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Best Checking Account
Best Checking Account
In today's world, it is virtually impossible to live without a bank account. We all need to trade in business at some point in our lives whether we are buying or selling any sort of goods or services. Paying by cash is fading away because most business or institutions will not cash checks, or conduct any sort of business unless you have a checking account.
Choosing the best checking account is one of the most important decisions that you will ever make. Whether you intend to open a new individual checking account, or student account or a business account, there are three main points that every checking account must possess in order for it to be deemed as a good checking account.
Firstly, each checking account must NOT charge you a cent to open an account. Secondly, a good checking account will not require you to deposit any money upon opening your account and lastly every checking account must be able to offer you monthly interests on your savings in the account. Do not sign up to any firm who do not offer these three basic commodities. Be aware that even though there are virtually no charges in using a checking account, fees become applicable when you either have an overdraft or a returned check, so it is best to avoid these two scenarios.
Some beneficial features of opening a checking account is that you automatically receive an ATM card and a check book and you are not charged. If you made an individual or a student application online then you qualify to not pay any ATM withdrawal fees and majority of fees are waived off and you get special discounts for additional services like insurance. You are also not charged for online or bill payments.
For new business accounts there are also some additional useful features on top of having a student or individual account. This varies from bank to bank as each bank has specific rules about holding a business checking account. Bank of America for instance, offers new business accounts with two additional accounts - business Economy checking account and a free personal account- you are not charged for the first 200 checks paid and deposited plus there are no maintenance fees. However additional charges do apply such as online payroll, direct payments, express invoicing but they offer one of the lowest banking rates for especially small business.
If you are recovering from a poor/bad credit rating, it is still possible to have a checking account. As a bad credit record holder you will most certainly be entered into the ChexSystems database. This is where they store information of all bad credit holders, so you can be rest assured that every bank will have access to this information, which will make it difficult for you to open an a checking account. The best thing to do if you are in this position is either find a bank that is not in the ChexSystem (which is rare as most banks are registered in this database) or open a second chance checking account. These are accounts designed for people who are in bad credit and are unable to open a regular account. You will pay a bit more and you are not usually offered the free range services that a new account holder has, but you are able to have a debit card and basic checking features such as depositing, withdrawing and money transfers.