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Why do I want/need a local bank account?

Discussion in 'Banking - Investing - Finances' started by AlwaysRt, Jan 20, 2016.

  1. AlwaysRt

    AlwaysRt DI Forum Patron Highly Rated Poster Blood Donor Veteran Air Force Marines

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    Isn't going to an ATM and paying in cash simple enough already?

    Specifically in my case I leave my military deposit continue going to my US FDIC insured bank as it always has, I transfer what I need to my Schwab account because they reimburse ATM fees monthly, and at the current exchange rate my daily limit is over 40,000php. My account is secure and I have access to cash as needed.
     
  2. Rye83

    Rye83 with pastrami Admin Secured Account Highly Rated Poster SC Connoisseur Veteran Army

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    I admire the optimism but you'll be looking for other options to get cash within a month of having boots on the ground. P200+/transaction, ATMs usually run out of cash on weekends and every single machine in Dumaguete run dry on holidays, which usually run 4 business days (and it will take you awhile before you figure out all the national holidays), insanely long lines at the ATM and every person takes 5 minutes each at the machine that, I can only guess, to pay their bills, get some load, check their FB and online dating profiles and then finally decide to get some cash out.....but wait, their account is dry so they have to pull out another ATM card and go through the whole process again only to find that both of their accounts are empty, they then need to call their sister to bring their 3rd ATM card that they left at home (and they aren't going to go stand at the back of the line). Then you still have 10-50 people ahead of you that are going to do the exact same thing (don't forget it is 90 degrees outside with 80-90% humidity while you are waiting.....and 2 out of the three machines will be out of order....and when you finally get your turn the thing will run out of cash or worse.....malfunction and eat your card......that'll take at least 24 hours for the bank to find the guy with the key to open the machine to get your card out. Wait awhile sir, wait awhile longer sir....come back tomorrow sir......wait awhile sir......the guy with the key is on vacation sir.....come back next week sir).

    Think you are going to get here and open a bank account.....the lines at the ATM were long and took forever to get through, wait until you see what's happening inside the bank. A couple hours later you make it to the desk only to be told you will need to make 10 photocopies of your passport, SSN card, your blood type, any allergies or medical conditions and your first born child's left pinky fingerprint. So you finally get all that a week or two later and wait another 3 hours to get the lady and she informs you that you don't have the proper visa to open an account.......but China Bank might open an account for you.....you can try to open one with them. Rinse, wash, repeat. :banghead::banghead::banghead::banghead:

    Obviously this is a bit of an exaggeration......but sadly not nearly far enough from the truth.

    If you don't have an account with Xoom, Western Union, PayPal, MoneyGram and WorldRemit I suggest you get to it before you hop on that plane. You will be fed up with the ATMs and banks here before you even have time to settle in. Luckily I have not been screwed over by Xoom yet and I have used that for the past 3-4 years but they were just bought out by PayPal and I have had nothing but problems with them. I suspect it is only a matter of time before Xoom freezes my account and I'll have to start resetting passwords for all those other remittance companies I mentioned above.

    Just saying......be prepared to find alternate methods to get cash.
     
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  3. DaveD

    DaveD DI Senior Member Showcase Reviewer Veteran Navy

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    :roflmao: So true! Thanks for saying so much nicer way than I could have ever done without using every swear word in the book and maybe even making up a few new ones:muted:...
     
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    AlwaysRt

    AlwaysRt DI Forum Patron Highly Rated Poster Blood Donor Veteran Air Force Marines

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    Wow, that was a mouthful for sure. Any particular bank have fewer problems than the others? Best time of day to slide in for a quick withdrawal? I do have Western Union and Paypal accounts and VISA and M/C credit cards. The transaction fee doesn't bother me, as I have mentioned before Schwab refunds any ATM withdrawal fees at the end of every month.:wideyed:
     
  5. Rye83

    Rye83 with pastrami Admin Secured Account Highly Rated Poster SC Connoisseur Veteran Army

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    When I used the ATM I preferred to use the Veterans Bank ATM at Portal West near Silliman (this bank is not related to a US veteran's banks). I don't recall ever seeing a long line at that one and it usually had cash....still has problems during holidays though. I haven't (successfully) used an since I got back in the Philippines back in August(?). This is mainly because my bank switched my debit card from Visa to Discover last year and if I am lucky enough to find an ATM that accepts the card it always denies the transaction for some reason. It's good that you have Visa and M/C because I have found Discover/Diners Club to be next to worthless in the Dumaguete. (Robinsons and Lee Plaza/Hypermart do not accept it.....and those are about the only places one can reasonably expect to buy something with a debit/credit card.)
    Before 7AM or after 10-11PM and you will very likely have the machine to yourself. There is a higher chance that they will be out of cash or broken during those times, but if you go during early morning/night hours you should avoid any ATMs that are dark side streets and that have adequate lighting (common sense seems to be not so common these days). Avoid ATMs at all costs during rush hour (roughly 7-9AM and 5PMis-7PM) and lunch time. You might get lucky during normal work/school hours.

    I strictly use Xoom to send cash (until PayPal eventually screws that up) and have their mobile app on my phone for when I need to send myself cash quickly. It usually takes about 15 seconds from the time I click the "Send Money" button to the time I receive a text saying it is ready for pickup. I can send up to $2,999/day (around P140k-P150k) and the transaction fee is $4.99 (from a bank account) regardless of how much you send. I pick up the money from pawnshops or banks they are partnered with. (Valencia does not have an ATM that I am aware of, but they have 2 pawnshops that I can pick up money sent through Xoom.....and the pawnshop almost never has a line or long wait. I've never had a problem finding a pawnshop or bank to pick money up from.)

    My bank does that as well (plus gives me an interest rate on my checking account). I just can't get the d*mn card to work here.
     
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  6. Dave_Hounddriver

    Dave_Hounddriver DI Forum Luminary Highly Rated Poster

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    Why a local account? Your foreign card can only be used with banks on your specific network. That will probably limit you to about 1/3 of the available ATMs you see. With a local card you can access them all. In a rural location where there are only a handful of ATMS that could be a huge difference.

    There are other reasons you may want a local account but this is just one.
     
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