Bank account for freshman?

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<p>This may not be exactly what you are looking for. I have Bank of America. My parents do not. If for some reason I needed a large sum of money quickly while I was in college, my father would go to the Bank of America by his office and put the money into my account. All he needed to know to do this was my account number. If he wrote me a check, it would clear in about a day and if he had cash it was pretty much instant. It’s not electronic, but I’m assuming most banks allow something like this.</p>

<p>We picked B of A because it was the most geographically convenient to the school that she chose - we waited until she decided to go there, but NOT until orientation when there are scads of people signing up for bank accounts. We did a joint account. B of A has an app where when her balance goes below her “threshold” of whatever she sets she gets texts. She can also transfer money easily on her iphone. B of A is not my favorite bank - some silly policies - but unbeknownst to me we qualified for her bank account free because our mortgage had been sold to them. No fees plus they do a “keep the change” deal which really adds up as a college student who uses her atm for everything! We joke that she gets more “interest” than I do! The key though is to choose carefully which bank to make your “main” branch. Hers is in Boston, because it is primarily her account, but sometimes I wish it was here because it would be easier to help her straighten out issues (e.g. iniitially the auto deposit wasn’t working correctly so our checks weren’t getting there).</p>

<p>I’m not sure what we will do when DD goes off to college. There are not any banks near her school that we have here. Our bank does allow online transfers to other banks so I will look into that option. If those banks aren’t on the list we will just eat some ATM fees. Our bank does not charge us for ATM fees but they will probably get hit on the other side. Our current bank also has a credit card for college kids. It has a low limit but they will get one before they go off to college.</p>

<p>No ATM fees with Ally Bank. My son can use any ATM.
[ATM</a> Fees | ATM Fee Reimbursement | Ally Bank](<a href=“http://www.ally.com/bank/online-banking/get-cash.html]ATM”>Mobile and Online Banking: Open an Account Today | Ally Bank®)</p>

<p>Even though S2 had a joint checking/savings with me from hs we looked into what might be easier for his college campus. The bank there, BoA, did have a ‘free’ student checking that was ‘free’ until you needed to step into a branch. So anything you can do from an ATM is free, however the minute you need to walk into a branch and talk to a live person for any reason you are charged a fee for that ‘free’ student checking. That seemed really obnoxious to me. He’s kept his original account (Wells Fargo) which has a branch 1/2 mi off campus. He uses debit everywhere as well as his student card that has cash ‘pre-loaded’ for laundry, vending, etc. He deposits checks from a mobile app. Every once in a while he uses the closer ATM and pays a fee (maybe once a semester if that), nbd. It has not been an issue at all. As I’m on his account and I hold my other accounts at the same place it’s very easy to keep an eye on his account when I log in to ensure there’s no fraud (2 of my 3 kids have had unauthorized charges on their accounts), as well as transfer funds immediately if I’m paying for something he’s originally paid for, etc.</p>

<p>Here’s what I’m finding:</p>

<p>BofA does allow me to transfer funds instantly to a non-joint account at BofA (even a non-family member), so that part works for me. They don’t have a physical presence in my daughter’s (rural) college town, and no free ATMs anywhere close.</p>

<p>Ing has a nice program for students, but it requires a joint account, and their ATM network doesn’t cover the college town.</p>

<p>Ally (as has been pointed out by LBowie, thank you) reimburses all ATM fees so you basically have a free nationwide network of ATMs, which is nice. Still need a joint account to do instant transfers.</p>

<p>The local banks in the college town have some nice programs for students, but their ATM network is limited to the town. Joint accounts required for instant transfers.</p>

<p>Based on all that, I’m leaning towards Ally at this point. I’ll just use the PopMoney feature of my local bank to transfer funds (3-4 business days) and keep an eye on bank balances. Or maybe I’ll stop being worried about joint accounts and just go that route.</p>

<p>Thanks for everyone’s input.</p>

<p>Set my daughter up with a BofA joint student account with a debit card (checking tied to a money market - she can electronically transfer from one to the other). There are BofA ATMs both here in our home town and at her school. Since it is a joint account I can also transfer or deposit money into either account if need be.</p>

<p>She did mention that a few kids at school had problems with their ATM/Debit cards since they were from banks which did not have a presence on her campus (also one friend lost his PIN number and had to wait for a new one to be sent to him - might make sense to keep a copy of the PIN at home in case this happens).</p>

<p>You may want to look into State Farm Bank. Since there are no branches - only online - they reimburse any atm fees which is very convenient. It is up to a certain amount or unlimited with direct deposit.</p>

<p>Thanks! Sounds like a possibility. I happen to insure with State Farm.</p>

<p>Having a joint account isn’t a bad thing. It’s actually a smart thing for everyone because if something happens to you and no one else is on your bank account it is a long process to get access to those funds.</p>

<p>Those of you looking at Ally and any of the other banks that reimburse ATM fees. That is not the same as free use of the ATM; there are tax consequences. When you get your tax forms in the mail, you will get a 1099-INT form covering the amount of fees that were reimbursed, and that money is taxable. That means if your student (or you if you are the primary account holder on a joint account) already has enough income to owe taxes, it will be taxable. It also means it will show up on your FAFSA the following year as income - and will cause a 50% hit toward EFC.</p>

<p>It still might be the best option in a rural area with few ATMs, but your students should still look for the cheapest ATM. Those $200 in ATM fees over the course of the year will result in $20 income tax, plus $100 increase to EFC - hardly free!</p>

<p>I have to disagree with that last statement I have had a savings account at USAA for 5 years that rebates all atm fees from other banks and they have never showed up on my 1099-INT at the end of the year. I just double checked my last two years to confirm.</p>

<p>I have to agree with bschooltotech.</p>

<p>A 1099 for reimbursed fees?? That would be like a company giving out 1099’s for auto mileage, hotels, etc. that employees pay for on their own for company business.</p>

<p>Williamsdad13 - also have D at school with no BofA branch…was one in town 15 minutes away but has closed. We chose to stay with them (she already had account) since we are linked and easy to transfer money. She shops for groceries at least once a week and gets extra cash then. Everything else she pays with straight debit so doesn’t need a lot of cash. So lack of ATM has not been a problem. It was a problem depositing the odd check but now she has a smart phone and can use mobile app to deposit and it works great.</p>

<p>Steve MA - Totally agree when it comes to parent accounts (husband and wife should be joint to avoid issues if one dies). What I’m trying to avoid with a joint account with my D is any credit history issues that could affect me from ID theft or other problems on her account. Might be a remote possibility, but it’s been engrained in me since I was a college student not to be on your own kid’s accounts, whether bank or credit card or car loan or what have you. Having said that, I’m remaining open to the possibility if it turns out that’s the best way to go.</p>

<p>scmom12 - thanks. I can see how that could work too.</p>

<p>momtotwins - thanks for suggesting State Farm Bank. Here’s what I found out:</p>

<p>On the issue of quick transfers between non-joint accounts, transfers can be made between non-joint accounts at SF (my separate account and D’s separate account) by phone (20 minute transfer time) or on-line (2-3 hour transfer time). Their call centers are open from 6am to 11pm CST M-F and 8am-8pm CST S/S, so this seems to meet my goal of being able to transfer money quickly in an emergency.</p>

<p>On the ATM fees issue, so long as I make a monthly electronic transfer into her account, all ATM fees are reimbursed. Otherwise, they reimburse the first $10 in fees per month. They don’t charge ATM fees themselves, so the fees that are reimbursed are from the ATM’s owner/operator (ie. the other bank). This works for me as well.</p>

<p>Looks like a good option, thank you.</p>

<p>Have never gotten a 1099 for reimbursed fees from any of the banks we have that reimburse for them, nor have my kids. Glad you have found some good options. We have been fortunate to never have had any issues having a few joint accounts with our kids–credit cards and checking accounts, but I can certainly understand why you might prefer not to have a joint account. Our S lost his wallet & D thought hers was lost/stolen, so that caused us some apprehension. D’s wallet turned up later (misplaced in someone’s car) & S’s was found abandonned sans cash when the thief was done with it.</p>

<p>Perhaps none of you used foreighn ATMs enough to trigger a 1099, but they are in fact sent - just like you get one if you are offered a cash premium for opening an account. The bank does is not required to report anything less than $600. but that does not change the fact that these payments are in fact taxable according to US tax code.</p>

<p>The IRS treats rebates differently, depending on how they earned, because some are exempted by the tax code. If you get a rebate that results in a price reduction, you’re OK. But premiums for opening accounts, and rebates for ATM fees are not exempted. Ignorance may be bliss, you those of you who have been getting these rebates have been under reporting your income (as have a significant percentage of Americans).</p>

<p>Just because it’s not reported to the IRS, that doesn’t mean it’s not taxable - the same situation is going to apply to students whose scholarships cover part of room, board, or travel expenses - those parts of the scholarship are taxable, but won’t be reported as such directly to the IRS. Will your student get caught if he doesn’t report the rebates as income? Probably even less likely than being caught for not paying use tax on those OOS online purchases. But something to keep in mind.</p>