Bank accounts for students living on campus

[civ@uw]

I've had a Scotiabank account (Daily interest savings) for the last 10 or so years, and I was thinking of possibly switching. There's a CIBC branch right on the UW campus so I was thinking that just for the sake of convenience I would get an account there. Any advice would be appreciated.

[longo]

doooooooooo it!
PC Financial is the way to go, it's free, you can get a high interest saving account if you have cash to spare, and their MC is great. Collect points on it by just using it. With the points you can save up for groceries for when you live on your own

[Rebel_lord]

This is more towards McMaster students but all we have around campus are CIBC machines and PC Financial is sort of a subsidy of CIBC so you can get free withdraws out of their ATMs too. Useful for laundry or purchasing food.

[blink]

I completely agree with the recommendations to switch to PC Financial. It is free to use CIBC machines which would be easy for you to access... otherwise it is no-fee for traditional banking (debits, cheques, etc) with no minimum balance. The savings account can let you earn some (comparatively) decent interest as well.

I switched to PC once TD removed me from my youth account and started to charge me monthly fees.. and I never looked back. :cheesygri

[remmuh]

switch to TD and g et a free IPOD.. wait.. that's over.

nm

[ariel]

Maybe this is threadcrapping but my parents had their PC financial Mastercard credit card # stolen.


MC had originally blocked transactions because my dad made purchases in Toronto and Wasaga beach on the same day (true). He called them and they authorized it after he was declined a bunch of times and wondered what was wrong with his card.

However, the MC people didn't bother to call and and ask why there were charges in Calgary, Ottawa and Waterloo on the same day though.

It's nice that they were watching the first time, but I mean, where is your logic? Obviously Wasaga beach and Toronto are much closer than Ottawa and Calgary.

Just thought you should know.

[nkwu]

^thats mastercard themselves, I don't think it has anythign to do with PC financial.

[calluses]

i'm from UW but i have an account with TD.

yes you can only find CIBC and interac machinese on campus. if you want the nearest TD branches, you have to walk either 20 minutes east or 20 minutes south-west.

get PC or CIBC for convenience.

[Tharyn]

I still have a TD account, it holds my line of credit and visa, but I use PC Financial for my main chequing / savings account, and I've got the PC mastercard, it's a great combination especially for UW since PC is backed by CIBC, so all the machines have no service charge.

It's great for those days at POETS where you need extra cash, you can just hop outside to the DWE Entrance and use the CIBC machine there, brilliant I tell you!

Not to mention no fees, and collecting PC points with my PC MasterCard, it's a win-win combiantion.

--Mark

[civ@uw]

Thanks for the input. I've heard great things from PC Financial from pretty much everywhere, so I've decided on setting up an account there.

Theres just a few questions I would like answered before I'm completely comfortable with my choice. Do most people take a No Fee Bank Account and Interest First Savings account, and transfer money between the two whenever need be? Or do they just take one or the other? Also what fees are associated with the Interest First Savings Account?

[Tofu Drift Shinji]

For the benefit of first year U of T St. George students, TD is the bank of choice on and around campus--TDs are everywhere in Toronto, and there's even an ATM at Robart's.

I believe (anyone that knows for sure, correct me if I'm wrong) Scotia ATMs are also on campus at Sid Smith.

[blink]

Thanks for the input. I've heard great things from PC Financial from pretty much everywhere, so I've decided on setting up an account there.

Theres just a few questions I would like answered before I'm completely comfortable with my choice. Do most people take a No Fee Bank Account and Interest First Savings account, and transfer money between the two whenever need be? Or do they just take one or the other? Also what fees are associated with the Interest First Savings Account?

To set up an account you absolutely need a chequing account (that's what you are setting up). It is optional to also open up a savings account, but I recommend you do that as well. Only in the savings account will your money earn a decent interest rate, although you do have to wait 24 hours to transfer money from savings to chequing. I actually only keep $20 in my chequing and everything else in savings since I typically use my credit card for all my purchases and I can easily set up that transfer/payment in advance.

And since this is all no-fee (chequing and savings), should you decide you won't use it later on, it doesn't matter! (there may be a charge if you close your entire account in less than 3 months, but otherwise you should be golden).

[supernerd]

And since this is all no-fee (chequing and savings), should you decide you won't use it later on, it doesn't matter! (there may be a charge if you close your entire account in less than 3 months, but otherwise you should be golden).

There's also a charge if you dont use your account for like 2 years or something. But since theres no fees associated with anything, it never hurts to just transfer money back and forth between savings and chequing.

[Tharyn]

Yeah, you won't be able to access your Savings account from Interac, the only way to use it is to transfer from Savings to Chequing and then use it, but needless to say the intereset rate on the Savings account is pretty good, so it's a great place to just keep your money.

--Mark

[Nuprapture]

I've been a PC customer for well over 3 years and I now work for them! This means I can see both sides of the spectrum, from the customer to the bank. The lack of fees is a great value, especially for people entering universities (typically about to turn 19 and start getting fees at other banks). The security is VERY well maintained, so no personal information is ever able to be released. Amicus is being dissolved and PC is now directly managed by CIBC Retail Markets, so there's no chance that our deposits are ever in trouble.

Anyone who lives in the mississauga or oakville area and want to set up an account, i'd be more than happy to do it for ya - PLUS u get a free bag of cookies :P
......shameless self promo, eh? lol

[civ@uw]

Is there a way to apply if you are less than 18 years old?

[nkwu]

hats the only draw back, with the withdrawal of grade 13, a bunch of students will be 17 when they begin university(soonto turn 18 within the end of the year though), has this policy changed? because I would like ot have a PC financial account.


An alternative is gettingyour parnets to get the account,m and just let you use everything.

[blahraptors]

if you're under 19 you can get a youth savings account, and every transaction is free. i have that myself... but for some reason my account is a chequing account... meh, o well it sall good :cheesygri

[nkwu]

^that exists?, well I have one with CIBC that expires...when im...18?, and will probalby get the PC one eventually when I can, but where's that on the website?

[blahraptors]

i never looked at the website. i just saw that account in the brochure and i signed up for it. it's great cuz everything's free! no fees or anything (think free banking)

[eliteblaze]

if your under 18 just get a cibc account, it's free anywayz? then get a pf later on

[blahraptors]

ya u can do that, and i think when u turn 19 they automatically switch u to a student account which has discounts, but u do have to pay a monthly fee unless u have a certain amount of money in ur account (i think $1500?)