Money management for underg student

theriel

Hello!
As I'm moving to England to study there (London) I'm looking for some good solution as for managing my money. In general -> I need one account where I would put only the money that I need for normal expanses (such as food, books, cinema etc.) and the other which would be working on the rest of my money.

1.So I need an account which would give me:
-Mastercard/Vista (no AE and related) with:

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free of additional fee for ATM withdrawal

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possibility of paying with it via Internet

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very low fee for paying using this card
-Internet access to my account and making bank transfers (with confirmation by SMS or a token)
-no fee for account maintenance
-international bank transfers via Internet highly appreciated though not crucial

I know that there are some special "student" accounts but I cannot see any major difference between so-called "basic" and "student" accounts. If anybody could give me some clue I would highly appreciate. Above all - I do NOT need to make any overdrafts, so they do not matter in my case.

As far as I know I would probably need two cards: Visa electron (for free of charge ATM withdrawal) and VISA classic (for internet shopping)... correct me if I'm wrong.

2.The other (separate) problem:
I'm looking for some way of investing the rest of my money. I know that ISAs are quite popular in UK - anything else worth looking at?

I would be grateful if you could also recommend me some specific banks, saying something about your personal experience etc... At the moment I would decide to go to HSBC, Lloyds or Netwest because... well these are the only ones I know that are big and (probably?) quite good.

Thank you for your help and advice!

Best regards,
Theriel

Gemmzie

I don't think you can have an ISA unless you're a UK tax payer.

Are you an EU student? I think that makes a difference as to which banks might offer you a student account

Titch89

You only need one card. The card you use for internet shopping (visa?) can also be used to withdraw cash from ATMs.

theriel

Yes, I am EU student.

Titch89 - to make internet shopping you need visa classic. This card charges fee for withdrawal. Visa electron does not. At least that's the situation in my country, I don't know about UK.

Thank you for your responses - I would be grateful if you could give me more comments, preferably including some names of banks - which do you think are good, which I'd better avoid?

And, once again - what is the difference between a student and basic account in majority of banks?

Ebany

Right, firstly, Mastercard and Visa both supply debit and credit cards - its unclear from what you have said which you are wanting, or possibly both. A debit card is directly linked to your bank account (so money goes straight from your account when you use it) as opposed to a credit card (where you get a bill at the end of each month and you pay all or some of it, down to their minimum payment).

Debit cards are Visa Debit, or Maestro (the mastercard one). I’d say almost all banks will offer one or other of these with a standard account, they can be used pretty much everywhere in shops and on the internet. Accounts with more restrictions (if you are seen as a credit risk) may offer Visa electron or Solo, these are not accepted in as many places, and may be hard to use online. At the very bottom of the credit pile is a plain cash card, which only lets you withdraw money from cash machines, no direct card use in shops or over the net. Credit cards are your standard Visa and Mastercard – these are supplied by a huge number of companies, its really worth doing some thorough investigating to find which one suits you the best.

The standard in the UK is pleasingly towards relatively fee free banking. There are no fees for withdrawing cash from most machines (some do though - this depends on the machine rather than your bank) and so long as you have a debit card, it will not cost you (as you are just extracting your own cash from the bank). Cash withdrawls with a credit card don't usually have a fee (I think) but will charge a higher rate of interest, from the day you withdraw the cash, so it will cost you.

Internet banking is relatively standard now, and would probably allow most of what you want (international transfers may be more complicated, though I know I can do them with my bank) The pros and cons will be easier to discuss once you narrow down your options a bit.

Most standard credit cards won't have a fee for having them, so long as they are used. So long as you pay the balance in full you will generally not be charged any interest, but if you maintain a balance then you will be charged interest. On the debit card side, some accounts have fees, but I think every bank offers at least one account that is fees free. They will try to sell you the ones with a monthly fee though as then they get money. Occasionally it can be worthwhile if you use all the bonus things they offer (generally stuff like travel insurance, mobile phone insurance, sometimes breakdown cover for your car)

Generally the key difference with student accounts is free overdrafts, so if you won't need that then it won't matter too much. They can have some nice goodies to tempt you in though, so it can't hurt to look around.

Overall, you will need a bank account as somewhere to keep your every day money, and for bills and so on to be paid from, and that will probably come with a debit card. Its up to you if you want to get a credit card as well - if you are only offered one of the more restricted cards it may make things easier. However, if you get a full debit card you can use that online and in stores, and withdraw cash for free, so that may be a simpler option. I don’t think its easy to be sure what card you will be given until you do the full application as it depends on your credit rating in most cases.

As for specific banks, there are horror stories and love stories for every one out there. Its worth checking which ones will be local to where you will be staying, as even in this electronic age occasionally you still have to actually go and see them, so its nice to have that easy to manage. Here is where you want to look at who is offering good student incentives and who matches any other things you may want (e.g. UK based call centres, 24 hour telephone support, bank statements in your favourite colors)

Hope I’ve not confused you too much! Looks like I’ve written loads, and I’m sorry I some stuff seems really obvious, but I don’t know how much you know about how banking runs here. I know things can be very different abroad, and I didn’t want to miss something cause I think its obvious, but it runs completely differently where you are.

theriel

Thank you Ebany for your your response! Well, it seems quite similar, except for one thing: that cash withdrawal from a credit card (e.g. visa classic) does not have fee. That's the reason why I have e.g. in my country two cards: visa electron and visa classic. The first one to withdraw money, the other one to pay in restaurants and while shopping in the Internet.

I can see that you really try to avoid answering one simple question. I do understand the reason, nevertheless I would be really grateful if you could give me some list (even a long one) of English banks worth considering. I don't want to go suddenly to a very small bank, nobody knows.... and if you don't tell me which banks are big and which are small (I know this question may seem stupid but I have completely no idea which banks are popular in UK except for a few of them)

This is a small list of the UK banks that I think are big and worth trusting:
-Halifax (HBOS)
-Natwest
-Barclay
-HSBC
-Lloyds
(Probably I'll go for Halifax as it is the only bank which offers student account without previous permanent UK residence)

Titch89

Don't just go for a bank because they have a big overdraft or whatever. It would be a good idea to go for one which is close to your uni/halls.

JoeA81

Generally withdrawing cash using a credit card is very expensive, and does attract all sorts of extra fees and extra interest, so you are right to want to avoid using a credit card to withdraw cash.

PS. Those banks you list are pretty much the main players, so yes choose one of them.

theriel

Can anybody tell me what the Visa Connect is? We do not have such cards in my country. Is it more like electron or classic? Can I withdraw money with it without any charge and pay by internet (is it convex)?

JoeA81

Dont get too hung up of the names of the cards, what is important is if they are a DEBIT card (i.e. linked directly to your bank account) or a CREDIT card (i.e. you pay the balance of what you have spent at the end of the month).

Generally you can pay for items in shops or over the internet with most types of card, be they debit card or credit card.

TigerAngel11

I find it's best to bank with a company that has a branch nearby - which, presumably, would be a lot of them in London! Check which ones you can get to easily - probably all the big 5 at least - and compare services. I just find it useful to be able to get to a branch easily and speak to someone, rather than spending hours on the phone.

My family all bank with Lloyds TSB and have found it to be pretty good. The staff at our local branch are helpful and friendly and it offers decent services - nothing spectacular, but what the average person needs. My parents had a problem recently with a paid-off loan account not being closed down properly and had limited luck on the phone, but the bank staff were really good. Hence my reasons for banking with someone who has a branch accessible to me (not easy in rural Devon, with bad public transport and being unable to drive myself).