, skewing an iron condor is a great way to make a fairly neutral position. But reduce risk on one side of the market especially if you feel like it could have a big move in one direction versus another.

Again, this allows you to also play the market slightly directionally against the area of higher risk which is a key distinguishing point here, but you do take a little bit more risk on the other side, so just be aware of that.

Always analyze your trades before you place the actual orders. As always, I hope you guys enjoy these videos. If you have any comments or questions, please add them right below on the lesson page. Until next time, happy trading!

The transcript is not available yet. Please check back soon.

Options
Strategies
Iron Condor

No-code, fully automated trading for stocks and options.

HomeAboutLegalStatusContact
©2022 Option Alpha. All Rights Reserved. Patent Pending USSN 63/118,547