Banking

Parker wrote:

David wrote:So, $180,00 per month. Who's the rich man?

If “Jim W.” didn’t miss-speak, I would say hands-down, he wins.

I mis spoke....I can DRAW 6000 pesos per transaction @ Soriano on the HSBC ATM......Wednesday exchange rate was $473.25 US. The down side of ATM in Mexico.....My bank in USA credits me for ATM charges 10 per month....I have yet to find an ATM in Mexico that shows transaction charge....as they adjust withdrawal/exchange rate, rather than show a separate line item charge.

The receipt from BancoMultiva will show a $29 peso charge as a line item.

Thanks David, HSBC charges 21.52?, which is factored into transaction. Does Multiva accept non Multiva debit cards? I closed my account there in April, when I needed to convert pesos to $. I needed to wire transfer money to USA....posted rate of exchange was 11.75 the day preceding and following day of transaction....posted on their board...........I was freaking shocked and PO, when the conversion charge was 12.15....cost me 9000 PESOS

Yes, the machine will accept other cards. The screen tells you the charge on all machines, you have to press a button to accept the charge and conclude the transaction.

David, back to SAMO......how does one compare exchange rate? Bancomer charges 31 plus pesos....Multiva charges 29 pesos, HSBC charges 21.?? pesos....which ATM gives best exchange rate?

I don't know. I believe the exchange rate is determined by your bank, not the owner of the ATM. One could visit each ATM, e.g. Banamex, HSBC, MultiVa, etc. and withdraw say $1,000 Pesos and then check your own bank account online. It might be an interesting excercise.

The exchange rate is indeed set by your home bank, not the local ATM.
The local ATM probably makes a small usage charge.
Your home bank sets the daily withdrawal limit.
The ATM will have a per transaction limit.

When I was down last I noticed that the exchange rate I received from my bank (Manulife) was far better than the rate my mom was getting from her credit union. On a $3000 peso withdrawal there was an $8.00 CDN difference.

CanuckBob wrote:When I was down last I noticed that the exchange rate I received from my bank (Manulife) was far better than the rate my mom was getting from her credit union. On a $3000 peso withdrawal there was an $8.00 CDN difference.

If you have a Scotiabank account in Canada there is no charge for withdrawals at their ATM in Ajijic. If you use another ATM there is usually about a 30+ peso local charge plus $5.00CDN on your Canadian account.

Scotia is therefore handy if you don't want to make large withdrawals to minimize "cash on hand" at any time.

Yes, I have since opened a ScotiaBank account and will do all my banking through them once we are down.

I have had a Bancomer acct. for 18 months now forst in Tulum and now that we moved here I have found them to be very consistant with nice personal and good service as stated here by David.

I have had many friends who dropped HSBC for their attitude issues.

Also you can wire or send unlimited funds without any tax implication with Mexico and it helps sometimes to be more local I think with my local debit or credit card. With the exchange rate so good lately we have made money on the conversion rate.

The only one's that make money on the conversion rate are the banks.

well ok
But when i need to convert dollars and we hit 14.o yippee

I'm happy with anything over 13.

Me too
I'm just happy uncle sam leaves me a little now and then

Well, since I have no income I pay him nothing!

I know there isn't a Scotia bank branch at the lake however can anyone tell me where the closet branch would be and do they have any English speaking tellers? (yo solo hablo poco espanol)

There is one directly across from the Parián in Tlaquepaque. English speaking tellers? I don't since I have only used their ATM's.

Is that the closest to the lake CG?

No idea - it was just one that I knew of. Tried their website to see if that would show locations without success.

Álamo Industrial
8:30 a 16:00 Lun a Vie y Sab: -
Av. Lázaro Cárdenas #1321, Col. El Álamo Parque Industrial, C.P. 44490, Guadalajara, Jalisco
Tel: (33) 3818 4578, Fax: (33) 666 1165

The above might be the closest one to Chapala/Ajijic. But here are all the locations in Jalisco and all of Mexico.

http://www.scotiabank.com.mx/ES/sucursales/sucursales/Paginas/SucursalesTUno.aspx#jc_guadalajaras

Thanks HN. I'll google that one for distance.

Not sure if I posted the article I wrote on banking:

http://chapalalaw.com/Viviendo_en_Mexico/Asuntos_Bancarios/Como_Escoger_un_Banco.php

Banking in Mexico
The Mexican banking system is much different than most foreigners are used to. It is a function of many things including a tax system which doesn't always make sense, a culture of distrust of banks, a culture where people aren't used to the easy availability of credit as well as a culture where tardy payments have little effect on one's daily life, among other things.

Next to soccer, the national pastime is waiting in line. This is evident if you walk into almost any bank on the 1st or the 15th of the month when it is payday as many people have their pay electronically deposited into their account so go into the local branches to retrieve their money as well as make payments for other services.

Choosing a bank may be the most important decision you make. Not all banks are equal but they generally share a lack of thinking outside the box, bureaucratic attitude and are generally not into problem solving. Choosing the right bank can mean the difference between avoiding hours to resolve a problem that may not be yours and being able to resolve the issue within minutes.

In the Lake Chapala area Bancomer seems to be the best for banking services as it has 3 locations, English speaking staff and offers a deposit account where you can bank like you are used to. You can have a fee free account by maintaining a minimum balance, usually $2,000 pesos or so and pay bills online or automatically monthly such as the cable, light or phone bills. Also the most important part is that they give you a VIP gold card so you almost never have to wait in long lines. I've also seen them make sense at resolving issues where other local banks lie, act like clowns and try to make you leave instead of addressing the issues. Also opening an account usually takes 15 minutes or less. Other banks will make you come back multiple times and waste hours to do the same thing, not worth it in my opinion.

Others have commented that in other areas there are banks with good service and Bancomer may not be the best, for this area Bancomer is second to none, except with regards to mortgages where they have always failed miserably and should be avoided at all costs unless you are desperate and have no other option and are content waiting months to get funded.

Opening a bank account isn't hard but they will usually want to see your passport, immigration document and a utility bill in your name. If you don't have a utility bill in your name then you can usually show a copy of your lease or in some instances provide a residency letter from the municipality. You will also want to be careful not to deposit too much cash. Any cash deposits over $15,000 pesos in any calendar month will be taxed (Impuesto Sobre Depósitos en Efectivo) at a rate of 3% on the amount over the $15,000 limit. Also many stores and banks do not accept US Dollars although they (banks) will if you have an account and usually accept up to $4,000US per month although they will convert the amount to pesos and if you exceed the $15,000 pesos limit on deposits you'll be hit with the tax on cash deposits of 3% applied to the excess.

Personal credit is also relatively new in Mexico. Many people coming to Mexico are shocked at the high interest rates for consumer credit. APRs or interest rates on credit cards, even the "preferred" rates run 24% and can run as high as 60%. Credit card fraud is also rampant so it is a good idea to pay cash for everything and only use a credit card in an emergency if a card is required or cash isn't available. Currently Capital One in the US is the only card issuer where using their card outside the US doesn't incur any foreign transaction fees and some cards give miles and rewards.

As far as money exchange goes, you can exchange cash at an exchange house and probably pay a premium, i.e. get a poor exchange rate. Another option is to have a Bank of America account in the US and with their ATM card you pay no foreign exchange fees if you withdraw from a Santander Serfin Bank ATM or Scotiabank ATM and the exchange rate has always been very good, usually one of the best.

Other people need to move larger amounts of money and for them they have some banking groups such as Monex where you can electronically transfer large sums from your US account to an account here in Mexico and not be hurt too much on the exchange rate. Yet another option is to be able to deposit a personal check, many have accounts with Banco Multiva and there with prior authorization personal checks can be deposited and the hold on them is less than other banks, thereby allowing you faster access to larger amounts of your funds.

Checks can be more hassle than they are worth in Mexico. Banks are extremely strict on the negotiation / cashing of checks and if you don't follow the rules to a "T" you'll find yourself with a worthless check or very angry payee. In order to explain how to properly write a check and avoid problems, let's talk about the cashing of them as that is the end goal. To cash a check you must show official ID which in all banks is a passport or Mexican voting credential (IFE), HOWEVER, Bancomer allows you to cash checks with a Mexican driver license, HSBC does but only up to $9,000 pesos although they denied me cashing a check for over $9,000 pesos with my Mexican driver license and instead asked if I had a US driver license and with that license I didn't have the $9,000 limit, go figure!

If you are making a large purchase and having a certified check drawn up, it is the most prudent practice to obtain a copy of the payee's ID. You will want to do this for two reasons. First to make sure that the form of ID is acceptable to cash the check so there won't be problems later and secondly so that the bank teller making the check can write the person's name exactly as it appears on their ID. If you do not list the name exactly as it appears on their ID the bank will not cash the check. To the banks here if the ID says John Paul Jones and the check is written to John P. Jones or John Jones they will refuse to cash the check. One way to avoid this is to make the check to the bearer where presentation of ID to cash / negotiate the check will not be required. You would then make the check payable to "AL PORTADOR." While this makes things easier please be aware that if the check is lost anybody finding it can cash it and unlike in the US, they make no record of who cashed it so you cannot go after the person who found or stole the check.

CB, that particular Scotiabank branch is on the north lateral of Lázaro Cárdenas between calles Fuelle and Esmeril. It should come up on your right hand side just after the new flyover at El Alamo dumps you onto LC, so you would probably have to take the exit to the lateral that is almost right in front of the bank and then wind you way back through the side streets to get to it.

Distance wise it will probably be about 40 Km from Chapala.

Is there any way around that tax on deposits over 15,000 Peso's per month? That isn't a whole lot to live on. If you plan on a budget of $2500-$3000CDN per month you are way over that amount. And if you transfer a bulk sum like some have to hold for currency fluctuations or emergencies that 3% could hurt.

mrum wrote:Is there any way around that tax on deposits over 15,000 Peso's per month? That isn't a whole lot to live on. If you plan on a budget of $2500-$3000CDN per month you are way over that amount. And if you transfer a bulk sum like some have to hold for currency fluctuations or emergencies that 3% could hurt.

I believe you may be confused; the limitations are on “cash” deposits, not bank transfers. If I’m wrong someone will surely help us out.