<p>I do not have any banking account yet currently,
and I'm planning to make one before i start my frosh year.
Which bank would be the most convenient in cornell campus?</p>
<p>I think M&T and Bank of America are the two most commonly used here. I personally like M&T because there are M&T ATMs all over campus, and there is even a branch office conveniently located on central campus.</p>
<p>no Wells Fargo?</p>
<p>M and T is not so prevalent around here. What other bank’s branches are located in or near the campus?</p>
<p>There are two banks located on campus in the Cornell Store. They’re CFCU and Tompkins County Trust. Both, I believe, are local banks and many people have accounts with either one. M&T also has an office in Willard-Straight. I’ve used Tompkins Trust for my 4 years at Cornell and I’ve had no problems with it. You can easily open a student checking&savings account during your first week at Cornell.</p>
<p>In terms of large, national banks, Bank of America would be the best option. I know of one ATM in collegetown, and there is a branch in the Commons, which is a 10 minute bus ride from campus. There’s also Citizens Bank in Tops supermarkets.</p>
<p>both my kids ended up with BofA - they have found it is useful as it has branches all over the country</p>
<p>hsbc works too. there’s an ATM at willard straight and two offices within 5 min of cornell. 1 is up by triphammer mall. the other is on tioga street right by the commons.</p>
<p>M&T is def the most convenient, followed by BofA for major national banks</p>
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<p>You can, but depending on the bank’s policies, you might not be able to get personalized checks or a debit card immediately. I don’t know whether the Cornell Store will take starter checks that don’t have your name on them. You might need to find another way to pay for your books. There is a thing called Cornellcard that you might want to use for this purpose – even if you never use it again.</p>
<p>I used Tompkins Trust while I was at Cornell. My hometown at the time had no major banks so my choice was simple. If I remember correctly, I was actually able to open my TTC account over the summer via some paperwork that was mailed to my home. My account was ready on move-in day. TTC had a tent set up outside the bookstore and I was able to get my debit card and program the PIN as well pick up my checks.</p>
<p>What could anyone possibly need checks for?</p>
<p>Plenty of reasons…the big one being for students who have a job and wish to have direct deposit of their paycheck. You need to present a voided check to your employer.</p>
<p>I used checks frequently at Cornell and I still use them a lot today.</p>
<p>Do they charge you extra for using other bank’s ATM? my sister goes to CUNY and she said they dont charge you extra in the campus area. is there TD bank ATM or a branch around Cornell? TD bank is right in front of my house so it would be really convenient for my parents. If not, I guess im gonna have to go with B of A.</p>
<p>Well my D worked on campus all year last year. was able to do direct deposit and never presented a voided check.</p>
<p>I haven’t written a check in probably at least 5 years. Everybody takes a debit card and if you ever need to write a check, you can always do it online.</p>
<p>Businesses hate checks, would much rather take a debit card. Just sayin…</p>
<p>It’s out of date to need a cancelled check for direct deposit. All you need to provide is router number and acct number. My daughter has never written a check yet. I rarely write checks now also. </p>
<p>I wouldn’t worry so much about having a local bank acct. I would suggest for student to have an acct tied to their parent’s acct. It would make it easier for parents to transfer money. When living off campus and parents are sending rent and food money monthly, its very convenient, not to mention when there is an emergency My daughter rarely uses cash, she uses here debit card for most of her purchases</p>
<p>I think the most important thing new college students can do is getting a copy of a financial software program, such as Quicken and begin using it. Use it to track your spending and learn to build and use a budget. This will be very helpful as you go through life. The sooner you learn, the better off.</p>
<p>If you do this, you will want to make sure whatever bank you choose allows for integrated downloads between your software and the bank. That way you don’t have to type everything in. Bank of America offers this. I don’t know about the other banks there at Cornell.</p>
<p>It is amazing how you will change your spending habits when you look at a report each month and realize where your money is actually being spent.</p>
<p>I’m not going to get into a back and forth about checks…suffice it to say…I have a loan lender that, for some reason, still requires me to mail a check each month, my employer also requires a voided check for direct deposit setup (granted, that is a one time thing), my post-bacc program only accepted checks/money order for the app fee and deposit, and I had to put down a deposit for my gross anatomy course with a check.</p>
<p>So you guys may not need checks…but I sure as heck still do. To each his own.</p>
<p>+1 in the check writing camp.</p>
<p>my point was you don’t need a checkbook.</p>
<p>pretty much every bank that allows online payments will allow you to go online and make a payment with a check to anyone, anywhere. If the “payee” isn’t in their database for electronic transfer, they will simply mail them a check.</p>
<p>I was merely trying to point out that there are newer ways that are more secure to do things rather than carry around a checkbook that when lost gives very easy, unprotected access to your money. Keep in mind, with a debit card, you are only responsible for $50 if someone finds it or steals it and uses it. If someone gets your checks and cashes one. You don’t have the same protection.</p>
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<p>I use my online banking account for 98% of the checks that I write. Saves a stamp, more secure, etc. I’m not arguing with you there.</p>
<p>But there will always be a need for a check book – for example, I just went to a wedding this weekend. What was I going to do, paypal them their wedding gift? </p>
<p>Or a caterer/band who doesn’t take credit cards and wants to settle-up at the end of the night? (I had a couple of those when I was an upperclassmen.)</p>
<p>A checkbook becomes especially valuable when you are an upperclassmen living off-campus and find you are being asked for a security deposit on the spot or quickly need to settle up debt among housemates.</p>
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<p>Simple solution: Keep your checkbook in a safe place, along with your passport, etc.</p>