Another vote for Bank of America.

Parents needs to have a BoA account. We like that accounts are linked so we can see our teen's account and move money into his account if needed. Teen has a BoA debit card and credit card. The cellphone app is easy to use.

Anonymous wrote:We have used Capital Ones Teen account. It is free. It is very convenient for us because we can move $$ between accounts easily as we have Cap One too. It would be less useful if we did not have it but you can still probably log in.

When I threw in the towel on Truist, the Cap One teen account (and app) was the deciding factor in where I switched. I set up teen accounts for both my 12yo and 15yo and have no complaints so far. They each have their own debit card and bank app on their phones. I can see everything very seamlessly in my app to move money in/out and monitor their spending, so it's convenient for things like sending them to the store for milk or whatever. They can also set their own savings goals and things like that in their apps.

I think for the cap one teen accounts, you do need a regular checking account and there may be rules for that in order to be fee free (like having a direct deposit or something like that).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have used Capital Ones Teen account. It is free. It is very convenient for us because we can move $$ between accounts easily as we have Cap One too. It would be less useful if we did not have it but you can still probably log in.

Similar account with Bank of America.

We use BoA and I believe my husband also set our oldest son up with an account at BOA. I do not believe my husband would have paid extra for this account but I'll have to ask him when he gets home.

I have to challenge the notion that a credit union isn't a good solution. I got my first CU account early on in college and I'm still a member today (... 30 years later). The closest branch to this Richmond-based CU is still nearly an hour's drive south from NoVA and I've had no issues. I went to grad school out-of-state, again with no issues. I joined a second CU (local to NoVA) after getting married and our kids now have accounts there.

With online banking, I've never had any issue that couldn't be easily resolved. I think I've needed an in-branch service maybe once every three or so years, and I've used the CU service center option a few times over the decades.

The only non-CU financial service I've needed were my home purchases (one condo and then a later upgrade to SFH). Each time, I went through a mortgage broker, which ultimately did not involve a "national" bank or any institution where I had previous experience.

As far as I am concerned, I think a credit union can meet your stated need.

Anonymous wrote:The problem is that a lot of the banks need to have an account with a parent first. Then they set up an account as a custodial account for a teen. We use Citibank, but dropped them for our teen when they started charging in January. We still have a savings account for our teen there. But we move money from that account to a Fidelity teen account where I also have a small brokerage parent account.

Is fidelity for saving, credit card, and investment?

Anonymous wrote:Another vote for Capital One. Easy to monitor, send and receive money, deposit checks, she can pay for things with her phone or physical debit card, and it earns a competitive interest rate.

Do the parents need a Capital One account, as well?

Another vote for Capital One. Easy to monitor, send and receive money, deposit checks, she can pay for things with her phone or physical debit card, and it earns a competitive interest rate.

The problem is that a lot of the banks need to have an account with a parent first. Then they set up an account as a custodial account for a teen. We use Citibank, but dropped them for our teen when they started charging in January. We still have a savings account for our teen there. But we move money from that account to a Fidelity teen account where I also have a small brokerage parent account.

We have fidelity for our teen. They give you $50 for joining. No fees. Debit card. Kids can also buy and sell stock too.

Anonymous wrote:We have used Capital Ones Teen account. It is free. It is very convenient for us because we can move $$ between accounts easily as we have Cap One too. It would be less useful if we did not have it but you can still probably log in.

Similar account with Bank of America.

Anonymous wrote:Where is the direct deposit coming from? Work?
Much more important to teach them responsible credit use (and build credit) than the use of own cash.

Yes. The direct deposit will be coming from work.
We have had a greenlight for awhile, but I know that doesn't build credit.

So, we are looking for a place to deposit checks, but also one that offers ways to start building credit.

We aren't with Capital One, but will look into that!

We're in the same boat. Accounts at NIH credit union, which is such a pain because there's security to go through at the main gate if you're not the employee.

Any more recs are appreciated.

Where is the direct deposit coming from? Work?
Much more important to teach them responsible credit use (and build credit) than the use of own cash.

We have used Capital Ones Teen account. It is free. It is very convenient for us because we can move $$ between accounts easily as we have Cap One too. It would be less useful if we did not have it but you can still probably log in.

We'd like to set up our teen with an account for direct deposit. Our regular bank charges a fee unless the minimum is met and that sounds like it's not the best option. Our teen does have an account we opened forever ago at a credit union, but it's hard to access and we want something else (a national bank). Are there any banks that have good products for teens? Thanks!