Philippine bank question PDIC

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Mike J
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Keep it in the USA and write a check every few months to move money here.  I never let it reach our Philippine account reach a point where I would have to file a report with the US government.  Takes 20-30 days for the check to clear.  I think they actually use most of that time to use your money as the check normally clears my US bank in 5-7 days.

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OnMyWay
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On 7/5/2019 at 6:59 PM, dj3642 said:

i just went to my us bank website and it specifically states that outgoing international wire transfers from the US have to be done in person.. may i ask what bank you use??.. i may have to go back to the US and open up an account with a bank that i can move money here.. FROM here.. 

I use my Chase bank account to wire money.  It can be set up online.  I don't wire money unless I need a large amount, due to the fees.

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OnMyWay
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On 7/5/2019 at 9:46 PM, Tukaram (Tim) said:

I use my ATM card.  BPI machines allow for p20,000 per transaction.  My bank (USAA) refunds ATM fees. Also, the machines give a better exchange rate than I see out in town.  On the first of this month I got 50.73 and the posted rate online was 51.24  None of the money changers in town were giving higher than the ATM.

Tim, your money changers suck.  Your ATM rate sucks.  :hystery:

Since the kids and I started getting SS, we have started making dollar withdrawals from BPI and taking them to a money changer.  After shopping around a bit we found Villarica to have the consistently best rate in our area, and they are usually right around the XE.Com mid-market rate.  You can look at their rates online, updated daily, or twice.  The morning update is at 10 am-ish.  They should have the same rates nationwide.

http://www.villaricapawnshop.ph/services/moneychanger

So if XE was the online 51.24 rate you stated on July 1, I would expect about the same at Villarica.  For larger exchanges I would still stay in the safety of the bank, and BPI is usually 20 centavos less than XE, give or take 5.

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OnMyWay
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2 hours ago, Mike J said:

Keep it in the USA and write a check every few months to move money here.  I never let it reach our Philippine account reach a point where I would have to file a report with the US government.  Takes 20-30 days for the check to clear.  I think they actually use most of that time to use your money as the check normally clears my US bank in 5-7 days.

This is what I normally do but have not had to write one in quite a while, since my kids and I started SS.

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Mike J
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1 minute ago, OnMyWay said:

This is what I normally do but have not had to write one in quite a while, since my kids and I started SS.

I am also collecting SS but have them deposit into the US account.

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OnMyWay
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Here is another tip to keep down your need to transfer money over from your U.S. dollar accounts.  As other said, keep most of your money in your home country.  I'm from the U.S. so this is a U.S. example.

1.  Get a good credit card that allows international usage and has a perk like cashback or miles.  If possible find out how they do their exchange rates.  I use CapitalOne with a travel incentive and their exchange rates are great.  They do not try to make their money on the exchange rate.

2.  Charge your expenses on the credit card.  Make sure they send it in pesos.  If they send it in dollars, they will rip you on their exchange somewhere.  I pay most of our groceries and gas on the credit card.  I just paid my p194,000 hospital bill on the credit card.

3.  Pay the credit card bill from your U.S. accounts.  This basically is a transfer at a good rate.

4.  Enjoy the credit card incentives.  Mine built up for a few years and I was able to pay $700 of our Hong Kong trip with the incentive.

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OnMyWay
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Posted (edited)
7 minutes ago, Mike J said:

I am also collecting SS but have them deposit into the US account.

Yes, to clarify, my kids are deposited here and mine in the U.S., so I have the best of both worlds!

See my post about credit cards.  Might work for you!

Edited by OnMyWay
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Nickleback99
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4 hours ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

Doesn't seem cheap ....  $1,000 US = 50,,700+ pesos today and over $10+ fees.  Wife uses Pangea to send money and the fee is cheaper believe ($3.95 ?) but in honesty, they do get you on the exchange rate which today is a straight 50.00P per $1; so lose 800P.  So, is Transferwise a straight fee?  Thnx.  

 

 

57F8FE89-61A2-4C6C-8710-E6C59F0EC3C1.png

Edited by Nickleback99
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Dave Hounddriver
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1 hour ago, Nickleback99 said:

 So, is Transferwise a straight fee?

I use it.  I like it.  Everyone who uses a different service swears theirs is better so I gave up trying to convince people of the merits of one method over another.  Everyone has to compare for themselves.  To answer your specific question, Transferwise has a variety of different fees and exchange rates.  This gets us back to:  I like it but you may not and you won't know unless you try it.

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OnMyWay
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2 hours ago, Nickleback99 said:

Doesn't seem cheap ....  $1,000 US = 50,,700+ pesos today and over $10+ fees.  Wife uses Pangea to send money and the fee is cheaper believe ($3.95 ?) but in honesty, they do get you on the exchange rate which today is a straight 50.00P per $1; so lose 800P.  So, is Transferwise a straight fee?  Thnx.  

 

 

57F8FE89-61A2-4C6C-8710-E6C59F0EC3C1.png

The last time I did a detailed comparison of favorite transfer services mentioned on the forum, including fees and exchange rates, Transferwise was the best.  However that was a while back.  They have a "Compare" button that will bring up others to look at, but I don't know how trustworthy that is.

I never use the services.  I did before I moved here, but now that I am here, check writing continues to be the cheapest way to transfer money, even after they added a $5.00 fee at BPI.  If I need a big sum quickly for a big purchase, I will ante up for a wire transfer.

The nice thing with Transferwise is that they show you exactly what you get on that first screen.  I'm confused by your screenshot.  Right now, Transferwise only shows $8.66 in fees and their exchange rate is about the same as the XE mid market rate.

Screenshot (491).png

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