cupranod

Some advice please folks.
I am planning to buy a property in the U.S.A in the next few months.What I want to do is open a U.S bank account to put money into now for the transaction when it takes place.Is it possible to open a U.S bank account from the U.K ?
Is there a way of doing it through UK banks?
Whilst the exchange rates are as they are I am keen to convert my £'s to $'s,that's the reason for this.Or is there another way?
All information and advice gratefully accepted.
Thank you.

sibsie

First off you'll have to find a bank that allows you to open an account without a SSN. It's not a requirement of the Patriot Act but many banks have adopted it as such.

I can't think of a bank that will let you open an account and deposit money without you being present. Maybe your real estate agent will be able to advise.

Wiggle

I opened a US $ account with www.citibank.co.uk while still here in the UK. Then with a $ chq book, credit card and bank card, you can do all the $ transactions you need when in the USA. You could even use that account to help you open a USA based CitiBank account when you are there if you really need to.

Hope this helps.

Heather142

When I bought our house in Arizona a few years back ... I just wired the money direct to the solicitors bank account. No need to set up a bank account just for the sale.

We opened our bank account (with Bank of America) on a trip out after the purchase and had no problems ... and did not need a SS No. ... the have special arrangements for non-resident bank accounts.

Good luck.

Heather

vsaumarez

I have opened three non-resident accounts in three different countries in the last three year, and generally they service one's needs. However, there are some restrictions which can make things a bit annoying. For example, visa cards can sometimes be electronic only, which means that not all shops, restaurants etc will accept them. Also some banlks will lock in an amount, which means that although you have the money in the bank you can't use it all. Whether there are any restrictions for non-resident banks in the US I don't know, but I'd want to check this out first before following that route.

cupranod

Thank you so much to all those who have taken the time to reply to my post.
This purchase is the first step in my emigration from the UK to the USA,that is assuming the British property market doesn't go 'pop'!!

Heather142

You are welcome Cupranod. I just thought I would add that you might find it near impossible to actually open a US based account whilst here in the UK. When I opened the account a few years back the bank wanted to see our passports, sign all their documents etc ... not sure how you can accomplish this from this side of the pond.

Just remember you do not have to have a US account to buy a property. However, I can understand you might want to take advantage of good exchange rates to send the money out now.

Again, best of luck .. hope all goes well.

Silverdragon102

Don't know if this is of any help but we opened an international account with our bank HSBC in US dollars so we could take advantage of the exchange rate plus if we had anything to buy in the US we could do it with our $ cheque book.