Bank Account Options For Kids (That Are Exciting)
It is a good idea to start a bank account for your child early on so they can begin to learn about money. This may include teaching them about savings and how to manage accounts, but really it is about building confidence in financial matters and teaching them the discipline that will benefit them in the future.
With the war for deposits between the banks, there are a variety of great products out there to start your kids on which come with no fees, high interest rates and full banking facilities.
Here are the top five which you should check out!
CBA’s Dollarmites
I constantly hear everyone reminiscing about their Dollarmite days when they were younger. Dollarmites has been revived by CBA to encourage younger kids to learn about savings. Their YouthSaver account comes with no monthly account fees and no withdrawal fees.
At the current time there is a standard interest rate and bonus interest rate. Keep in mind here that the bonus interest (which may as well be the whole rate) is only earned if you make a deposit and no withdrawals in the month. Despite this, there is an interactive Dollarmite site with activities and ideas that will get your children’s interest in banking going.
ANZ Progress Saver
ANZ’s progress saver account works much the same way as CBA’s Youth Saver. There are no monthly fees and if you make one deposit of $10 per month and no withdrawals you earn some interest. This account is meant to be used more as a subsidiary to your everyday banking account (kids can receive a free access advantage account) and is used to achieve savings goals.
Kids also receive one of ANZ’s famous money boxes. A tip here would be to get your child to contribute money to their money box and then once a month take them to deposit their savings into their account. This makes savings fun and interactive for them.
Suncorp Kids Savings Account
Suncorp offers a fee Kids account for those under 18, where again bonus interest is paid if you make one deposit and only one withdrawal per month. However unlike the others they still have a standard rate of more than 0.01% meaning your child still earns some interest.
You have the option of a passbook which is a great tool for children to see how their savings are going. They also have a great website which parents can use with their kids that has games, worksheets, savings goals and charts and even has options for kids to contribute to charities.
Bankwest Kids’s Bonus Saver Account
Bankwest has a transactional account for kids which is completely free and earns some interest. The real win is linking this account to a Kid’s Bonus Saver which is currently paying 8.00% interest with deposits of $25-$250 made each month. This is more than I have seen for any online or term deposits in years and can really teach your kids about the rewards of savings. This account has been awarded Money Magazines Best Kids Savings Account for 5 years in a row!
Westpac Kids Reward Saver
Westpac has a range of different transactional accounts and savings accounts to suit people under 21 that provide no fees. The bank also has a range of accounts to help them achieve savings goals. The Kids Reward Saver works along the same provisos as the other banks-make a deposit each month and no withdrawals to earn interest. There are no account fees and the interest rate is quite attractive at the moment.
Which One to choose?
Make sure you research all options before opening your children an account. Think about what you want to achieve-do you want to teach your child about regular savings, interest rates, banking in general, spending etc.? Make sure you investigate any hidden fees and charges and importantly, make sure you understand the rules of the account! Most of these savings accounts have minimum deposits and restrictions on withdrawals so make sure you understand what is going on (and teach these to your children) to maximise their savings.
