Which bank should I open an account with?

Question

I am in high school and my parents think I should open my own bank account where I can deposit money to save for college, and also withdrawl if I need to buy anything.

Which bank institution is better if I wanted to open an account for free with no minimum balance?

- wachovia
- bank of america
- PNC

Answer 1

I've never had a happy day with Bank of America, although I'm stuck with them again when one of my credit card providers got bought out. Every time they screw up, I threaten to cancel the account and they very quickly fix the mistake, I guess they are losing a lot of customers.

I do not have personal experience with Wachovia or PNC. However http://bankrate.com (a site that you should check out) shows that both Wachovia and PNC offer a non-interest bearing checking account that only takes $25.00 to open and there is no minimum balance need to avoid fees, providing that you don't overdraw your account. Be aware that there is an ATM fee, even on your "home bank" so decline the ATM card.

The interest bearing checking accounts at these two banks are not worth considering in my opinion. They only pay 0.2% (PNC) at the best and you have to have $4000 in the account to avoid fees that would quickly eat up any interest earned.

For interest bearing savings accounts, all three banks stink! Once you have enough money in your checking account for day to day expenses with $100 or so extra, open an FDIC insured account over the internet at a place like Capital One Bank. You should be able to find one paying at least 4% interest. Use http://bankrate.com as a guide.

Note that these quotes are for Pennsylvania, things may be different in your state, so check for yourself.

Finally, look into local banks and credit unions that are not listed on bankrate.com As long as they are FDIC insured, the smaller banks often give better deals in order to compete with the big guys.

Answer 2

Stay away from bank of america, i heard horror stories!!
Wachovia, eehh.. they have a no minimum balance account, but watch out, they'll charge you an arm and a leg for overdraft fees. be careful.
PNC.. can't help you there..

INGdirect.com offer an outstanding paperless checking account, interest rate over 3% !!! no minimum, you get a debit card to use

Answer 3

Check all the banks in your area before making a decision. I would recommend staying away from BofA.

Answer 4

Find a credit union.

Answer 5

presidents choice finical as they have no fee banking

Answer 6

Savings
www.ingdirect.com
www.GMACBank.com
www.HSBCDirect.com

Checking;
www.Everbank.com

Answer 7

wamu