Capturing favorable US/CAD conversion

[Loren & Cathy]

Fedex really has their act together. Finalized the build sheet yesterday and sent ETI the check. Cost $43.56 and it took about 20 hours. Well worth the cost. Loren

[thumper-tx]

The official exchange [US to Canadian] rate about a month ago when we sent funds was 1.1954 . The rate we got with when they deposited was 1.1889 .

[sallemann]

Wow... the rate today to do a US to Canadian dollar wire transfer through Schwab is 1.24084. Schwab charges a $25 wire transfer fee, one of the cheapest I've seen. Even though our trailer isn't going to be ready until 2016, we'll be wiring a chunk as soon as we receive the wire transfer instructions from ETI.

[rbryan4]

That's a decent rate. The raw rate right now is 1.25, so you're just under that. The CAD was 79 cents when we bought, then it went up a bit, and now back down to 80 cents. Still a very good time for US buyers to get an Escape.

[Daubsy]

Originally Posted by rbryan4

That's a decent rate. The raw rate right now is 1.25, so you're just under that. The CAD was 79 cents when we bought, then it went up a bit, and now back down to 80 cents. Still a very good time for US buyers to get an Escape.

Im trying to figure out the best way to pay for my reservations, ETI balances, and other expenditures while in Canada. Should I pay cash, wire transfer, or debit / credit? I can get cash through my bank, Wells Fargo, right now at about 84 cents to the CAD. Is this higher cash rate just a bank markup?

[gocamp]

Originally Posted by Loren & Cathy

Fedex really has their act together. Finalized the build sheet yesterday and sent ETI the check. Cost $43.56 and it took about 20 hours. Well worth the cost. Loren

What Fedex service was this? They offer so many different types.

[sallemann]

With MasterCard you get a good rate... the rate today is about 1.25. With my M/C, they take a 1% fee. All in all, very good rate and not a bad fee. I called my bank this morning to get this info while trying to decide how best to pay for our Escape coming in 2016. Give your own bank a call to see what the rates & fees will be with your credit card.

When we bought our 17B in 2005, we saved a boat-load by taking US dollars into Canada and converting at a welcome center. Got much better rates by doing that for some reason. They had a limit on how much you could convert at a time... but I can't remember what it was.

After all the calls I made, I found that doing wire transfers via Schwab (for payments to ETI... if I could pay the whole thing with M/C, that would be great (for me, not for ETI)) was the best for us. Competitive exchange rate and low wire transfer fee.

Yes, the higher (lower?) rate at WF covers their fee. Check to see what sort of rate you could get if you take US$ into Canada and convert there.

[Charlie & Lucy]

I've found it easiest to send a personal check. It was six days from mailing until the email confirmation. ETI just cashed it at 1.23%, I missed the climbing rate but still not bad, no extra fees.

[rbryan4]

Originally Posted by Daubsy

Im trying to figure out the best way to pay for my reservations, ETI balances, and other expenditures while in Canada. Should I pay cash, wire transfer, or debit / credit? I can get cash through my bank, Wells Fargo, right now at about 84 cents to the CAD. Is this higher cash rate just a bank markup?

Hi Sean,

I would just use a check for the remaining balance. ETI can get a very good rate when they deposit it. As for hotels or expenses while in Canada, just use your card. There might be a foreign transaction fee depending on your card, but it's nominal. I have an AMEX Platinum I use whenever I'm in another country, because there are no foreign transaction fees at all.

And yes, the .84 rate through Wells Fargo reflects their administrative fees/profits from doing the exchange. A Check to ETI will probably give you a better rate.

[Loren & Cathy]

Originally Posted by gocamp

What Fedex service was this? They offer so many different types.

It was FedEx International Priority. Loren

[float5]

Originally Posted by gocamp

What Fedex service was this? They offer so many different types.

If you are in the U.S., my impression is that International Priority is all they will do to Canada for that and you fill out a customs form.

[Loren & Cathy]

I believe you will get the best rate if you get a check to ETI and let Tammy run it through their bank. Ended up with 1.2004 last Wednesday. That left us with a whopping $4.00 credit. Canadian of course. Loren

[float5]

The rates have gone back in Americans' favor the last weeks.
We paid most but still watching the rates for the other few thousand.

[Bill_75]

Originally Posted by sallemann

Wow... the rate today to do a US to Canadian dollar wire transfer through Schwab is 1.24084. Schwab charges a $25 wire transfer fee, one of the cheapest I've seen. Even though our trailer isn't going to be ready until 2016, we'll be wiring a chunk as soon as we receive the wire transfer instructions from ETI.

Agreed, it is a great rate right now, better tomorrow? Who knows.

Another way to lock it in the USD/CAD rate w/Schwab and keep the $$ in your control is to buy the FXC :

http://finance.yahoo.com/echarts?s=FXC+Interactive#{"showPrePost":false}

100 shares = 10,000 Loonies. Just sell it when you need to write the big check.

My .02 for locking in a rate after looking into plans A.....calling the local RBC and them telling me I'd have to drive to Canada to do it and plan B
a whole slew of travelers checks.

As Donna says YMMV and as my old Bank e-mail account used to append to my e-mails......"your investments may lose value"

And, no I'm not associated with Guggenheim.......the guys offering the FXC ETF, but their Prospectus can be found here :

CurrencyShares - FXC

Good luck.

[JStelly]

I used FedEx as well and had the same cost and same positive experience as Loren.

[St3v3]

I sent two checks (or cheques for you Canadians) to ETI by US Mail, one in January and one in April. The stamp costs about $1.50. It took almost exactly a week to get to the factory (a two hour drive ). The exchange rates were 1.181 and 1.197, not bad.

[sallemann]

I just wired our first chunk from my Schwab account for our trailer that won't be ready until 2016. Schwab did the conversion at a rate of 1.23676... wire transfer fee $25 (XE - The World's Trusted Currency Authority fee would have been about $125).
A month ago, sending the same amount of Canadian dollars would have cost us $400 US more than today.
One thing to keep in mind if you're considering this approach: you don't earn interest on the funds sitting in the bank in Canada between the time you transfer the funds and pick up your trailer.
It's all a bit of a gamble!

[gocamp]

I don't follow you Salle, why would you expect interest once you pay for your trailer? Like when you order any other item, don't you pay first and wait for it to come in? thanks in advance. PS-nice conversion rate you got, good job.

[KarenH]

I think he means that one loses the potential of earning interest as the funds are gone and are in somebody else's account; in this case it is ETI who is earning the interest or gaining from the cash flow. One thing I didn't understand is the comment about XE charging a fee of $125 as I used them and didn't have a fee. Of course, they earn their money with a slightly lower/higher conversion rate (depending on which way the money is going). It is important to note that even a tiny difference in conversion rates can make a big difference on a big-ticket item like an Escape.

[sallemann]

Hey gocamp: when you put $$ in escrow, you sometimes (not always) earn interest on that. It's not that I expected to earn interest, but I wanted to know if we would or not so I could consider that in my planning. Thought others might like to know for the same reason.

Hey Karen: XE doesn't charge a fee per se... I calculated the fee as the difference in the rate XE was offering at the time I made the transfer and the rate I got through Schwab, factoring in the $25 fee Schwab charged me. And yes, you are absolutely correct that a tiny conversion rate change can make a big difference in a 20,000 or 30,000 purchase!