what's the best checking account for college students?
348674
My son goes to college in Boston.  He's found Bank of America to be the best.  They have a special checking for college students with no monthly fee, and their ATM's are everywhere.\nSecond choice in Boston would be Citizens Bank, but I'm not sure they offer free checking.
240803
I like to bank on the web.  If that's what you plan on doing check out their web sites.  Also, I use the ATMs a lot.  I'd check to see who has the most ATMs in my area and how convenient they are for me to visit.   Also check out their fees.  If you use another bank's ATM, how much will you be charged?  Is there free checking for direct deposit?  Look at what each bank offers and see how they meet your needs.\nThese are things that you need to think about before choosing a bank.
543442
I'm not sure about safest... people can steal checkbooks too- and if you think people *always* ID.... nope.  That's the reason credit cards still get stolen.  The actual safest, although not probable in these days, is cash.  If you lose it,  or it gets stolen, that's all that's lost.  Not your identity or hundreds to thousands of dollars which you wouldn't be carrying on you.\n\nThe easiest way to manage your money is with a good budget.  Write up a budget including your bills, personal expenses, savings, etc., and keep an eye on it.  Write down everything that you buy and try to keep within your means.
1127244
They don't seem to offer checking accounts.  You'll have to open one elsewhere.  I quote from their FAQ:\n\n"Do I have to change banks?\nNo. In fact to have an account you must have a personal checking account with another institution. We then link your personal checking account to your Orange account. You can easily transfer funds from or to your Orange account without charge. Do transactions on line at ingdirect.com, by using the Interactive Phone System or by calling an ING DIRECT associate. Funds generally move between your Orange account and your linked account within 3 business days."
403104
Capital One and ING offer the best high yield savings account.  There is no minimum, and there are no fees to maintain.  I just opened one up with Capital One, and there interest rates are 4.25%.  You're not going to find much better than that.  With both of these accounts, you can have them linked to your checking account.
1161298
Depositing money into your checking account is a good start.\n\n-J.
230832
Wachovia http://www.wachovia.com/personal/page/0,,11_480_3972,00.html\n\nPNC Bank\nhttp://www.pncbank.com/personal_finance/deposit_center/checking_accounts/0,3810,2722,00.html\n\nBank of America\nhttp://www.bankofamerica.com/\n\nSoverign Bank\nhttp://www.sovereignbank.com/personal/forms/regional_prefs.asp?refer=%2Fpersonal%2Ferror%5F404%2Easp%3Furl%3D%252Fpersonal%252Fbanking%252Ftotally%255Ffree%255Fchecking%252Easp\n\nCompass Bank\nhttp://www.compassweb.com/index.html
1147524
compare the rates of savings accounts and CD's a Bankrate.com\nThis is a legit website that ranks the top returns for each.  You'll find that many of the online banks offer accounts that can most likely be linked to your checking  account.  HSBC, INGdirect, emmigrantdirect.com are all decent sites that offer great savings rates.  Being in college you may want to consider putting a portion into a tax deferred account for retirement.  You're never too young to start saving for retirement.
988712
When choosing a bank, the "best" bank really depends on what type of account you are looking to open. In other words, if you are opening a savings account, then obviously the "best" bank would be one that offers the highest interest return on your money. But I am assuming that you are going to open a checking account because you also want access to many ATM machines. I am a customer of Washington Mutual Bank, having a checking account there. They suit my needs the best because they have numerous ATM locations, but most importantly, they truly have FREE checking. In other words you don't get charged monthly maintenance fees, etc. I looked them up online for you and they appear to also have many ATM machines throughout NYC: http://clients.mapquest.com/wamu/mqlocator?screen=find&link=results&linktype=results&smap=wamu_map&width=300&height=225&sqlWhere=%28QUAL%281%29+and+%28QUAL%282%29%29%29&queryRadius=500&queryMax=20&queryUseOrigin=1&queryCenterOrigin=1&closestprox=1&miles=500&type=wamu&country=US&sqlcol1=POL_DIV_2&sqlcnd1=%3D&sqlval1=NY&sqlcol2=ATM&sqlcnd2=like&sqlcol3=OFF_TYPE&sqlcnd3=like&sqlcol4=OFF_TYPE&sqlcnd4=like&sqlcol5=TALKINGATM&sqlcnd5=like&sqlcmb2=OR&sqlcmb3=OR&sqlcmb4=OR&streetaddress=&city=new+york+city&state=NY&zip=&sqlval2=Y&map_display=true&closestn=20&x=5&y=12 . Check them out if you'd like. \n\nUltimately they may not be the best bank to suit your needs. If they don't have the features you are looking for, or you decide you want a different bank, you can always check out http://www.bankrate.com/brm/default.asp and search for banks in your area and compare them through specific features you want. I hope this helps, good luck with your move!
331858
I like Fifth Third.  I'm not sure what city you are in, but if it's in Ohio, there are lots of branches and ATMs to use.  They are inside all of the Kroger's stores (grocery store) so it's easy to bank on the weekends.
479671
1fbusa.com\nIf you are looking for 1st financial bank, thats the link, its a student credit card for people starting out
409079
Wells Fargo (Just open a Checking Account with at least $100.00 and the Visa Card is FREE)
996218
ING is great.  Check out www.GMACBank.com (also).  I have both. GMAC has an ATM card & free checks as well as electronic transfers. Currently GMAC has higher rates for savings.\n\nBoth are FDIC insured. Both are major players in the on line market.
721382
There are some excellent resources out there for saving money on a budget. \n\nLucy Lazarony with Bankrate.com has some excellent advice tailored specifically for college students:\n\n1. Track it\nTrack your spending for two to four weeks to find out where your money is going. Are four trips to Starbucks a week really necessary?\n\n"They don't realize how much they spend on little things," says Vickie Hampton, a financial planner and an associate professor at Texas Tech University in Lubbuck, Texas. "That's the most common revelation."\n\nMark Oleson, director of a financial counseling clinic at Iowa State University, adds, "Usually, just by tracking expenses, you'll start to curb expenses." \n\n2. Get a plan\nThe best way to manage your money over the course of a semester is to sit down and map out a budget. List sources of income such as scholarships, loans, money from summer jobs and cash from your parents as well as expenses, such as tuition, books and groceries. \n\n3. Good time money\nIf you know you need to buy a new CD or go to concert or a party every week, make room for that in your budget. \n\n"You need some entertainment," Hampton says. "A student is going to get really burned out if you don't do anything fun."\n\n4. Pace yourself\nIf you spend, spend, spend at the beginning of the semester, you could be tapped out later. Give yourself a spending limit for each week. Stick to it and you won't have to eat macaroni-and-cheese every day in December.\n\n5. Go easy with the credit cards\n"One quick way to spend beyond your means is to charge it," says Mallary Tytel, president of Healthy Workplaces. \n\nUse credit cards sparingly. Once you get into the habit of reaching for a Visa, it can be hard to stop. \n\n"I saw a student pick up a bag of chips and charge it," Tytel says.\n\nWho wants to pay interest on a bag of Doritos?\n\n6. Set your own credit line\n"Just because you have a credit card with a $2,000 credit line doesn't mean you have to spend $2,000," DiSpirito says. "If you know you can only pay back $500, then just spend that."\n\nAfraid you'll spend as long as there's room on the card? Call your credit card company and request your credit limit be lowered. Keep at it. Card companies will try boost up your credit lines so you spend more. Tell them "no" each time they try. \n\n7. Get real\nYou can do what you want, but you can't do everything you want. You're going to have to make some choices. Whatever you choose is going to cost some money. Be realistic. \n\n"You need to understand you can't have everything and you have to understand there are consequences," Tytel says. "At some point there needs to be a reality check in terms of what things cost. Most kids have no idea."\n\n8. Stuff happens\nIf you bust your budget on something you really, really want to do this week, make up for it next week.\n\nIf you find that you must go out to dinner and a movie one week, spend the money; be satifisfied with the decision, and commit to staying home, eating at home and not making any other purchases the following week.\n\n9. Look ahead\nWhether it's a road trip with friends or an auto insurance bill, if you know a big expense is coming, start putting some money aside to pay for it.\n\n"It's a lot easier to set aside $50 every month than to come up with $300 when the bill is due," Oleson says. \n\n10. Get in touch with your roomie\nContact your roommate before the semester starts and divvy up expenses. Chat about who will bring a refrigerator and who will bring a microwave. \n\nThis way you avoid duplicating purchases and excess spending, but will still have all the conveniences to make college life easier.\n\n11. Spread it out\n"Most of the big expenses are at the beginning of the school year," Tytel says. "Buy books as you need t
354481
Debit card with a Visa or MasterCard logo is one attached to a checking account. At the age of 17, you should be able to open a checking account with a local bank, just make sure they issue debit cards with the Visa or MasterCard logo.\n\nTry bankrate - I have a link to them on my website.\n\nGood luck\n\nPS. Don't forget. It (the debit card) is linked to your checking account - no money in the checking account means - no transaction will go through - so make sure there is money in the account!
902915
I'm inclined to say American Express.  My husband uses it for travel and I believe they have a student card.
34009
The easiest credit card to get is American Express Blue for students. It has a limit of $2500 and they give it to you right away. Just apply and in one week you have a new card