Let’s take a closer look at the potential benefits from opening a new bank account.
It can help you organize your spending
Some people find it very difficult to stay on budget. One thing that could help is to open a second chequing account or get a prepaid debit card that can be used for ALL non-vital spending. You will use your old account for bills and necessities like food, gas and medicine. Your second, non-vital account will include any money that is left over after these necessities have been paid for. This is the money that you have for entertainment, eating out, or whatever other “extras” you want to get. When the money in this account is gone, you will have to wait for the next deposit. This way, your entertainment spending will not interfere with your budget.
Earn with a savings account
If you do not have a savings account, you can open one. This will make it easier to save money because it will be separate from a chequing account. If you do have a savings, you could still benefit from opening a different one. Here’s why: savings account have different interest rates. You should see what the interest rate is for your current savings account. If it is low, you can do a little research and see if you can qualify for a savings account at a different bank that pays a higher interest rate.
Can a new chequing account or debit card help you?
There are two ways a new chequing account could help you. The first has to do with fees. Some banks charge fees for ATM usage, while others could charge maintenance fees. This is also common with the kind of prepaid debit cards that some people use instead of a chequing account. You could benefit immediately if you open a new account that has lower fees (or better yet, no fees at all). Sometimes you might have to meet certain requirements to have fees waived: set up direct deposit or use your debit card a certain amount of times each month.
The other benefit is less common, but still sometimes possible. Some banks have high-yield accounts or rewards accounts. You could earn rewards similar to a credit card with some of these rewards debit cards. Some are associated with a specific store, so that store will give you a percentage discount each time you shop. If you shop at the same place often, this could be worthwhile.
Other chequing accounts will pay an interest rate on your balance if you meet certain requirements such as: use your debit card a certain amount of times each month, set up direct deposit, and, usually, keep a certain minimum balance in your account.
What about borrowing?
You could also look for new ways to borrow. Instead of relying on your credit card accounts, you could get an online personal loan when you need to borrow money. Since these loans are easy to get (approval takes a few hours, at most), you can get a set amount of money and then you will know exactly how much you need to pay off.