Southland News

With some help from her father, Madison drops in whatever change she may have found in the car or at home into a Southland Credit Union coin machine and watches as the money goes into her account.

Madison is 3 years old, and she has already saved $600.

“I opened an account for my daughter because I thought it would be a great opportunity for her to start saving,” Rodrigo, Madison’s father and Financial Service Representative at Southland Credit Union’s Downey branch, said.

Rodrigo also opened a Southland Jr. Savers Account for his son Matthew, who was 2 at the time. Matthew is now 9 years old, and he has $1,000 in savings.
Parents and guardians can open a Southland Jr. Savers Account for children ages 2 to 12 with a minimum deposit of $5. Southland also provides Teen Checking for 13- to 18-year-olds, and the accounts are great for setting up a direct deposit when teens land their first jobs.

Both youth accounts are designed to teach basic money skills by having children practice making deposits, saving money and spending wisely at an early age. The accounts also allow for joint ownership by a parent, guardian or grandparent.

Money can be easily transferred from a parent’s account into the child’s account either online or via Southland Credit Union’s mobile app. Kids can even earn interest on the Jr. Savers Account.

There are many reasons to open an account for kids. For Rodrigo, it was important to teach Madison how to save money at a very young age.

“I would like to have this account to save up either for her first car or for college,” he said.

But Madison is also saving up for something that might come sooner than college or her first car: A mini dirt bike that she can ride during off-road trips.

For Southland Credit Union Director of Marketing Evelyn, the Teen Checking Account and a debit card proved helpful when her daughter Sophia went on a school trip to Washington D.C. with her eighth-grade class.

“It made spending money a little bit easier,” Sophia, who didn’t have to worry about carrying around a large amount of cash with her, said.

Sophia is 17, and she graduated from high school this year. She has a job as a lifeguard at her community pool and said the account made it easy for her to store paychecks, keep tabs on her income and even ask her mom for money if she is out of town and in a pinch for gas or food.

“I think it’s good to have your own source of money, or at least have some income to be responsible for,” Sophia added. “I know a lot of kids my age who don’t know yet how to be responsible with money. My Southland account has helped me learn how to spend and save.”

Lessons on potential fraud and unexpected fees were reasons why Southland Credit Union Card Services Specialist Sophia chose a Teen Checking Account for her daughter.

“She has learned how to look for ATMs with no fees and use her card as credit instead of debit so the credit union doesn’t incur fees,” Sophia said about her 18-year-old daughter Grace.

Sophia said that the process of opening a Teen Checking Account for her daughter couldn’t have been easier.

“I’m so glad that I had her open the account years ago, so when she goes away and gets a job, she’ll have banking knowledge,” she added.

To learn more about Southland's youth accounts, visit our Jr. Savers and our Teen Checking pages.