OK - to wire transfer from an Australian Bank to a US Bank, including currency conversion costs $$$.
Saving myself the pain of all those bank fees, I signed up for a free foreign exchange account. Here's how it works:
http://www.ozforex.com.au/how-to-send-money-online.asp (OzForex - for amounts over AUD2000 - these guys are really helpful)
http://www.xe.com/fx/how.php (no minimum)
It seemed easy at the time... the transfer instructions were a bit hard to decipher so I ended up going to the bank for my first wire transfer. Even then, I picked up a mistake the bank made and was a bit surprised when the manager said, "I think that the Beneficiary Bank Account Number must actually be the Bank Code. What do you think?"
ReplyDeleteWhat do I think? What do I think? I think that banks should get their acts together. That's what I think.
If I get hit with a charge because she put a number in the wrong spot, I'm going to be annoyed..... If it's right, however, I know what to do for next time (without the bank's 'help').
Try not to wire transfer via a bank... my bank charged me $30 at this end and then there was another US$25 at the other end. It's not real great if you have to send multiple payments, let me give you the tip!
ReplyDeleteI've just requested that I send all fees (lawyer, inspector etc), together with the closing balance, to the title agent. That way, I will only be hit once, for one wire transfer (with much lower fees via one of the online foreign exchange services). Hopefully, the title agent will be able to disperse the money at that end. We'll see what she says...
Just spoke to a guy at OzForex, who is happy to set up the beneficiary account, from the wire transfer instructions the title agent sent through - that means I won't make any mistakes and there's no additional fees. They also give me a 2c better exchange rate than the bank... 2c doesn't sound a lot, but when you're transferring $65,000, it adds up to $1300 - that's not a figure to sneeze at, is it?
ReplyDeleteThanks Jane.
ReplyDeleteThis is really good to know. We are using a direct wire transfer between Oz and USA. The fees are pretty minimal, but the FX guys do have a better rate than the bank.
Cheers
Darryl.
Go with OzForex if you can - they give you a number of transactions free of charge, excellent exchange rates and very professional service! Good luck, Darryl!
ReplyDelete