I have been told that I can convert an IRA which I currently have in a traditional IRA in a mutual fund to to Roth IRA at no cost. A traditional IRA which I currently have invested in common stock (GE and IBM) will require a commision fee; commission fee to withdraw and a commission to reinvest/ rebuy. Is this correct ??

When I converted my son's IRA to a Roth at Schwab, all that happened was that the assets ended up in a different account with a new number. No fee, no commission, and it took no more than a few minutes.

Can't speak for other brokers, but it sounds like you're getting a story. If you heard this from a broker, go up the chain to a supervisor or beyond.