No matter how old or young you are, you should never feel ashamed that you don’t have a bank account. Today, we will be discussing opening a bank account, and luckily it’s not that difficult.
Below are my tips and advice for opening your first bank account:
Do you want an online bank or a brick and mortar bank?
For me, I prefer a brick and mortar bank, but I know many others prefer an online bank. There really is no right or wrong answer because everyone is different and there are positives and negatives to each.
My absolute favorite would be a credit union. I belong to one and the customer service is great, the rates and low, and I’ve never had a problem with them.
Are there any fees?
My bank doesn’t charge any fees, but I do know others where they are charged a monthly fee. I think that is crazy. There are plenty of banks out there that don’t charge any fee whatsoever, so you should look for those first.
You should see if the bank you are interested in charges for deposits, monthly maintenance fees, fees for when you use your debit card, and more.
Don’t forget about the benefits.
Many banks offer benefits out there. Some of the bank benefits you may want to look into include:
- Free ATM usage.
- No fees.
- Rewards for using your debit card.
- Being able to view your bank account online.
- Multiple accounts so that you can save for each of your goals separately.
- And more!
Always monitor your accounts.
You should always monitor your bank account once you open one. You need to make sure that no one is stealing your money, identity theft is not happening, and that there are no mistakes being made with your bank account.
Monitoring your account does not have to be hard. Either sign up online to monitor your account, or ask for a paper account statement to be sent to your home each month. If you do sign up for a paper account statement, make sure you are able to securely dispose of any of the papers or keep them in a safe place. You don’t want any personal information to get in the wrong person’s hands. You can also sign up for an account at Mint.com.
For me, I like to monitor my account once a week and check all the transactions, so being able to view my bank account online and easily is very important to me.
What other tips do you recommend?
Image via Flickr by LendingMemo.com
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