Is 2015 the year you’ll begin your search for an overseas home? If so, you could do yourself a large favour – and one for your bank account, especially after Christmas – by planning important parts of your purchase now, not least currency exchange.

Article written by Smart Currency Exchange 

If you will be travelling abroad to view property in 2015, organising details of your viewing trip as well as aspects of the property purchase now will put you ahead of the pack and could deliver financial benefits.

Preparing in good time means you can book cheaper flights and accommodation, decide and arrange which estate agents to see, and create a strategy for transferring the funds you’ll need for your property purchase – a move that could save you money and time.

It’s not uncommon for property-hunters to find and secure a property on their first viewing trip, so it makes sense to have money ready to send to cover the deposit before your leave the UK. For this, your first point of contact is not your bank but a currency exchange specialist, like Smart Currency Exchange. A currency specialist will always offer you better exchange rates for a euro, dollar or other foreign currency transfer than typical high street banks, but they will also, if you wish, discuss clever ways to protect your money against exchange rate fluctuations.

The New Year can be an uncertain time for currency markets. For example, at the end of December 2012, the exchange rate was £1/€1.23 but by the first week of January 2013 Sterling had begun losing value so that by the start of February it had fallen to £1/€1.15. Fast forward to New Year 2014 though and the opposite happened – at the end of December 2013, the rate was £1/€1.20 but as January got underway Sterling began its recovery so that by mid-February it was £1/€1.22 and, bar a momentary fall in March, continued to gain against the euro throughout the year. No-one knows for sure what New Year 2015 will bring, but speaking to Smart Currency Exchange will ensure you make most informed decision about sending currency abroad.

So, if you’re planning to purchase a property in Europe, the USA or any other overseas destination early in the New Year, why not let Smart Currency Exchange save you money and time? To find out more, download Smart Currency Exchange’s free report or visit the Currency Zone.