BajaNomad

buying pesos in the USA

bledito - 11-12-2016 at 11:18 AM

Where is a good place to get a realistic rate of exchange in the USA when buying Pesos?????? I went to BOA to buy some today the current internet quoted rate was 20.77 to the dollar. Well I wanted 8000.00 dollars worth. the bank quoted that will get me 144,640 pesos. That calculates out to 18.08 pesos to the dollar. That is insane. they are gaining close to 15%. needless to say I didn't buy.

Bob and Susan - 11-12-2016 at 11:28 AM

this is a pretty good indication what the banks are giving in mexico...

http://www.eldolar.info/en/mexico/dia/hoy

$8k usa... maybe you need a dollar Mexican bank account
deposit dollars withdraw pesos when needed

vandenberg - 11-12-2016 at 12:08 PM

Here in Loreto, even with a dollar account, when the on line exchange quotes 20 to the dollar, you're lucky if Bancomer gives you 19.3
By far your best bet is to use a credit card and get close to the on line quoted exchange plus get your 1 to 11/2 % from your account

bledito - 11-12-2016 at 01:28 PM

the idea is to purchase pesos at as close to todays exchange rate to hold for future purchases in Mexico. purchase needs to be in the US.

Bob and Susan - 11-12-2016 at 02:46 PM

cash to cash
http://www.baja-mex.com/store-locations/san-ysidro/

best place

for 8k you will need ID and show where the dollars came from (bank withdrawal slip)

I would call ahead with that amount
they have a 24/7 window in the back
good parking too

vandenberg - 11-12-2016 at 05:53 PM

Quote: Originally posted by bledito  
the idea is to purchase pesos at as close to todays exchange rate to hold for future purchases in Mexico. purchase needs to be in the US.
Makes no sense, Peso may go to 25 to the dollar and totally defeats your idea of beating the game.

Phil S - 11-12-2016 at 08:45 PM

When Wendy & I come down out of Arizona, we stop by a Well Fargo office, and get great rates. Helps if you own stock in the bank, or bank with them.

carlosg - 11-13-2016 at 09:21 AM

I got 18.66 at a drive-thru in San Ysidro yesterday morning it was about 18.40 at Costco on Broadway, Chula Vista

bajaguy - 11-13-2016 at 09:46 AM

Several PEMEX stations in Ensenada were posting 20.50 exchange rates

Udo - 11-13-2016 at 09:54 AM

I got Pesos yesterday at a Banamex in Ensenada, and the exchange rate was 20.5.

What is wrong with just driving to a Mexican ATM and withdrawing some gas as you need it?

bajaguy - 11-13-2016 at 09:56 AM

Which ATM's dispense gas??? :lol::lol::lol:
Quote: Originally posted by Udo  
I got Pesos yesterday at a Banamex in Ensenada, and the exchange rate was 20.5.

What is wrong with just driving to a Mexican ATM and withdrawing some gas as you need it?

bkbend - 11-13-2016 at 10:06 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Udo  
I got Pesos yesterday at a Banamex in Ensenada, and the exchange rate was 20.5.

What is wrong with just driving to a Mexican ATM and withdrawing some gas as you need it?

The ATM may be 100+ miles from where one happens to be.
The ATM may eat the card eliminating the ATM option.
The account may have an irregularity unrelated to being in Mexico requiring the cancellation of the card.

I've had all three of those happen and tend to bring enough cash with me and rely on the ATM as backup.

bledito - 11-13-2016 at 10:49 AM

the best I have been quoted so far at a different bank Chase here in Illinois is still too high 18.77 close to 7.5% from current quotes on internet. i'll just wait till Jan and start pulling pesos out of atms daily. Have several different cards from different banks in case one bank cancels the card or or atm eats it. perhaps the peso will continue to devalue.

mtgoat666 - 11-13-2016 at 11:02 AM

Quote: Originally posted by bledito  
Where is a good place to get a realistic rate of exchange in the USA when buying Pesos?????? I went to BOA to buy some today the current internet quoted rate was 20.77 to the dollar. Well I wanted 8000.00 dollars worth. the bank quoted that will get me 144,640 pesos. That calculates out to 18.08 pesos to the dollar. That is insane. they are gaining close to 15%. needless to say I didn't buy.


Quote: Originally posted by bledito  
the best I have been quoted so far at a different bank Chase here in Illinois is still too high 18.77 close to 7.5% from current quotes on internet. i'll just wait till Jan and start pulling pesos out of atms daily. Have several different cards from different banks in case one bank cancels the card or or atm eats it. perhaps the peso will continue to devalue.


Huh? If you don't need pesos until January, then get them in January.
Peso is bound to drop more by January if trump keeps spouting his unhinged nonsense policies of trade tariffs, protectionism and gestapo-like deportation force - but dollar may drop more than mexican peso? Perhaps hedge your bet by holding Somali shillings or Pakistani rupees?
Anywho, you won't get best rate for cash pesos in Illinois. Take your USD cash and exchange it at a cambio near border or in Mexico.

Don't go on a withdrawal-spree at ATMs in Mexico, your banks computers will flag it and cancel the card.

Hook - 11-13-2016 at 12:43 PM

Unless you are going to buy something large IMMEDIATELY when you get down there, I would not consider trying to safeguard 8K dollars worth of pesos while on vacation. Too dangerous. Just alert your bank to the fact that you are going down there and use your ATM. It will probably beat any means of physically acquiring pesos before you enter Mexico.

While you are at it, see if you can raise your limit to somewhere around 500.00 per withdrawal or more if possible.

One other option, assuming you have a trustworthy friend living in Mexico with a peso account, is to contact the people at xe.com and see what it would cost to convert and wire the money to this TRUSTWORTHY friend in Mexico. I have not used XE.com but they have a good reputation for being competitive in their rates. Yes, there will probably be some wiring fees. But maybe it is worth it to you. I bet it beats the pants off of going through a Chase or BoA or a Thomas Cook to try and PHYSICALLY acquire pesos.

GENERALLY SPEAKING, if using an ATM, you are doing pretty good if you get a rate that is around 0.3-0.5 pesos LESS than what is quoted on XE.com. The spread will probably be greater going the wire transfer route I described but maybe not that much greater. It could be worth it.

Setting up an XE account is free, according to their website. They are certainly legitimate. But you would have to share some banking info with them.

surabi - 11-13-2016 at 07:59 PM

xe has option of electronic funds transfer. No wire fees. Just might take a couple days longer to appear in destination account.

surabi - 11-13-2016 at 08:06 PM

Perhaps you can find someone in your area who has pesos they want to exchange for dollars. I have sometimes done this. We trade at the mid-market rate and both parties win, cutting out the bank or currency house fees.

PaulW - 11-13-2016 at 08:40 PM

Last time I got Pesos at Wells Fargo in Yuma I was disappointed. The exchange rate at the ATM in SF even with the $5 WF charge and the 81P charge from Bancomer was still better.

DENNIS - 11-13-2016 at 08:43 PM


How many Pesos does one need to buy to make all this concern worthwhile?

Bob and Susan - 11-14-2016 at 05:17 AM

the first post says he needs $8000 usa...

I don't think a Pemex station will exchange that much : )

bledito - 11-14-2016 at 05:23 AM

I wish to get started on my building the 8,000 is just the beginning.