FORWARD CONTRACTS

Help!!!

Can anyone recommend a good money transfer company? Last one we used to pay the deposit on our property was a nightmare

We are due to move in February and are very concerned about exchange rate.  We now know we should have done a forward contract.

Thanks.

.

Hi Madison

I know everyone has an opinion on companies so you'll get lots of advice!  I used moneycorp to transfer my deposit in 2005 and again for the balance and furniture purchase a couple of months ago,  I had no problems and the rates were competitive, I did a "spot" rate, where you are given a quote when you call and agree the deal on the phone.  (you need to first call and get an account setup and they will send you some forms.

I too wish i had done a forward contract about a year ago, when the rate was better! So i haven't used them for that but have had no problems with them, it was useful for me as they will take forms signed and scanned and then emailed to them, unlike my ruddy bank that insists on originals by snail mail (a difficulty when you are in China where I am and mail is so unreliable!)

Good luck with your completion!

Regards

Funluvin

  Hi Madison,

                     I would not know who to recommend in this climate but if you do a search on the forum there is a couple of threads that have covered this ie Recommendations for Transferring money and Transferring money if that helps you it will bring up other information for you as well.

                     I must admit I would not have even thought of doing a forward contract but we was very luck with the exchange rate when we completed.

                     Well good luck with completing hope all goes well for you.

                                      Take care Pat

Thanks for your reply and your good wishes.

We live in Stevenage at the moment but will be moving to Calasparra, 50 miles inland North West of Murcia in February. Although the Euro has dropped so much and we might not be able to afford the the things we wanted to buy out there we are still looking forward to the sun.

Reagrds

Liz and Andy

I have always found my bank to be the cheapest AND most reliable, First Direct, part of HSBC Group. When shopping around tell whoever you speak to that you are shopping around and they will give you the best rate they can, in todays climate your own bank would be your best bet in my view!! One thing to bear in mine is that whoever you deal with you will need to set up an account with them first and the rates will change in this time!

If you are buying a house it may be worth getting a mortgage on it as this is by far the cheapest way of doing it and then reinvest the money in a UK cash account to cover your mortgage (just in case it doesn't work out for you)

One point to make if using your own bank to transfer funds from the Uk is that most Spanish banks charge landing charges here in Spain. Many (if not all) of the currency brokers have arrangements with many of the Spanish banks that they cover these charges themselves OR they have negotiated with the receiving bank that no charges will be applied to their clients. As per all the other posters the important thing is to shop around - make sure you are armed with ALL the information so that you can make the decision that is best for you.

Hi Liz and Andy

I know Stevenage well (I used to live in Welwyn Garden City, before moving to London when I met John), and I also know Calasparra - a very good decision, I reckon!  In fact we went to Calasparra today with my three children, plus my daughter's fiance, who drove us there.   Although it was cloudy in the morning, the sun came out later on, after we had enjoyed an excellent lunch.

We live in Jumilla, so if you decide to come here after your move, send me a PM and we can arrange to meet up.

I managed to transfer a lot of money before the exchange dropped so dramatically, however I don't have a forward contract, and do have a sterling pension, so I am hoping that the exchange rate improves before I need to transfer more money! 

Regards.

Sue

i Liz and Andy - I use John Mohan at Sterling Exchange and have found him to be really helpful.  I transfer my money to them by internet transfer and this means there are no fees - as Smiley said, they can move the money into your Spanish bank account free of charge. 

I've never used any other company so can't say whether they are the best on price but you could try them when you are shopping around.  One thing to note is that the figure you see on the web pages of all these companies in not a "live" price - you need to phone and talk to them for that. 

All the best for your move.