LillyRobeson

I'm moving to US in April before my husband and kids join me in June . They're obviously going to stay in the family home which we have our mortgage on. My husband is cutting back his hours in order to deal with single parenthood while I'm away so the majority of money will be my salary paid in the US but the majority of my expenses including the mortgage which has to come from a UK bank account will be in the UK. What's the best way to get money from the US to the UK? I'll be coming back every few weeks for the weekend so I could bring cash and change it (although may raise suspicions if I'm travelling back and forth with wads of cash ). Or would it be better to do money transfers? Maybe give my husband a US credit card for all our other expenses where possible? Anyone had experience with this?

misplacedheidi

Set yourself up with xe.com for sending money to UK accounts. Quite straightforward.

Bob

xe.com

There are loads of currency exchange companies, but they get recommended the most from the Brits in the US and else where.

Good rates, quick...and if you have regular payments to be made, you can set up a contracted annual rate, so at least you know what you'll be getting rather than being at the mercy of the exchange rate which may or may not work for you.

LillyRobeson

Fantastic! Thanks - exactly the info I need

MsElui

i third the xe stuff. i've used xe for 4 years to transfer uk to US and that was a breeze - but its was only 2 weeks ago i needed to send money the other way. i kept putting if off as i know how primitive the us banking system can be - but it was so easy. I even arranged for XE to pull it direct from my us bank account so i didn't even have to 'send' it anywhere (which i imagined would be a total pain). i was VERY pleased with it.


the only negative i can think of - is that the initial set up was a bit of a pain - (ie 4 years ago). i had to make phone calls etc to verify i was who i said i was etc. it wasnt dire but was more of a pain than i expected. But once the account was set up = its been a breeze to operate.

Jerseygirl

We have tried several times to set up an account with xe...very frustrating. Their website wouldn't approve the amount...called them...they said they would sort it but it would take several days. We still couldn't transfer the money...so we gave up and transferred money bank to bank.

Bink

Another +1 for xe.com
It is a bit of a pain to set up initially, but once done it's simplicity itself. I find it to be one of the best rates available and have had no problems with it.

Jordan Tilley

British Expat members are able to take advantage of free transfer fees and you can also find out some good information in the forum below. Its well worth registering with a currency company so that they can keep an eye on the rate for you. Often focussing solely on the margins and cost takes you away from the real risk factor of the fluctuations.


http://exchangerates.britishexpats.com/

http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=162

MsElui

i vaguely remember getting a limit error on a bigger transaction i made but i think an email quickly sorted it out so i barely remember the incident.

Jerseygirl

My husband phoned them and still they couldn't fix it or give an explanation why.

Marocco

Get an Interactive Brokers account. The exchange rates are very competitive, and you get one free wire transfer a month.

AJEastwood

Just a thought... On the assumption that you will have a bank account in the US I would be inclined to set up two bank accounts with the same bank, with debit cards... one for you and one for your family back home and send them the second account debit card. This is purely a convenience for shop purchases and cash withdrawals, but not much use for paying large bills etc possibly.

Oops. I've just read your request properly and you seem to have had this idea already.

My eldest son, just out of university, had such a debit card and it's been an easy and instant way to get cash to him (online transference between accounts). The downside is the daily cash machine withdrawal limit of $200... though I haven't investigated requesting an increased limit.

Wads of cash? Well. With exchange rates the way they are at the banks and bureaux de changes, you may check out the fees involved using PayPal. Then the money goes direct to your husband/bank account I think. I have sent large amounts of money ($2000 or more) to one of my sons this way (initial set up requires an extended approval period though).