mohan

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On the contract it says ' you can pay in any currency but only euro will apply ...' . What does that mean?
My bank New York National does not do euro and told me to go to Chase.
What is the most cost effective way of doing it?
thanks,
mohan

Patrick

Once again I'll say what I think is the cheapest and easiest. Go get euro travlers checks in the next amount over the required deposit (that will just reduce the amount you owe when you get there). You can fill them out and sent regular airmail. I have yet to find a cheaper or easier way to do it. If you get the checks without a fee at the bank or AAA, the small conversion charge will still be less than anywhere else, and there is more safety and it is cheaper than mailing cash.

ira

Hi Mohan,

Check with your agent, but I think tht they mean that you can send a check in dollars for the equivalent amount in euros, but that you will have to give them the euros after you arrive.

They won't cash your check unless you don't show.

Patrick

Ira, I'm curious about your statement which I've seen others make as well. Are hotel and apartment owners in Europe really that naive? What's the point of asking for a check and not cashing it? Surely they know if someone doesn't show up, all they will do is call their bank and stop payment on the check as well. An uncashed check is totally worthless.

I've never heard of people actually holding that check. It's always been my experience that they go ahead and cash it. Just curious.

Christina

I thought that was pretty optimistic, also, what is the point of asking for it if you don't cash it. I didn't know Ira had ever rented an apartment in Paris, but all the ones I have def. cashed it.

A have had a hotel hold the check for one night's deposit in the old days before you used a credit card for deposit. They didn't tell me they were going to do that (which I think would defeat the purpose as the person then would know they could send a bogus check), and it was a lot less money.

I suspect that means that the amount will be converted to euro and the price is in euro, and thus if you send USD, it will be converted to euro by some rate which they probably will determine. I had an apt. agency do that, but they told me the rate ahead of time so I could decide if it were a good deal or not. In my case, they hadn't updated their exchange rate recently and it was actually better than the current USD/euro exchange rate, so I came out ahead.

I had a cashier's check made out in USD and mailed it USPS Global Priority, but the firm told me how much to make it out for. I think the euro TCs are a good idea, otherwise, if possible. If one is in NY, there are definitely places around to have cashier's checks made out in euro, though -- any place that deals in foreign exchange should be able to do it (like a Travelex office), but it can be expensive that way.

lucygirl

Hi mohan,

I rented from them last year and I setup a paypal account and paid with my visa.

Quick and easy and I printed a receipt to bring with me. There was a small surcharge from rentparis for this-I forget how much but worth it to me for the convenience.

Have fun! I'm so jealous!

lucygirl

Forgot to specify--I paid the downpayment using paypal and brought cash to pay the rest on arrival.

mohan

Thankyou all.
I guess I am going to set up a paypal account and pay the 5% extra. That seems to be the safest way.
The balance and the the 300 euro security deposit will have to be in cash. The atm machines in Paris work, right?
Mohan

clevelandbrown

I had my bank do a wire transfer, but it was complicated and expensive.

Paypal seems like a good idea.

I have also read postings by people who used

http://www.xe.com/ucc/

which has a way of sending checks in euro, said to be with a good exchange rate, but I have not personally used this service, although I plan to try it when I next need it.

opaldog

If you plan to withdraw from an ATM make sure that you are able to withdraw a large enough amount. I went to the airport and they would not let me withdraw enough to pay the balance and the deposit (for rentparis). So I used the money exchange at the airport, which I know is a higher rate, but it was my only other option at the time.

carcassone

We rented apt #7 from RentParis back in Aug. One of the reasons I picked that apt is the fact that they accept credit card payment thru PayPal, which I already have an account. Very convenient. Incidently, when we arrived, I paid the rest of the rent in Euro cash but the manager never asked for the 300 Euro security deposit. Initially I though maybe he just forgot to ask for it. But our checkout procedure was "just leave the keys on the kitchen counter and closed the door". Since he wasn't planning on collecting the keys when we left, maybe he didn't forget as he wasn't planning on meeting us and return the deposit.

I'm curious whether other renters who have rented from RentParis in the last few months were asked for the security deposit?

carcassone

Forgot to say that for the cash in Euro (for the balance & security deposit), I bought mine thru my bank, Wells Fargo, before I left. The rate was comparable to using a ATM upon arrival and the service charge was only a few dollars. I ordered them with their 800 number and the Euros was sent to my local bank for me to pickup. I could even specify what denomination I want. We always use ATM for cash while aboard.

Scarlett

Today we paid for our apartment in Paris with a credit card. This is what they told us.....

"Because the bank converts it to Euros, there may be a slight difference in the actual amount. "
I guess that is what it meant on your contract too.
Have fun in Paris!

Budman

We rented from these people in Feb 2003 and paid in $$$ to an address in Massachusetts. I noticed after reading this thread that their prices are still the same as they were 2 years ago with the $$ euro rate of today.

http://www.parisvacationapartments.com/

mohan

Thanks again. You guys are the best.
Opaldog: i believe you have stayed in the apartment on rue de Braque. Did the pictures depict the apartment correctly? Was the mattress reasonably supportive? i have a bad back but I don't have unrealistic expectation. Was there a top sheet? I can bring my own. Was it an overall pleasant experience?
thanks for your help,
mohan

ira

Hi Patrick and Christina,

Maybe I just have an honest face.

I have sent a check in dollars to B&B's in Europe and to rental Apts in the US and they were not cashed.

I admit to never having used rentparis.com.

lucygirl

carcassone,

They didn't ask me for the deposit either. I kept emailing them and asking how to go about giving it to them. They kept thinking I misundertood it to be the down payment and kept reminding me to re-read the contact.

Anyway, I also thought maybe he forgot to ask me for it when we got there. Maybe they just liked the look of us

Patrick

Ira, it's nice that you have an honest face, but I've never send a pic of my face when making deposits. Is that normal? LOL.

janis

Patrick -- I haven't tried it anywhere else in Europe. But in the UK probably 5 or 6 times over the years I have sent a US$ check for a flat or B&B deposit. In each case the arrangement was the owners would hold the check and I would pay in £ after arrival. They would only cash the $ check if I didn't show.

I have done this with flats in London B&Bs in Northumberland and Scotland, and cottages in the cotswolds.

Patrick

OK, I stand corrected on my comment about owners being naive. I guess they are. I can't imagine if I owned an apartment or B&B and took a check to hold, but the people didn't show up, why I would expect them not also to call their bank and put a stop payment on that check. If someone is so tacky as to just not show up, surely they would be smart enough and "tacky" enough to also cancel the check. So I question what possible good that uncashed check is.
It seems to me there's a difference between being trusting and just being naive. To me, accepting a check and not cashing it does nothing to protect them, so why not simply trust them to show up and not even require the check in the first place?