How to Get Started If You’ve Never Had an Account with a Bank
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How to Start If You’ve Never Had A Bank Account
Written by Spencer Tierney Senior Writer | Certificates of Deposit and ethical banking, as well as banking deposit accounts Spencer Tierney is a consumer bank writer for NerdWallet. He has been writing about finances for individuals since the year 2013, with a particular focus on certificates of deposit and other topics related to banking. His work has been featured on The Washington Post, USA Today, The Associated Press and the Los Angeles Times, among others. He is located in Berkeley, California.
Aug 11 10th, 2020
Written by Carolyn Kimball Assisting Editor – Los Angeles Times, San Jose Mercury News Carolyn has worked in newsrooms all over the nation as a reporter and editor. Her interests encompass personal finance, Sci-Fi novels and absurd Broadway musicals.
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The management of your money without having a bank account is possible. However, it could be a challenge – and the COVID-19 pandemic has made it worse.
Your economic impact check may’ve been received weeks or even months after other ones, in the form of an e-check or prepaid debit card due to the fact that you didn’t have the quicker delivery option of direct deposit into a bank account. If you’ve visited the shop recently you might have been asked to pay using a credit or debit card, or with exact cash due to an overall shortage of cash and fears about the transmission of germs.
A bank account can make life easier in these scenarios, and other things. To avoid any future problems Consider opening one- or try again if you’ve been rejected previously. Here’s how to get going.
Assess your money needs
If you’re one of 14 million Americans with no banking account within the U.S., you might have a system that can work for you. Maybe that includes the use of alternatives such as prepaid debit cards and checking cashing service. Financial counselor Brandy Baxter has assisted clients who used check cashing services to meet practical reasons.
“They prefer to go into the store, and leave with cash in hand,” says Baxter who is a certified financial counselor and financial coach who manages the firm Living Abundantly in the Dallas-Fort Worth region.
Check cashing establishments like Check ‘n Go and ACE Cash Express may operate for longer hours than banks and offer easy approval procedures for cash in a short time. But this comes with a steep fee, which could range from 1% to 6%, or more than the amount of your check.
Bank accounts can fulfill the needs of money beyond what pre-paid cards or check cashing services can. For instance, their fraud security can restrict the amount you’ll be charged in the event of being victimized, and many accounts allow you to lock your debit cards remotely when stolen.
After you’ve formed a relationship with a bank, other options are available such as credit cards and small business loans and other less expensive options to payday loans may eventually be within reach.
Checking accounts “don’t just help you save costs; they’re the foundation for using other financial products,” says David Rothstein the principal of Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund which manages BankOn an online platform in the United States that promotes financial inclusion.
Find a bank that is right for your needs.
If you are afraid of banks or had trouble obtaining an account previously the community banks or credit unions are generally more flexible than national banks and tend to be mission-driven, for example, they are focused on the financial health of their surrounding communities.
“We’re very accommodating in giving someone another possibility,” says Pedro Murillo, area branch manager in the San Francisco Bay Area for Self-Help Federal Credit Union. “If an employee comes in to apply for an loan and does not have pay stubs, do they have anything else (can they) bring to us? An email from (their) employer? We’re not willing to surrender.”
Similar to other credit unions, Self-Help will require a person to create a savings account in order to join; the minimum to open an account is usually only a few dollars. Members are then able to apply for other services such as a credit building loan.
It is possible to search the internet for the term “CDFI” which is a reference to Community Development Financial Institution- to . A lot of them require members to be in the same state or region in which the credit union or bank has branches.
What should you know about applying
To create an account, you’ll usually require your Social Security number, one or two forms of identification and the money to make your first deposit.
It’s common to apply for two bank accounts simultaneously: a checking and savings account. The checking account allows access to debit cards as well as a bill payment system, among other services. The savings account allows you to set money aside , and in the best case, grow by making interest.
Banks usually screen applicants on ChexSystems, a national reporting agency that maintains records of accounts that were closed against the will of an individual. If you’ve been denied access to your bank account previously and you’re not sure if you’ll be denied by different banks until you pay off your ChexSystems record. This could mean paying off debt to banks or disputing the errors on the record.
When you’ve been cleared, you can think of what banks often call an approved BankOn checking account. A lot of them don’t charge fees for overdrafts which are charged if you attempt to make a payment that could put your account in negative.
Opening the correct bank account involves some effort. But once you’re approved, having a secure place to keep your money, and a better chance to get affordable loans could be worth it.
“To have a checking account… will be the foundation of any financial empowerment program,” Rothstein says.
The post was written by NerdWallet and was originally released by The Associated Press.
The author’s bio: Spencer Tierney is an expert in the field of deposits in certificates at NerdWallet. He has had his work featured on USA Today and the Los Angeles Times.
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