redwood Posted October 4, 2011 Share Posted October 4, 2011 We are in the process of buying a house in SW France for more or less permanent residence. Obviously we'll need a bank account and I was thinking to buy Euros now - when the rate looks good - in advance of moving so that there are funds for teh eventual purchase. Does anyone have any comments on the service provided by local banks both in terms of day to day and deposits rates? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pickles Posted October 4, 2011 Share Posted October 4, 2011 Most banks levy charges for things that you would expect to get free in the UK. Online banks - eg Boursorama (a SocGen subsidiary) and Fortuneo have accounts that are free of charge as long as certain conditions (eg maintenance of a certain level in a savings account) are maintained. Deposit rates in France - and in the Euro zone generally - do not seem brilliant; banks do not seem to compete.RegardsPickles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mint Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 [quote user="Pickles"]Deposit rates in France - and in the Euro zone generally - do not seem brilliant; banks do not seem to compete.RegardsPickles[/quote]Pickles, I wouldn't normally disagree with you on financial matters as you are so much better informed than I am.But, I disagree with the above statement because deposit rates in the UK are at their very worst, are they not?Yes, perhaps there are some OK rates to be got if you are in a position to shop around but that's not possible for those of us who live permanently in France and do not have a UK address.Anyway, I did read that at the present time there is NO deposit account in the UK that gives you a positive return, after taking inflation into account. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pickles Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 [quote user="sweet 17"][quote user="Pickles"]Deposit rates in France - and in the Euro zone generally - do not seem brilliant; banks do not seem to compete.[/quote]Pickles, I wouldn't normally disagree with you on financial matters as you are so much better informed than I am.But, I disagree with the above statement because deposit rates in the UK are at their very worst, are they not?Yes, perhaps there are some OK rates to be got if you are in a position to shop around but that's not possible for those of us who live permanently in France and do not have a UK address.Anyway, I did read that at the present time there is NO deposit account in the UK that gives you a positive return, after taking inflation into account.[/quote]Well, yes, you are correct. It was just a throw-away comment really: the problem is that as far as I can see, Euro-zone savings account rates are also below the real inflation rates, and my experience over the past few years has been that savings interest rates offered in France have tended to be poor in comparison with rates available elsewhere in the Euro zone. I think that all I was trying to say is that € savings interest rates are poor, that's all. I don't even remember now why I thought it a pertinent thing to post!RegardsPickles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 [quote user="redwood"]in terms of day to day[/quote]In terms of customer service French banking is an absolute lottery. For every person who says XYZ Bank are great, six others will say they are useless. And vice versa.Avoid regional banks e g Credit Agricole, which appear to be national but aren't. Apart from that I found La Poste to be very customer friendly and helpful. It helps that in the more remote areas you normally find one constant customer representative that covers one or more Post Offices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mint Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 Plus, they are open on Mondays! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Trellis Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 For transferring large sums, you might be better to try a currency transfer company like Cornhill or HiFax. They don't charge commission or fees. Check them out on the same day and ask what that day's exchange rate is.I won't keep more than the minumum in a French bank as I don't trust them and customer service is totally lacking. I work out what we need to pay each month for direct debits.Our pensions go into Nationwide and now they are charging to withdraw cash, I build up some cash and send it to my French bank by a currency transfer company. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crabtree Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 [quote user="Benjamin"][quote user="redwood"]in terms of day to day[/quote]In terms of customer service French banking is an absolute lottery. For every person who says XYZ Bank are great, six others will say they are useless. And vice versa.Avoid regional banks e g Credit Agricole, which appear to be national but aren't. Apart from that I found La Poste to be very customer friendly and helpful. It helps that in the more remote areas you normally find one constant customer representative that covers one or more Post Offices.[/quote]Seconder for La Banque Postale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chezstevens Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 Personally, I would be very wary of currency traders. Last year one went belly-up allegedly leaving folks without funds. Several years ago I asked several of these companies 1,who legislates them 2, How was the integrity/safety of funds guaranteed. Nothing heard so I carried on using bank transfers when appropriate. Will use HSBC Premier Acct facility in both countries 'cos the transfer happens on same webpage ... money out of UK acct straight into Fr acct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dart16 Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 It is true that some currency traders do not financially protect your funds, although you should check that they are regulated by the FSA, they are not banks and therefore your funds are not automatically protected should the institution fail whilst your funds are in their care, but you have to think how long are your funds at risk for?. For amounts between £300 and £5000 I use one of the larger currency transfer organisations. (Sub £300 means a visit to the cash machine with a Nationwide card and over £5000 is a phone call to HiFx) the 'middle' company send me an email when my sterling lands in my (moneybookers) account and I log on and send it immediately to my french bank account - total risk....about 1 hour! I do not leave funds in the (moneybookers) account.Everybody will have to weigh the risks against the cost for each transaction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnOther Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 The crucial thing to look for is if your intended FX broker is FSA regulated. Note that is regulated NOT just registered.Basically this means that your money is held in a separate account where it should be safe if the firm goes under. Unfortunately that does not mean that you automatically get all your money back as the rules are the same as for the banks where compensation is limited to £50,000http://www.fxrebategurus.com/blog/45-fxrebates/88-fsa-regulated-brokers-compensation-scheme.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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