transferring money to Mexico...

So – we took possession of our Ajijic home a couple weeks ago – but we’re still primarily based in Atlanta – and trying to figure out the best way to pay the bills, buy furniture and such in Mexico.

How do you guys do it?

I’m not sure if I can open a bank account in Mexico (any residency rules?) but I’m assuming if I could - I could do a bank-to-bank transfer from my Bank of America account - yes?

Otherwise – do folks use Western Union or Xoom ?

Thanks

Td’s

You,should be able to open a bank account here. We use Bancomer. We also have BofA up north. You can pay for a same day transfer. We have done it. I called BofA first and they said that do same day as there is less of a chance getting it screwed up. Just did it online.

Having faced the same dilemma that you describe we have had several Mexican Bank accounts. You can easily effect a daily transfer from your U.S. bank to your Mexican bank account here subject to their dollar to peso exchange rate (fair to terrible) and sometimes fees at both ends. Our transfers took place years ago when the $-peso was fairly stable..We also would carry in to Mexico the max amount allowed without having to declare ($9,990). We would then exchange it as needed. In days past one could easily cash a U.S. check at your local bank by having an account that was larger than the check you were cashing. There are still some U.S. $ denominated accounts that you can open ( they are typically investment accounts in the Mexican Market) but you can withdraw funds out in dollars. After many years of never having or using ATM's we opened 2 separate U.S. bank ATM accounts with the ability to electronically transfer money into those accounts on-line and as needed. We are only constrained by the local ATM withdrawal limit but with 2 different cards and several different ATM's and a high limit from our US banks we can amass a tidy sum in a couple of hours and days. In the mean time we only keep a small amount of money in the ATM accounts in case our cards are stolen or compromised, we are able to electronically transfer funds into those accounts in a matter of minutes so that they are ready for withdrawal. The U.S. has really made personal foreign banking most difficult for the vast majority of honest citizens abroad while enacting their anti-money laundering laws and regulations. We have had homes in Mexico for nearly 30 years and it has only gotten more difficult to pursue easy and reliable banking activities while here or abroad..

We recently relocated to Ajijic and purchased a home... We have kept our funds in the US... Having heard the horror stories of bank inadequacies here in Mexico we felt safer using the ATM.. We have little need for a local checking account. We pay the majority of our bills through our property manager and with a US check.

Our bank does not charge for ATM usage and major purchases at Costco and Home Depot we put on our credit card which adds to our air mileage... We even paid for our new car by using our credit card...We just notified the bank of the pending purchase and name of the vendor...

Our bank offers exceptional service which unfortunately many others do not...

We may some time in the future open a local account but for now it doesn't seem necessary...

You will always get the best rates with an ATM withdrawal. The ATM at CIbanko (I think that is the name) in Laguna is the best. They charge only a small 17 peso ATM fee (less than $1), and have no transaction limit. The only limit is your ATM card limit. Many cards have a 1,000 limit or more, so you can get a lot of pesos at one time with only a small fee. Probably won't help much when paying for a house or car, but for most all other expenses it should be fine. Just make sure you let your bank know that you will be making regular withdrawals from Mexico.

IMHO, Banco Multiva in Ajijic is the best bank in terms of personal service. When I need a sum larger than I can conveniently get from an ATM I wire transfer from my account in the USA. Banco Multiva always gives me a good rate of exchange. I pay no fees on either end.

I've had my SS deposited in Bancomer for years with no issues whatsoever. If you want to set up automatic pay for Telmex & CFE a local bank is the way to go. I also have investment accounts in the US as well as a savings & checking account there in the USVI. Since I have a mailing address in Laredo, TX I've had no issues having a regular US bank account. It could be problematic if your bank knows you live in Mexico. Lots of people got dumped by their US banks because of that.

All of this assumes you HAVE a U.S. bank account. The only way to get one is to have a U.S. physical address which will reliably work for you. A P.O. box isn't sufficient.

Many of us had one with the old California Commerce Bank which turned into Banamex USA. Lovely. We could "link" with Banamex Mexico and have all the comforts of easy transfer, debit cards with no fees and so on. They threw most of us under the bus a few years ago and cut off the U.S. accounts. No reason given, and that bank has been having troubles. Since we also had our SS checks auto deposited there........it was not fun getting that resolved.
Since then, we've been trying every which way to get banking done.

We've been looking into an alleged "international" bank which allows Mexico residents to open accounts. The problem is, after downloading the application form and entering "Mexico" as the country.......it asks for the "state" and won't accept one. Now what? Who knows? We'll report the details if we are successful. They are connected with a Mexican bank.
This would make life easier.

Currently, our SS checks are direct deposited into a Mexican bank. We've had no problems so far, a year later.

Bought my 1st car 4+ years ago cash / pesos, over 100,000 p, paid for all house renovations & painting over 150,000 p 2 years ago, I do everything in pesos and only use an ATM for getting my pesos. Sometimes both wife & I had to go to the ATM so we could get twice as many, but most of the time it is just me. Planning when expenditures are going to hit and banking a few pesos ahead of time has not been a problem. Have no need to open Mexican Bank Account. BTW - fees on ATM withdrawals are all refunded by my debit card company, and there's no transaction fee.

The ONLY reason we have a Mexican bank account is to pay our Telmex and CFE automatically. We just take pesos out with and ATM card. We have a Charles Schwab checking account and they refund all fees. We also keep a BofA account. We rarely if ever use a credit card here. Everything is in cash.

However, again ...........first, you need to HAVE a Canadian or U.S. account from which you can draw funds at an ATM.
All we have in the states is an investment account which requires withdrawals of no less than $500 U.S. dollars per shot. No help in paying ordinary bills here.
You really can't experience the level of frustration of this situation unless you're in it. Trust me. We are trying to change this, but it's not going easy.

CanuckBob wrote:Use a relative's or friend's address so you can open a bank account?

Please. That isn't the solution in many cases, including ours. I know many people who do it that way, however, but it isn't the answer for everyone.

1. Drive up to the Rio Grande Valley
2. Rent a place for a month at one of the jillion RV resorts with rentals.
3. Establish that as your address.
4. Get a drivers license, etc.
5. Open a couple of bank accounts with paperless online banking.
6. Return to Mexico.
7. Change only the mailing address for the banks.
It should work just fine and can be done in a rather short time.

or bank with Schwab.

brigitte wrote:or bank with Schwab.

We tried that. Doesn't work if you live in Mexico. It works if you already had an account when you moved here.

RV's solution is WAAAAAY too much trouble.

To all trying to send helpful ideas: We are able to have direct deposit to a Mexican bank with no intervening fees. Much more economical than it was before. We have an ATM card. Everything is working.......just trying to make it work a little better.
If we can get through to the international bank, I'll let you know how that worked. They are linked to one of the local banks.
But thanks, anyway.

We have two banks up north. BOA and a Federal Credit Union. We also have a Bancomer account.
We write checks on US bank accounts and a week later it is in our accounts. Moving over 5000USD gives you a slightly better exchange rate at Bancomer. We find having a BOA account is good but the CU has much less fees. We split up our deposits in both. BOA is handy when travelling in US and moving money to other folks accounts in BOA. CU(FTFCU) is just better for moving money around outside the CU and paying bills for free. Both BOA and CU have strong points thus we have both. I would point out unlike Gringal we have a family address that we can use for all the Patriot act crud. I just feel better having all the banking options I do. If one charges too much I go to other. Do suggest you look at Federal Credit Unions as they generally give you a better deal. BOA is great to use when travelling in US to get money as ATMs are everywhere. If you can qualify the Schwab deal is a good one also. USAA is known to be consumer friendly also.

Good Luck

Z

David wrote:IMHO, Banco Multiva in Ajijic is the best bank in terms of personal service.  When I need a sum larger than I can conveniently get from an ATM I wire transfer from my account in the USA.  Banco Multiva always gives me a good rate of exchange.  I pay no fees on either end.

That's weird David we paid fees on both ends when we did a transfer once.

A Mexican Bank Account is great for local expenses. I withdraw a months needs from Canada and deposit it here in my CI Banco account. I can use my CI Banco debit card at many stores here and it saves keeping cash in the house and/or in my pocket.

[quote="Hensley" That's weird David we paid fees on both ends when we did a transfer once.[/quote]

The institution you transfer from may charge a fee, mine doesn't. I've never been charged a fee at Multiva. YMMV