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| Cyprus Buying Guide Newsletter |
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| How are you doing? Getting in the Christmas spirit yet? With all the stores full of decorations and lights going up in most villages, towns and cities one can’t help feel a festive niggle. I heard the funniest joke on Sunday – I was at my friend, Lisa’s house and her father, Simon, said to me: Simon: “Kim – have you ever heard of Randolph, the brown-nosed reindeer?” Kim: “No – just Rudolf the RED nosed reindeer.” Simon: “Well…Randolph is just like Rudolf but couldn’t stop in time!” When I heard that joke, I laughed so hard my eyes began to water and then I started to choke. It doesn’t take much to make me laugh – eh? On to Cyprus. So…how are your plans to buy a property going ? Or perhaps you’ve already purchased – I’m often amazed at the amount of people that read my newsletters, and even purchase my Cyprus Buying Guide, AFTER they’ve purchased in Cyprus. Many people contact me saying, ‘If only I had read your guide/newsletters BEFORE I purchased I would have avoided quite a few mistakes.” And speaking of the guide...Don’t let anyone know this (in other words, don’t forward this email I’ve sent you), but I’ve completely re-written the Cyprus Buying Guide – it has more facts, more stories, more ways to make sure you save money and lots of info on the Cypriot Pound to Euro conversion. HOWEVER, I only have a very limited stock – the printer will not be delivering the bulk of the new guides until the end of November. If you do want the New Guide before I officially promote it, please go to the link below. http://www.CyprusBuyingGuide.com/guide.htm Okay – in this month's newsletter I have information on opening a bank account in Cyprus by Sarah Hordle – she’s an Independent Financial Advisor in Famagusta. Sarah is awesome – if you have a question or need help with your finances, and intend to purchase in the Famagusta area, get in touch with her. I’ve supplied her phone number below. I’ve also included a very interesting article about the hidden costs of using banks in Cyprus, along with an update on the soon-to-be-extinct Cypriot Pound. Finally, I end with a write-up on CreditExpert, a service that allows you to check out your credit rating, amongst other things, before you apply for a mortgage. Kim |
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Opening a bank account in Cyprus, by Sarah Hordle“It is actually very simple. All you need is your passport! You can have accounts in Sterling, Cypriot Pound (Euro from 1 Jan 2008) or any other currency that you wish. Most of the banks here offer internet banking and the services are very good. There is no such thing as free banking in Cyprus and there is a small charge for each statement, cheque book, standing order etc. Charges vary but typically £1 for statements and standing orders/direct debits and £5 for a cheque book. Any credit interest incurs a defence tax of 10% of the interest earned unless you sign a declaration that you are non-resident. With some banks this has to be done annually. If your account is not used for one year it lies dormant and, if there is no money in it, it will be closed. You can just turn up at the bank with passports and ask to open an account. Staff are very helpful but it will take around an hour. Usually, when I help my clients to open a bank account, I prepare the bank with the information they need so that the customer just comes and signs (10 minutes) and then their account is opened. Once the account is open you will receive a debit card automatically with most banks and a pin number so you can use it to send money for holidays, and so forth, in the future. I hope this helps – let me know if there is anything else you need.” Sarah Hordle can be reached in Cyprus on: [357] 990 34473 Do you have a question on something regarding Cyprus? Check out the CBG forum at: http://www.CBG-Forum.com |
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How to Minimise Bank Chargesby Smart Currency’s Charles Purdy.As we probably all know, banks are masters at making little - or indeed not so little – charges. What you think is going to be the cost is never quite so. One area where the charges can be “not so little” is for international money transfers. A UK bank sending funds overseas will charge YOU for processing the transfer AND for covering foreign bank charges if you so select. This is probably the best option as otherwise you will leave yourself at the mercy of the overseas receiving bank, which could then make a percentage charge of the funds so transferred. A lot of banks are very “happy” to charge 0.5% to receive your money. On a transfer of €100,000 this equates to €500! When sending funds back to the UK the foreign banks can again be masters at charging a percentage rather than a fixed charge. One person we spoke to recently had been charged €800 for the privilege of transferring funds back to the UK. How do you avoid these charges? Firstly, you have to be aware there ARE ways to minimise these costs. Secondly, you have to be aware that most banks will not be very helpful when you try to do this. Take, for example, the British banks, which seem to refuse to adopt European legislation that states that transfers under €50,000 should be undertaken for the minimum cost. Thirdly, be aware of these types of exemptions when transferring from overseas. For example, if you are bringing back €90,000 from Spain, do it in two transfers of €45,000. Seems illogical doesn’t it, but once you explain to them that you know that transfers of such amounts should incur minimal costs then they may well offer you acceptable charges for the full transfer. And finally, you need to use a currency company that understands the system. They will have a relationship with their bank that they can leverage on your behalf to eliminate these costs by absorbing them into the exchange rates they agree with you. These rates will, needless to say, be far better rates than the banks will offer you. To discuss how you
can minimise your costs when transfering money to Cyprus, please call
a member of the Smart team on 0808 163 0102 (freephone). Or for more
information on how you can save money through being Smart about your
currency exchange, please download the report provided at no cost from
Smart Currency Exchange at: http://www.SmartCurrencyExchange.com/freereport.htm
Euro Currency Update (by Charles Purdy)Sterling had a mixed week, losing ground against the Euro but gaining against other currencies such as the US$ and the high interest rate currencies such as the Australian $. The Bank of England kept UK interest rates on hold, which was expected, and we now wait for the minutes of the meeting to see what the emphasis of the meeting was and how close the vote was for keeping or reducing UK interest rates. UK data, including house prices and trade figures, were on the weak side and as such were a driver in the fall of sterling against the Euro. A lot of UK economic information out this coming week will make interesting reading with regards to inflation as this will be a significant driver for UK interest rates. The Cypriot £, which is pegged to the €, is on the up and sits against sterling at Cy£0.823 /£1 inter bank. The European Central bank kept € interest rates on hold. The market expects this to be the case for a while as the ECB battles inflation, which is over target, and a strong € exchange rate which dampens exports. However, the strong € has increased the downside risks to growth significantly and there will be a moment in time when the other currencies become stronger, but don’t expect this any time soon. It is still a good time to bring Cypriot £’s back. To get a Better-than-Bank
go to: http://www.smartCurrencyExchange.com/smartsquotation.htm
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Have you read the Cyprus Buying Guide Yet?
Get your Cyprus Buying Guide today at: http://www.CyprusBuyingGuide.com/guide.htm
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Keep that hard earned money...with the help of CreditExpertby Carol Dunning, The Overseas Guides Company A little while back, my daughter had a suitcase stolen. It contained all her family’s passports, driver’s licences, bank account and credit account details…a nightmare scenario. The thieves then
embarked on a spending spree second to none. They opened up bank accounts
in my daughter's name, wrote out cheques that they couldn’t meet
…and it was sometimes much later Well…thank heavens she has found help – and I want to share that help with you. It struck me that any late payment, fraud or clerical error could easily damage your credit status and lead to lenders refusing you credit – for instance when you apply for that all important mortgage for your new property. This could prove both embarrassing and costly. So - she has joined up to CreditExpert . This alerts her to what is happening to all her accounts as it happens… I went into the
Internet to have a look at their website: from what I read, CreditExpert
is the UK's leading online consumer credit monitoring and identity fraud
prevention service. If you're thinking
It sounds great: I went in and followed the process – it is as simple as can be. My daughter highly recommends this very useful service – have a look at: WHEN you get to the CreditExpert WEBSITE, Just click on:
It's just above ‘Join 20 million consumers.' So there you have it – give it a try.
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Anything Else?That’s all for you this month!! Please let me know if I can be of assistance to you at all. If you are interested in getting in contact with any of my wonderful contacts who will be happy to help you with your property search, just click on: http://www.cyprusbuyingguide.com/requirementsform.htm fill in the form and I will respond with the name of someone who will contact you. We at the Overseas Guides Company take pride in the fact that the people we refer you to will look after you and help you make these all important choices. Take care and all best wishes until next time, Kim |
