If you’ve just moved out of home, you might be a bit skint right now, but that’s okay. Banks won’t judge you just because your total fortune amounts to tens of cents. Whether you’re looking to change banks or you're currently bankless, you need to decide which bank is most worthy. There’s lots of advice out there as to which bank is best for you. But at the end of the day, the decision’s all yours.
Your bank’s best package deal: convenience and loyalty
Convenience and loyalty are two things that a bank should offer you, in a way that suits your life. For example:
- Convenience: Do they have great online banking? A decent app? A fine selection of account options? Free balloons?
- Loyalty: Do they have consistently great customer service? Do they seem legitimately interested in your financial wellbeing?
Interviewing prospective banks (like dating but with fewer bad movies)
Convenience and loyalty are good qualities to start with, but you’re about to enter into a relationship with a bank. This might call for some interviews with prospective banks—don’t be afraid to give them a call, research them online, or pop into a branch. Do some casual research to find out what other people’s experiences with each bank have been like.
No matter how nice each bank is, there’s generally only one winner. Don’t feel bad about telling the others you’re not ready for a commitment right now. Plenty more fish in the sea.
Special tertiary packages and the like
If you meet the criteria for a special bank package, by all means take advantage it if it suits you! Just make sure that you still practise good habits with whatever you receive. If a tertiary pack offers interest-free overdrafts and low-rate credit cards, for example, that’s great – but these are things to be used with maximum caution, as a supplement to actual income. You don’t want to get anchored by debt before your ship’s even ready to sail.
Advice and impressionability
The number one is not always a good number when it comes to advice. The advice you hear from one person (or billboard, or website) might sound fantastic, but that doesn’t mean it’s right for you. Not all advice is created equal.
You really need this piece of advice to be validated by at least one other person you hold in high regard.
That way you’ve now got several people advocating this course of action. Which is better than one. Basic maths. Nailed it.
Coming up
Stay tuned for the next instalment on credit cards.
Please noteThis is intended as general information only. It does not take into account your financial situation and goals and is not personal advice. For advice about your particular circumstances please see a financial adviser, or make an appointment with a Kiwibank Wealth Adviser.