USA Pension Check into RD Pesos.....Best way?

[SARAH KATZ]

Open a US$ bank account - transfer your USD$ into the account.

Alongside open a DR$peso account - any time you need cash just transfer from the USD$ to the peso one.

Another option is to use your USD$ debit/credit card in ATM's - only do this if you really don't want the money...............

 

[JD Jones]

A way some people change USD to DOP is to create a relationship with a money changer who accepts USD checks and changes them at a rate similar to Caribe Express/Western Union. For some reason, I have not done this.

I used to do that for years and it worked fine.

I started out with small checks at a recommended exchange place and over time increased the amounts. (I wouldn't want to do that now though, because exchange houses are watched by delinquents.)

The main reason I stopped is because my good friend the bank manager (heard that before?) said she would give me a better rate than I was getting from the money changer.

Bank managers have the authority to offer clients more than the publicized rate.

 

[Wishing you well]

OP,

The last thing you'd want is all your USD going into a DR bank account at once, bad idea. As mention, open both; a USD and a DOP accounts at a local bank. Once both are open, deposit USD checks into the USD account at the local bank.

The money would be available within three to four days (my experience), just time and schedule the deposits as needed.

I wouldn't mess w/the casa de cambios -- be very careful with them.

 

[JayinRD]

Interesting info. Currently I am transferring from a USA B of America account to a Popular peso account using Xoom. There is no charge from B of A but I pay Xoom a $5 fee and I assume the transfer rate is not the greatest? Currently if I transfer $500 I am getting 22,850 or 45.7 exchange rate. Any idea how much am I losing compared to the better methods you folks have? The transfer goes thru in less than a hour.

 

[william webster]

Best posted is 47.35.... highest recorded

I find Progreso is always close..

Loss ? On $500 , not huge, bigger amounts it counts
You're getting good transfer rates... need a few calculations to see how it sifts

 

[cavok]

Interesting info. Currently I am transferring from a USA B of America account to a Popular peso account using Xoom. There is no charge from B of A but I pay Xoom a $5 fee and I assume the transfer rate is not the greatest? Currently if I transfer $500 I am getting 22,850 or 45.7 exchange rate. Any idea how much am I losing compared to the better methods you folks have? The transfer goes thru in less than a hour.

You're losing about 3.5% on every transfer + the transfer fee. If you're bringing down say $2000/mo. avg. you're losing $600 + transfer fees every year. I'm losing zero.

 

[windeguy]

You're losing about 3.5% on every transfer + the transfer fee. If you're bringing down say $2000/mo. avg. you're losing $600 + transfer fees every year. I'm losing zero.

Exactly why I do it the same way you do and avoid the "commission fee", the FOREX hit and any transfer charges.

 

[cavok]

Exactly why I do it the same way you do and avoid the "commission fee", the FOREX hit and any transfer charges.

Wire transfers, Zoom, cashing checks at cambios - I don't get it(?).

 

[ctrob]

Wire transfers, Zoom, cashing checks at cambios - I don't get it(?).

Wire transfers - from your bank, always a fee, plus exchange rate if going to pesos

xzoom - never used it, think paypal, venmo, etc

casa de cambio - like a check cashing service, you'll pay an exchange rate. Same as changing money, only with a check

 

[cavok]

You're losing about 3.5% on every transfer + the transfer fee. If you're bringing down say $2000/mo. avg. you're losing $600 + transfer fees every year. I'm losing zero.

Correction: At 3.5% on every transfer, if you bring down $2000/mo avg., you're losing $840 every year + transfer fees.

 

[Mauricio]

OP,

The last thing you'd want is all your USD going into a DR bank account at once, bad idea. As mention, open both; a USD and a DOP accounts at a local bank. Once both are open, deposit USD checks into the USD account at the local bank.

The money would be available within three to four days (my experience), just time and schedule the deposits as needed.

I wouldn't mess w/the casa de cambios -- be very careful with them.

The exchange risk per month to have it directly flow into your pesos account is very limited. Monthly the dollar might go down maybe 0,20, and if you are like me the moment you do the transfer pay off your monthly cc and pay some other bills, the bulk I need right when I receive the wire. Even though I do wire to my dollar account, actually it really doesn't make a big difference if you don't have or want to have a dollar account (and will be forced to keep 500 bucks always in the account). 

I'm very aware I'm spending over 700 per year by using wires (12 wires of 60 dollars each) instead of cashing checks , but  nobody in a casa de cambio needs to know what amount of money I change monthly. 

 

[windeguy]

Mauricio, the FOREX rate provided by banks is almost always a peso or more less than Western Union/Caribe Express. So if you change from USD to DOP in the bank, you also take that hit. I have almost never changed money in a DR bank.

I do understand some people's need for privacy, but I doubt you achieve much privacy in Dominican banks.

 

[william webster]

Best posted is 47.35.... highest recorded

I find Progreso is always close..

Loss ? On $500 , not huge, bigger amounts it counts
You're getting good transfer rates... need a few calculations to see how it sifts

As usual, the pinch pennies get in the way

Progreso, NOW, on their web page is 47.23 vs a record high , one time only sighting of 47.35

Do some math on that and tell me if you're wasting energy and time ...

Sometimes , I wonder...........
It ain't worth it to me,,,, those millionaires flipping money regularly may differ

easy math on $1,000US

47,350 pesos......vs........47,230.......120 pesos difference

for 10,000US$$... times 10.......1200 pesos.......

 

[cavok]

As usual, the pinch pennies get in the way

Progreso, NOW, on their web page is 47.23 vs a record high , one time only sighting of 47.35

Do some math on that and tell me if you're wasting energy and time ...

Sometimes , I wonder...........
It ain't worth it to me,,,, those millionaires flipping money regularly may differ

easy math on $1,000US

47,350 pesos......vs........47,230.......120 pesos difference

for 10,000US$$... times 10.......1200 pesos.......

The comparison was against Zoom who only pays 45.7(?).

 

[Mauricio]

Mauricio, the FOREX rate provided by banks is almost always a peso or more less than Western Union/Caribe Express. So if you change from USD to DOP in the bank, you also take that hit. I have almost never changed money in a DR bank.

I do understand some people's need for privacy, but I doubt you achieve much privacy in Dominican banks.

I do need to change tomorrow and I'll check how much I lose if I do it by wire and transfer between accounts via online at bank buying rate or western union buying rate. Would western union change a BofA check, I guess not?

 

[Ducadista]

This is how Ducadista has done it for over a year:

-Check deposited in my US account.

-Make a check to myself to my US dollar account at BHD, the check clears in 2 weeks, but I have gotten in 7 days. I also keep a 2 month cushion (BHD is  the least time it takes to clear a US check in DR).

-Withdraw my dollars from BHD, take it to an exchange house (casa de cambio)for the best rate.

-Deposit my pesos at Banco Popular, Why Popular? Most people have an account there, so I paid all my utilities via internet banking, but also my mechanic, and blacksmith, or any institution to avoid walking around with large amounts of money.  

- On a side note, I do all this at a shopping center i.e. Agora mall, Sambil, so I don't have to walk around with this money on hand. Withdraw, Exchange, Deposit (WED) all in one place. Yes, it's a hassle, but it is only once a month. Buena suerte. 

My 2 cents........

 

[cavok]

This is how Ducadista has done it for over a year:

-Check deposited in my US account.

-Make a check to myself to my US dollar account at BHD, the check clears in 2 weeks, but I have gotten in 7 days. I also keep a 2 month cushion (BHD is  the least time it takes to clear a US check in DR).

-Withdraw my dollars from BHD, take it to an exchange house (casa de cambio)for the best rate.

-Deposit my pesos at Banco Popular, Why Popular? Most people have an account there, so I paid all my utilities via internet banking, but also my mechanic, and blacksmith, or any institution to avoid walking around with large amounts of money.  

- On a side note, I do all this at a shopping center i.e. Agora mall, Sambil, so I don't have to walk around with this money on hand. Withdraw, Exchange, Deposit (WED) all in one place. Yes, it's a hassle, but it is only once a month. Buena suerte. 

My 2 cents........

That's exactly the way I do it also as I said in my post earlier. I use BHD, too. The only difference is that I can call casa de cambio I use on my way to BHD and they have the pesos waiting for me when I get there. I withdraw the Dollars and give them to him and he gives me the pesos and I deposit them. All done right at the teller window.

 

[william webster]

The comparison was against Zoom who only pays 45.7(?).

The difficult thing about this conversation is that the transfer fees need to be weighed...
and they all differ.

It becomes cost of moving $$ + cost of exchanging

That's why they need to reduce the number of times they handle it....

RD bank account or not.

I'm not trying to be the solver here..... just looking.

I wire it in for $20 out and a small RD fee to receive.... in US$$
Then switch at the Progreso internal rate.

Works for me

 

[windeguy]

I do need to change tomorrow and I'll check how much I lose if I do it by wire and transfer between accounts via online at bank buying rate or western union buying rate. Would western union change a BofA check, I guess not?

I do not believe either Western Union or Caribe Express (who have the same FOREX rate) will deal with a check. I have only seen them change cash. The specialty money changes will change checks at the same FOREX rate as Western Union.

 

[william webster]

The difficult thing about this conversation is that the transfer fees need to be weighed...
and they all differ.

It becomes cost of moving $$ + cost of exchanging

That's why they need to reduce the number of times they handle it....

RD bank account or not.

I'm not trying to be the solver here..... just looking.

I wire it in for $20 out and a small RD fee to receive.... in US$$
Then switch at the Progreso internal rate.

Works for me

Update.

Progreso charged me $10US to receive $5,000 today.

So I pay $20 to wire & $10 to receive... $5,000 is the smallest i ever do