International resale purchase advice needed

[ozliz]

I am currently waiting on ROFR for my first small resale contract. Hope it passes! I lost some of the deposit wire transfer to interchange bank fees etc and need advice from other buyers for the final closing since I will need to pay an exact amount.

My current bank is not at all helpful but I did find one of the major banks that said I can use a bank draft (expensive and slow) to pay an exact amount into the United States if necessary. I'm happy that I've found an option but I'm looking for a better one. I've looked at some of the currency transfer services (Travelex, OzFx, Transferwise, etc) but I've never used any of them and for each one I've looked at there has been something that left me uncertain. Reviews also indicate that the interchange fees can be a problem with these services too. Anyone with any advice/experience? I'm starting to worry I'm just going to have to pay more than is due and accept the loss.

Just to clarify I live in Australia and I don't have a US bank account so that narrows some options. I might look into getting a US account next time I'm there but it will not be an option in time for throw purchase.

 

[zavandor]

I use Transferwire regularly (to move euro to sterlings and sterlings to dollars) and it gives the option to send an exact amount to the receiver. I've never done it, but I think they request an higher amount as payment to cover currency fluctuations and then refund the difference. In the UK, if I use a fast payment option (like a bank transfer) the lock the rate the moment I make the order, not sure if it's the same in your country. So I'd suggest to give them a look.

 

[ozliz]

Thank you so much for the quick response. I'll definitely look into that feature with transferwise. When I first started looking at options I was focussed more on price and now I've realised I just need to find a service that matches what I need not just the cheapest option.

 

[mustinjourney]

Some title companies will allow payment via credit card if you pay the transaction fee.

Would that solve the problem?

 

[ozliz]

I was told that this company doesn't allow credit card payments. Honestly I don't know many that would allow credit for transactions if that size, not just due to the fee but also because it takes a while for the transaction to clear and the money to actually be received. I've not pushed the issue though.

 

[pinklotusflower]

I'm in the UK and used HIFX for our final fees, you can choose to send payment as a fixed amount in dollars. I have also used XE for transferring money to our US bank account and again you can choose to send a fixed amount. I use the one on the day that offers me the best rate.