Types of bank account – Larrysteenbass.com

What to Look for in a Student Bank Account

Students need money – it’s a fact of life! They need money to live, to pay their bills, to pay their rent and to pay their way through college, and many student bank accounts offer incentives such as large 0% overdrafts, freebies and more. Learn what to look for in a student bank account and what you need to know about using student accounts below.

Look for the Biggest 0% Overdraft

Banks try their hardest to entice students and they’ll use a whole host of tips and tricks to get you through the doors, but it’s important that you hold out and wait for the biggest and best overdraft at a 0% interest rate – unless the freebies beat it. Some banks offer travel cards that’ll give you a huge percentage off of travel across the country, and this could be a good option for you if you do lots of travelling. Some banks will offer freebies like televisions and games consoles and again, this could be a good option if you were going to buy one of these anyway. Generally though, your best option is to go for the biggest 0% overdraft so you have those additional funds in place just in case.

Look for the Lowest Interest Rate

An overdraft might be charged at 0%, but if you go over that overdraft limit, you’re in dangerous territory as far as interest rates are concerned. Interest rates outside of your overdraft can range from 20% to 35% and so it’s a good idea to choose the account with the lowest interest rate outside of your overdraft just in case you go over your limit. Keep in mind however that going over your limit can also incur one off charges and it might also have an effect on your credit score, so be sure not to go over your limit unless it is absolutely necessary.

Don’t Choose the Closest Bank or ATM

Most students don’t do their banking within the bank anyway – they just use ATMs to withdraw money and their internet bank account to do their day-to-day banking. Instead of choosing the closest bank or ATM, or choosing an account because that’s where your parents have banked, look for the best offers and deals. And remember, just because an ATM is branded with a certain bank doesn’t mean that you can’t withdraw money from it if you bank with another provider – virtually every ATM is open.

Switch to a Graduate Account

Once you’ve graduated, make sure that you switch to a graduate account to get the very best offers and deals. Unless you’ve got into a lot of debt throughout your time at college, you’ll be able to use lower interest rates and lower interest overdrafts to pay off the debt that you’ve accumulated. If your debt is particularly high, you might not be eligible for these types of accounts, so it’s really a good idea to limit your spending through college and only use overdrafts, loans and credit cards that you can afford to pay off.

Finally, what you might not know about student accounts – your credit history starts with your student account, so be sensible with it!

Your Guide to Offshore Bank Accounts

An offshore bank account is a legal way to bank your money. Offshore accounts have all sorts of dangerous and sexy connotations – they seem like the type of account that James Bond villains would use, and although there are a number of reasons why a person might use an offshore bank account, they tend to be to do with tax and liability. People might want to lower their tax bill or reduce liability – having the money in a different country means that you pay a reduced tax rate, and it also means that your money is in a different country should you run into trouble with creditors – money in a different country means that it’s ruled by that government’s laws.

Opening an offshore bank account is not illegal. However, if you open it for an illegal reason, such as because you want to evade taxes or because you’re hiding your money – or simply because you owe money and you want to hide it away – you could still get into trouble. If your reasons for opening an offshore bank account are just, for example because you want to operate your business in a number of different countries, then you should be fine. One problem with offshore accounts is that if something goes wrong, your money is no longer guaranteed. Banking in the U.S. ensures that you get your money if someone gets access to your account illegally or if the country goes bust or if the banking system fails. If something goes wrong in another country, your money could disappear – and there wouldn’t be anything you could do with it. Banking offshore carries risks, and this is definitely one of them – especially given the current global economy.

Opening an Account

Before opening an offshore bank account, there are a number of things you need to know about the money that you have to put in and where in the world you need to be. Most accounts can be opened with just an email, but others will require phone contact too. Every offshore bank account will have a minimum deposit and a minimum amount of funds that you have to declare. This can vary, but $10,000 is usually about the level that you’d be looking for.

It’s always worth remembering that your money is somewhere else – you are in a different country to it and so if something goes wrong, there is absolutely no way to protect what’s yours.

Where to Set Up an Account

Generally, the location of an offshore account is chosen simply because of the benefits that it offers. There are a number of very popular locations for offshore accounts and these are as follows:

Singapore: Singapore has the lowest tax rate in all of Asia and it also invests into the economy of China – this means that investing in a Singapore offshore bank account should save you money on taxes, you’ll also be investing into one of the world’s fast-moving economies. Local experts at the bank will also be able to pick and choose where to invest your money and because the economy is so strong, your money could be incredibly safe in Singapore. It’s also very easy to set up an account in Singapore and is pretty much the same process as setting an account up in America.

Luxemburg: Luxemburg does have more red tape than other locations for offshore accounts, but your money could be well-protected. Luxemburg has a very stable economy and although it might not grow as quickly as the economy in Asia and you’ll have a slower rate of growth, the trade-off is that you’re not investing money in an economy that is strong but still developing. You’ll also need to have a reference from the bank that you currently bank with and you might need to answer a number of questions about what you plan to do with your money in the country, if anything. Investments alone are also accepted.

Switzerland: often chosen because of the secrecy surrounding private affairs in Switzerland, accounts here are an excellent choice as most legal matters such as divorce, bankruptcy and taxes are considered to be very private. Switzerland is also unlikely to bow to pressure from different countries, but if a creditor or someone similar knows that you have a Swiss bank account, they’ll want to find out if you’re hiding something.

Cayman Islands: the Cayman Islands are another popular choice for offshore accounts as it is very possible to be very secretive with your money. Corporations tend to be catered to very well in the Cayman Islands and accounts can be opened with just a corporation name. That means that if you have a number of holding companies, your name can be obscured. The islands don’t supply deposit and credit information either – that’s supposed to be your job so that you pay your taxes properly!

Banking offshore can be a very good way to secure your investments, keep your money safe and grow your business. Offshore bank accounts don’t require you to report your income to the tax man. Unlike accounts in the U.S., offshore accounts leave you on the honor system – meaning that you have to report your income. If you don’t, you will be breaking the law, and you might have to bring your money back into the U.S. – or go and live where your money is located permanently and be liable to the taxes of that country. Remember, no money is tax free and no matter what you do with it, you will need to pay taxes somewhere. Hiding your money because you want to hide from the tax man will come back to bite you on the behind – so use offshore accounts wisely, and above all, legally.

Guide to Student Bank Accounts

Being a student is always tricky – you’re somewhere between being a child and being a fully-fledged adult and you’re trying to find your way in the world. Student bank accounts are just one example of how students get a little bit of a short deal during their late teenage years – they need their own bank account, but they’re unable to get an adult account and they’re too old for a children’s account. Luckily, there are a few bank accounts that are specific to students – although which bank account you end up with depends on which type of student you are. Take a look at our quick guide to student bank accounts for more advice.

Young Person’s Account

Most banks offer a “young person’s account”, usually targeted at students either just below the age of 16 or just over the age of 16. Generally, young person’s accounts offer most of the benefits of a children’s account, but in a lot of cases, young person’s accounts have limited functionality in terms of paying money in or out. Most young person’s accounts can accept money, while debit cards associated with young person’s accounts can pay for items online and in shops and withdraw money from automatic transaction machines, but many of them can only pay out in cash. That means that direct debit payments cannot be set up from a young person’s account, although this will differ from bank to bank.

Student Account

Student accounts are typically offered to students in high school and college. Student accounts are virtually the same as an adult account. Students can set up direct debit payments, pay for items online and in store, use their debit card to withdraw cash from ATMs and set up automatic payments. Generally, student bank accounts are completely free, meaning that students don’t have to pay to have a bank account. However, some student bank accounts will also offer an overdraft facility of up to $2000, depending on status, which students can use as a cushion if they run out of money for paying their bills. Overdrafts are generally free if you pay back any money owed on the overdraft within the month. If not, there is generally an interest charge of up to 30%. If you must use your overdraft facility, try to pay it back within the month, if you can.

Graduate Account

Graduate accounts are what students move onto when they graduate college. They have all of the benefits of a student account, including the ability to make and receive payments, the ability to withdraw money from an ATM and the ability to access an overdraft. The major difference between a student account and a graduate account is the amount of overdraft available. Typical graduate accounts could come with an overdraft of up to $4000, depending on status. The reason for the increase in overdraft on a graduate account is to give students a helping hand when it comes to paying their bills and finding a job when they are fresh out of college, although the interest rates typically remain the same.

Student bank accounts differ from bank to bank, so ask your local bank about anything you’re not sure of.

Guide to Basic Bank Accounts

There are so many different types of bank accounts out there that it can be tricky to work out which bank account is right for you. With everything from basic bank accounts to cash only accounts and prepaid bank accounts, without a guide to tell you exactly which bank account provides which benefits, it’s difficult to know exactly which account you need. Read on for our guide to basic bank accounts.

Basic Bank Account

Basic bank accounts were originally set up to enable those with poor credit histories and those who are less well off to have access to bank accounts and day-t0-day banking facilities. Basic accounts were set up for those who were unable to get a “normal” bank account due to having a poor credit history or no credit history at all.

Benefits of a basic bank account:

Allow you to pay in your wages, benefits, credits and pension
Allow you to set up standing orders, direct debits and direct payments in order to pay your bills
Allow you to spend money using a cash card

The difference between a basic bank account and normal bank account is that you’re unable to have an overdraft facility or a chequebook. This is useful for people who are worried about overspending, as you are unable to go overdrawn and so you don’t have to worry about being able to pay back the overdraft. However, if you fail to make a bill payment or if you don’t have enough money in your account to pay a bill, a charge will be put onto your account. If you fail to pay the charge within a set number of days, you’ll accrue more charges.

Cash Card Only Account

Cash card accounts allow you to pay money into an account, through your wages, benefits, credits and pension. However, with most cash card accounts, you are unable to set up standing orders or direct debits. You can make one time only payments from these accounts but you are unable to set up direct debits as the bank will see you as a risk. The bank may well expect you to default on your payments and so they do not allow you to set up a direct debit in order to prevent you from accruing charges. You are also able to use the card to withdraw money from cash machines and to make payments in shops and online. Your card will be rejected if you do not have the money available in your account.

Prepaid Bank Account

Prepaid bank accounts are becoming more and more popular – but they’re not actually bank accounts. Prepaid bank accounts are actually prepaid cards that you pay your wages into (you can also top them up with money at certain stores and cash machines). You can then pay your bills from the account. Again, bills can only be paid from the account if there is enough money in the account to pay them. If you don’t have enough money on the card to pay your bills, you’ll be charged, and if you don’t have enough money in store or online, your card will be rejected.

Basic bank accounts can be very useful, especially if you have a low credit score. Contact your bank to find out more.

Multi-Currency Bank Accounts

The main idea behind investing in a multi-currency bank account is maintaining the value of your hard money even during weak economic times. With this account you can easily exchange the money in a particular currency. In short, it is the most simple and easy way to diversify the dollar while having a single account number. Many banks who offer foreign currency bank account give the custo

mers an option of wide range of currencies such as US Dollars, Canadian Dollar, Euro, British Pounds, etc. Many banks even have a provision for keeping gold in the account.

Advantages:

There are numerous advantages of holding this type include:

Multi Currency Bank Accounts

It is ideal for people who are involved in a lot of foreign currency payments in form of shares, dividends, selling and buying of real estate property or for people who send out money to their families in different part of the world. With this bank account you can easily wire money in and out in different currencies.
Easy to handle as for all the currencies you have to maintain only a single bank account number and using that all the transactions in various currencies are done.
You can convert any amount of money in a particular currency. This comes in handy when a particular currency sees a downfall in the market due to the fluctuating economy thereby it reduces currency risk and you don’t lose your hard-earned money.
Many banks offer low conversion or exchange rates if you frequently convert in a particular currency. This feature makes transaction for business person and industrialist working across the globe easy and cost-effective.
Such banks also give an option of depositing surplus funds without the cost of converting or exchanging them to sterling.
In addition to this, you are also entitled to competitive interest rates against most of the currencies. However, this feature is available only for deposit account and not for current account.

Apart from these features the banks offer monthly statements, drafts, electronic transfer and foreign transfer. You don’t have to maintain a minimum account balance for such accounts. In short, you enjoy most of the features of a normal bank account and in addition to some extra b

enefits. The benefits of the foreign currency account vary from bank to bank and the cost of opening a bank account varies acro

ss the globe. Read the terms and condition of the bank before making a final decision.

Banks often incur additional costs for administrating and maintaining a multi-currency bank account and you might be charged extra in the name of banking services. And, because of this reason banks generally look for customers with higher net worth or customers who transact a lot in the various currencies. Also, American citizens who wish to have a multi-currency account have to declare this fact to the IRS that is the monitoring organization for such banks. To avoid any confusion on a later stage, it is best to get this doubts cleared from the bank.