Property purchase update

Just a quick update on my recent property purchase in Dallas, Texas.  Once settlement has been finalised I will post all the details and figures.

 

 Money Transfer Issues
 Settlement is tomorrow however I have had a number of (bank related) issues….

*Bank of America set my maximum transfer limit to $5000 per transaction – each time I transfer out it costs me a $25 fee. I am unable to increase this limit unless i’m physically in the US.  I have so far been very unhappy dealing with Bank of America. It is very easy to put money in to your account, but good luck trying to take it out again. I paid about half of the value of the house through this account and decided to send directly the other half through ClearFX (OzForex)

*OzForex has so far been good however I have now been told that Ozforex sent to the escrow company less than what I was advised – somewhere along the transaction path fees were taken out (accounting to around $75USD) – I’m still yet to work out whether I will now need to pay this shortfall or the escrow company, I am not sure which bank took the fees out. So it may turn out settlement is delayed by a couple of business days until I make up this shortfall (with another $25 Bank of America fedwire transfer fee of course!)

 

Rent update
I was advised that the property is now rented on a 12 month contract – right on settlement – perfect! $1050/month.

 

Insurance – more expensive than anticipated
Quote from insurance agent came in about $150/year more than I was expecting (around $780/year).  Because settlement is so soon, I’m going to go ahead with this company, American Modern, and look for a cheaper/better alternative next year.  It could also be the case that I have no experience paying any bills in the US as it seems you can get a cheaper rate once you establish that you are “excellent” at paying bills on time.  Based on my rough calculations, you can expect to pay around 50-60% more for insurance coverage in the US than you would be paying in Australia.
 
 

Communication
The time difference is a killer!  I fell asleep last night as I was awaiting business hours to start in the US (12am Aussie EST) – but I definitely recommend a US phone number for communication reasons.  Calling your insurance agent, property management company, escrow title company or waiting on hold with the bank for an hour is a lot easier to deal with than 7000 back and forth emails – all unlimited calls for just $19.95 a year – click here for details on how to do this.

 
 

Post-purchase worries
I think I may be suffering from Post-purchase dissonance.
This always happens to me when I buy expensive things though –
hopefully it will all go away once I have confirmation all my money
has been received and settlement has officially occurred!