Western Union Has
Submitted by KeyWestPirate on Fri, 2013/03/22 - 14:19.
gotten cheaper ??
I paid $8.89 instead of the $11.99 I paid some months ago for an almost identical amount transferred.
If this is the case, WU is getting competitive with an ATM pull for those who don't have a Nicaraguan bank account in place.
From their online site you can quickly and easily send $1000 for $8 if you fund from a bank account and are willing to wait 3 days for the money to arrive. This would be handy in you were in Nicaragua already. The same transfer using "money in minutes" and funded with a debit or credit card is $81. Funding in cash at a WU office gets you the best price / service combination. All the major supermarkets in California have WU desks.
The $ .89 and $ .99 above is probably the PRK's cut. California taxes everything,, so YOUR numbers might vary. I've been practicing breathing more slowly in anticipation of the day when they fit us with a "breathometer". Hopefully by then I'll be in NicaLand full time.
And On A Lighter Note (really not THAT far off topic):
http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/beauty/brought-to-heel-beauty-queen-foun...
Thanks, good to know
The best I can do with ATMs here is paying BanCentro $2.50 to fetch $300 from my account Stateside, which calculates to $8.33 per $1000.
There is also the question of converting dollars to cords. I haven't bought any from the moneychangers or banks. Sucked out of said ATM, cords cost me 24.36/$ direct (a week ago) + $2.50, so real cost is 24.1/$, limited to 6000 cords per hit.
I find it advantagous to make most fat purchases (nice hotel, restaurant, cart full of groceries, appliances) directly on credit card - I get the best cord/$ rate going and, if cheated or robbed, Visa sticks up for me, protects my credit and goes after the would-be-thieves. (Yes, even down here in wild, wild Latin America.)
Most of the person to person business I conduct here is penny-ante, cords-wise. Big cash transactions are for drug-dealers, or likewise, those who have something to hide, IMO. (I wonder: does that include a majority of the mega-wealthy? Which is to say, as Cypriots prepare to take a hit, Nicaragua ain't my treasure island.)
yes
Nic is in africa, closer to Niger than to Nigeria. i first found that out at an AZ postoffice. Must not have many dreamers and missionaries in the Post Office.
I suck money from the lasifise/bancentro machine at malipali for a $1 flat fee up to my banks limit of $500. Recently I sucked some dough from a machine (banpro?) at la colonia for a flat $1.50. Not bad , and it came with mustard with seeds in it! BAC has higher fees than these 2. If I`m in the central ghetto I have no problem with the money changers, but usually it is better to stock up on cords at maxipali, either thru the machine or change at the cash register.
Pali North, for some reason, doesn`t accept cards
The cypress adventures of late should be a reminder to have access to cash from more than one source, but as it s going I think the US is more likely to slide into caos and dictatorship faster than Nic.
"Anything that is complex is not useful and anything that is useful is simple. This has been my whole life's motto."
Mikhail Kalashnikov, Russian inventor
$8 WU Today And
the store manager helped me so maybe the transfer isn't supposed to taxed.
I change dollars at Maxi-Pali when convenient (making a purchase). That was the best rate ( I remember 12.65 but could be wrong). They're happy to take a $100 bill for a $5 purchase. That leaves a lot of cambio :)
The WU in Condega changes at between 24.15 and 24.30. They have a sign posted at the register giving their rate. Shaped up operation, nice organized store. Their daughter goes to school in Managua, speaks excellent English, comes home most weekends. I pay my utility bills there too.
I used CC on the last trip in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica - - - but only at what I deemed reputable and upscale establishments. I agree, CC is the way to go but getting stuck in the middle of a fraud could be nasty if you were traveling and depending on a particular card. Even though the bank is going to give you the money back from a fradulent transaction, they are also going to immediately cancel the CC to protect themselves.
Shelley's use of her CC at the Maxi-Pali in Estelí got her a denial. I gave them one of mine, which went through. We called the CC company (same one that issued MY card) the next morning and they relaxed the security restrictions and released the hold on the card. "Nicaragua,,,? Is that somewhere in Africa ?? " -- No big deal, I had a Vonage modem at the house that allowed us to dial the company's 800 number. It took all of five minutes.
I still remain somewhat fearful of Nicaraguan banks. Absent firm knowledge of account privacy protocols that may or may not be in place, I assume the bank is a Claro-like operation with similar quality of management.
Having a sum of money on deposit could make you a target,,, and I understand that the Nicaraguan banks do not offer the same fraud protection as US banks. If someone cleans out your account using your ATM card number, , well, tough patookie. We've had several posts that reflect these problems. One $10K fraud I particularly remember in the SJdS area had a strong stink of bank complicity.
Seems random. Whenever I use
Seems random. Whenever I use Western Union it is always between $9 and $11, even for the same amount, in the same store. The clerk's explanation of the price differences never makes sense.
I'm Going To
try the on-line funding next week. It's not that much of a pain to run to the supermarket, but a couple of online clicks WOULD be easier and faster.
I'm trying to encourage the guys to work a five day week. This would make the work steadier, and give them an extra day off. I think that I'm paying them well enough that they can afford it.
Initially they were so eager for the work and the fast turn on the pay that they wanted to work six days. Now that they have some money in pocket they might be willing to drop to five days.
They work 7AM to 2PM so they could report their time and any other expense by Friday afternoon. I could do the WU online transfer to catch the Friday night at midnight batch transfer that most banks still use, and they would have the money on Monday or Tuesday for the previous week's work.
I've had some disappointments in Nica transactions -- (like my well digger who dug 4 meters of what was a 10 meter contract at a fixed per meter cost, and then announced he needed more money to go deeper) - - - but these guys have done everything they said they would.