General Info

[QUOTE=Gimmedub;2140713]...FYI from my experience Banco Caja Social does not charge a fee and neither does Colpatria.[/QUOTE]Last year Banco Caja Social charged a fee. I have not checked them this year, but I will do that tomorrow.

Yesterday I went into the local Bancolombia office near my home here in Bogota. I asked them about the ATM charges when using a USA Debit card. They said that in Medellin there was a charge and in Bogota no! I demanded an explanation. This manager swore me to secrecy. Meaning I could not use his name but it was okay to quote him. He said, "The gringos in Bogota are classy guys, always use condoms and are very particular about washing there butts before asking for rimming". He said on the Medellin side. "The guys there need to be penalized for their unreasonable demands put on the daughters of the local families. Always asking for tea bagging, rimming and other disgusting things" For this reason the bank has instituted an ATM charge for withdrawals. He did say that this charge has not started yet and those dopes in Medellin don't know what they are talking about. I said I would defend the honor of the guys in Medellin and would also pay expenses for a Bogota blow job from one of Bogota's finest to anyone who could document being charged for a Bancolombia charge. He said Piratemorgan, you are a prince!

Wait. Don't you mean the ATM charge is in because gringos arent washing their butts and getting rimjobs?

I'm confused on the hygiene issue here.

WTF is 'tea bagging'? Or do I even want to know?

[QUOTE=Dickhead;2141538]WTF is 'tea bagging'? Or do I even want to know?[/QUOTE]It is when you stand over someone and dip your ball bag into their mouth, as you would do a tea bag into a cup of hot water.

Thank you. Sounds a bit risky for my tastes. Ouch.

[QUOTE=Gimmedub;2140713]...FYI from my experience Banco Caja Social does not charge a fee and neither does Colpatria.[/QUOTE]I tried Banco Caja Social on two occasions today with my Schwab card. I was not successful getting money either time. It acted almost identical to when Bancolombia was not accepting the Schwab card. You go through the complete procedure and it displays that the transaction cannot be completed. Up to that point, it had not displayed any charges, so maybe there is no charge.

I just got a schwab card since Stupid Chase charges ATM fees AND foreign transaction fees. Does the Schwab card work at other ATMs?

[QUOTE=FunLuvr;2141788]I tried Banco Caja Social on two occasions today with my Schwab card. I was not successful getting money either time. It acted almost identical to when Bancolombia was not accepting the Schwab card. You go through the complete procedure and it displays that the transaction cannot be completed. Up to that point, it had not displayed any charges, so maybe there is no charge.[/QUOTE]

Yes, and at the end of the month they will reimburse all ATM charges incurred.

[QUOTE=Jbj64;2141792]I just got a schwab card since Stupid Chase charges ATM fees AND foreign transaction fees. Does the Schwab card work at other ATMs?[/QUOTE].

[QUOTE=Jbj64;2141792]I just got a schwab card since Stupid Chase charges ATM fees AND foreign transaction fees. Does the Schwab card work at other ATMs?[/QUOTE]One of the main reasons for having it is because it reimburses ATM fees of other banks.

[QUOTE=PaisaPorFavor;2141809]Yes, and at the end of the month they will reimburse all ATM charges incurred..[/QUOTE]Schwab reimburses me the same day they post the charge, which is the next business day. E-Trade posts the charge and the refund instantly. Capital One credit card charges no foreign currency exchange fees AND gives me 1. 5% cash back. Bank of America credit card gives me 2% back on groceries and 3% on gas and restaurant meals (1% on everything else so I use Capital One instead), but does charge 3% forex fee, so I only use it in the Yew Ess.

So with those four accounts, I am good to go! Beware that E-Trade DOES charge a forex fee if purchases are made with their debit card. Schwab does not. But why would I use a debit card for purchases when the CCs give me cash back? Very occasionally I run across a site like RENFE, the Spanish train company, that will not take US credit cards, only debit cards.

[QUOTE=Dickhead;2141895]Schwab reimburses me the same day they post the charge, which is the next business day. E-Trade posts the charge and the refund instantly. Capital One credit card charges no foreign currency exchange fees AND gives me 1. 5% cash back. Bank of America credit card gives me 2% back on groceries and 3% on gas and restaurant meals (1% on everything else so I use Capital One instead), but does charge 3% forex fee, so I only use it in the Yew Ess.

So with those four accounts, I am good to go! Beware that E-Trade DOES charge a forex fee if purchases are made with their debit card. Schwab does not. But why would I use a debit card for purchases when the CCs give me cash back? Very occasionally I run across a site like RENFE, the Spanish train company, that will not take US credit cards, only debit cards.[/QUOTE]My schwab card reimburses me at the end of the month. How do you tell in advance when using a ATM card in Bogota what the exchange rate will be? I only get the options for how much cash I want to withdraw.

[QUOTE=Jbj64;2141792]I just got a schwab card since Stupid Chase charges ATM fees AND foreign transaction fees. Does the Schwab card work at other ATMs?[/QUOTE]The Schwab card works at every other bank I tried, just not Banco Caja Social. I think you will be happy with the Schwab card. One thing to note, if you transfer money from another bank to Schwab, it will be four business days until the money is available to withdraw.

[QUOTE=FunLuvr;2142240]One thing to note, if you transfer money from another bank to Schwab, it will be four business days until the money is available to withdraw.[/QUOTE]Might be your other bank. Mine is usually there in 2 days.

I transfer money from E-Trade to Schwab or vv a couple of times a year. They always tell me it will be 'up to five business days. ' It never is, but ET is definitely quicker than CS by one or two days. We live in an impatient world and sometimes when I take cash out of CS at an ATM on a Thursday night, the transaction does not show up until Monday. So, I don't know the precise exchange rate for a couple of days. This makes absolutely no actual difference at all, but I do like using the ET card at an ATM and seeing the results in five seconds.

I don't see how either of these firms makes any money off of me. I only place two or three trades total per year and I use the snot out of my ATM cards with them. I guess they make it up with all the market timing geniuses running around trading all the time. I just looked and when I was in Central America, I withdrew cash from ATMs 21 times in 89 days, so that cost Schwab about $115. They probably get half the bid / ask spread, and that is kind of wide with Central Américan currencies.

Where I am now, I use very little cash but wear the numbers off of my Capital One card. I never carry a balance on that card, so I don't see how they make any money off of me either. Every nine months or so, I request a credit limit increase, just because I can and because it lowers the balance-to-utilization ratio, which is a factor in credit scores. I think I have about $150 k in total credit available on my various cards, and I have no independent income or job. But, I have a 40 year history of no late payments. I guess they factor all that in.

BTW I recently found out that if you have a platinum AMEX, that gets you into Delta lounges even if you are flying coach on Delta. Wish I had known that about twenty years earlier.