opening a BoA account

i've been using a bank of america branch to dump leftover coins for a long time. friday i took $500 in halves to switch for hundreds, and the teller told me that it was the last time they would let me cash in coins without an account. there are only 2 other banks within walking/biking distance: another BoA where i order coins and a UMB that saves me all the halves and ikes that come in. the bank where i have an account is all the way on the other side of town, and i cant (legally) drive yet, and my parents dont want to drive me to the bank every week. i currently have another $500 in halves with no way to dump them (i dont use coinstar because that would be a $45 fee per box, and i'm not a fan of gift cards). what i need to know is how to open a Bank of America account. i will probably get around to it on tuesday. will they let me open an account without my parents/birth certificate/etc.? thanks for the info

 

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You people and your big banks. Get a credit union. Seriously. There is a huge difference in service when you are not beholden to big Wall St. mortgage perfidy.

 

i would, but theres no credit union close enough. actually i have a credit union account already, an hour and a half away

 

I have lots of credit unions around me, where I get and then deposit my coin searches. I avoid those banks like BoA like the bubonic plague. They tend to be with a few exceptions, the lousiest when it comes to searching for numismatic treasure.

 

FWIW, I have my business accounts with BoA and I have not really cared for the service I have gotten through them. I am seriously thinking about going somewhere else.

As an example, I went into one of the branches awhile back because I needed to get a Medallion Signature Guarantee on some paperwork. My grandmother had died and I was trying to get the stocks she left me cashed out...I was then going to take that cash and put it into my business (which is though BoA).

Because the paperwork was not for a direct deposit...they refused to help me because the check was going to come in my personal name...not the business name. They told me having business accounts (which have had nearly $100K in them at times) is not enough for that service...that I would need a personal bank account. So, I went to where my personal bank accounts are and got it done there...and also inquired about their business accounts. I'm thinking very hard about switching.

I have had a few others annoying things happen with BoA. Nothing major, just small irritating things that make me wonder if they are right for me.

 

i just need an account with them to dump coins for about 8 more months. then ill cancel it and do my dumping at first federal. unfortunately, i looked on their website and they do require a social security number, which might be a problem. they also charge a $5/ month fee if you dont have $300 in your account. now i have to figure out what to do with $500 in halves, not to mention my future CRH leftovers.

 

Why would your SSN be a problem? Also, if you under 18, you may need your parents to cosign it.

 

because my parents have it and they're busy all the time. if they do need to cosign it, that will also be a problem

 

If all you want to do is convert them to currency, why not post them in the for sale thread here on CT and see if you get any offers. You may or may not get $500 but you might. You obviously have an email address so if you don't have either a PayPal or Amazon Payments account either one would be easy to get.

 

I think they will need to cosign on the account. Also, any bank will need your SSN.

 

You may want to investigate opening an account online (though you will still need your SSN), They may just send the signature cards to you address and then your parents could sign any necessary paperwork and return it. Not necessarily fast solution but it might work.

My 20 yo daughter just opened an account about a month ago in person as well without any problems (though I recognize that might not be an option for you).

 

BofA is going to charge you a monthly fee unless you have a minimum monthly balance. I pick up coins from about 5 different BofA's in my area but do not and WILL NOT get an actual account with them. They screw you if you have your money there.

 

anyone know of anywhere else i can return coins besides banks and coinstar machines? will stores take large amounts of coins for paper money?

 

You could try craigslist.

 

No, most stores will not.

 

Merchants don't like half dollars because there's (now) no place to put them in the cash drawer. Four little bins for pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters, that's it. They also hate 1-dollar coins.

I am surprised that there's no Credit Union with 5 miles of a BoA branch. Get rid of the CU account an hour and a half away, and open a new one close by. Eventually, you'll need it.

 

Hauling boxes of halves on your bicycle?

Your parents are too busy to tell you your SSN?

There's a great deal here that I don't understand.

In any event, I can't imagine that any bank would let a minor open an account without a parent taking responsibility for the account. If your parents won't even cooperate to the extent of taking you to the bank once a week, I'm afraid you might have to set this part of the hobby aside until you're old enough to drive yourself.

Are you finding enough interesting halves in boxes to make it worthwhile?

 

You might also look for a credit union Family Service Center. They provide remote services for many of the federally chartered CUs. They might not take $500 worth tho.

 

I don't know of any bank that would let a minor have an account with a parental consignor. Maybe some kind of ho hum small town bank, but still, I doubt it.

Banking carries a major risk, and minors cannot be sued in many jurisdictions, so if you mess up, you can't be held accountable, BUT, with your parents name on the account, THEY become accountable.

But I will say this...

If I had a choice between being forced to become a eunuch, and opening an account at BOA, I think I would choose the 1st option.

I opened an account with them around the same time I opened an account with Chase.

They are slow, they are slower than slow, and if there was a word that meant "the slowest of all slowness", I would call them that.

They do not even let you log into your account the same day you opened it.

Oh no, they give you a username in an email 2-3 days after, they send you a password in the mail, they send you a pin in the mail, they send you a debit card in the mail, and then they send you counter checks in the mail.

4 separate letters, each which took a total of a week to get.

Last year they were proposing charging everyone $5/mo for having a debit but decided not to after meeting criticism.

No wonder they wanted to! Whatever happened to going green? Four separate pieces of mail, which probably cost a total of a dollar to mail, and you can see why these kinds of companies fail, they hire morons to run it.

It's 2014, time to go green, not waste a bunch of paper.

 

I kind of get the feeling that BoA is convenient for him because he said he gets the coins from one BoA and turns them into another. So, two must be close by.

That said, if your parents cosigning is going to be an issue...you will probably have to wait until you can drive to your current bank to participate in this part of the hobby or wait until you are old enough to get your own personal BoA account.