USD-GBP exchange rate

[Rob&Dawn 1]

really don't want to see it go to as low as $1.05.

Luckily i tranx some over when it was $1.96, really wish i'd done more then!

[Lansbury 19]

$1.40 is about where it was 10 years ago - i think it may have even dipped to $1.30 at one point.

$1.05 is the lowest it has been.

Please Lansbury, don't even go there.

No way I have a monthly pension from my old job in the UK.

[Stinky Monkey 1]

really don't want to see it go to as low as $1.05.

Luckily i tranx some over when it was $1.96, really wish i'd done more then!

God I envy you....... so far I have lost over $11000 of what I planned to take wihen I first go over.........I feel sick, think I will leave more here and hope for the best and just sit it out and bring it over as and when I need it, wish I had sent more over when it first started dropping

Oh well at least I am sitting on $250 I got at $1.98 ha ha gotta look on the bright side

[Slightly Bonkers 0]

I get daily emails with the day's mid-market rate from xe.com.

Even if you don't want to use xe.com as a trader, I've found it useful.

You can watch the small trends, and it helps me plan when to bring over enough to keep going.

It makes for depressing reading but it's saved me money!

[Stinky Monkey 1]

I get daily emails with the day's mid-market rate from xe.com.

Even if you don't want to use xe.com as a trader, I've found it useful.

You can watch the small trends, and it helps me plan when to bring over enough to keep going.

It makes for depressing reading but it's saved me money!

Thanks for the tip off

[rebeccajo 14]

I don't mean to be impolite, but ..... sterling is still worth MORE than the dollar. You can still bring your money over here and it's worth more than over there.

What is the point that I am missing?

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

Well, if you decided to start the visa process 6 months ago (fairly typical processing time) the money you were going to bring over is worth -23% less now than when you started.

[rebeccajo 14]

Well, if you decided to start the visa process 6 months ago (fairly typical processing time) the money you were going to bring over is worth -23% less now than when you started.

I understand that.

What I am saying is even with today's exchange rates, one still comes out ahead.

I can understand people being disappointed that their home values have dropped and they won't clear what they would have six months ago. But that's GBP to GBP.

When bringing sterling over, you're still sitting pretty. That's the way I see it, anyway.

Edited November 18, 2008 by rebeccajo

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

A lot of things are relative though.

The cost of living is still relative to where you moving from in the UK and where you are moving to in the US. If I move from the North where the average cost of a home is 100k-150k sterling to - say - SoCal where the average house price $450k your even further off from being able to afford a comparable home than you were 6 months ago.

If you are drawing a UK pension you are getting less money per month.

Edited November 18, 2008 by rkl57

[Lansbury 19]

I don't mean to be impolite, but ..... sterling is still worth MORE than the dollar. You can still bring your money over here and it's worth more than over there.

I don't think it is, on spending power it is worth less.

The parity spending power is around $1.60, ie £1 in the UK buys what $1.60 would in the US. If you get an exchange rate less than that you are in effect losing money.

[helwardman 1]

Well, if you decided to start the visa process 6 months ago (fairly typical processing time) the money you were going to bring over is worth -23% less now than when you started.

I understand that.

What I am saying is even with today's exchange rates, one still comes out ahead.

I can understand people being disappointed that their home values have dropped and they won't clear what they would have six months ago. But that's GBP to GBP.

When bringing sterling over, you're still sitting pretty. That's the way I see it, anyway.

I think what people mean is that they are upset because if they had been transferring GBPs to USDs a year ago they would have got a lot more dollars for their pounds than they will at the moment.

For example I transferred a sum of money from UK to USA this time last year. If I was to transfer the same amount of money this week, I would be $40,000 worse off just because of the way the exchange rate has dropped.

Edited November 18, 2008 by helwardman

[*Snowdrop* 604]

Well, if you decided to start the visa process 6 months ago (fairly typical processing time) the money you were going to bring over is worth -23% less now than when you started.

I understand that.

What I am saying is even with today's exchange rates, one still comes out ahead.

I can understand people being disappointed that their home values have dropped and they won't clear what they would have six months ago. But that's GBP to GBP.

When bringing sterling over, you're still sitting pretty. That's the way I see it, anyway.

Of course it's still better than changing it the other way round. And anyone who has a significant amount of cash to bring over should consider themselves very lucky in today's climate.

I'm just disappointed because the process took so long for us - we got stuck in the VSC blackhole for ten months - it means I started this process over a year ago and was expecting to have been able to move a few months ago.

I took a severence package from work and had been hoping to use it to tide me over any unemployment and to put something down as a house deposit. The amount I have now gets me around $15,000 less than a month ago. It's just my bad luck/timing but it still stings. Especially if it's going to be increasingly hard to get a new job over in the US - every penny counts.

But as I said I do realise I am lucky to have something to bring over.

[rebeccajo 14]

I don't mean to be impolite, but ..... sterling is still worth MORE than the dollar. You can still bring your money over here and it's worth more than over there.

I don't think it is, on spending power it is worth less.

The parity spending power is around $1.60, ie £1 in the UK buys what $1.60 would in the US. If you get an exchange rate less than that you are in effect losing money.

Parity spending power? Where does that figure come from? Wouldn't that be something 'relative' such as what Robin talks about in her post just above hers? And would it also not be a figure that would adjust itself based upon world conditions?

[rebeccajo 14]

Well, if you decided to start the visa process 6 months ago (fairly typical processing time) the money you were going to bring over is worth -23% less now than when you started.

I understand that.

What I am saying is even with today's exchange rates, one still comes out ahead.

I can understand people being disappointed that their home values have dropped and they won't clear what they would have six months ago. But that's GBP to GBP.

When bringing sterling over, you're still sitting pretty. That's the way I see it, anyway.

Of course it's still better than changing it the other way round. And anyone who has a significant amount of cash to bring over should consider themselves very lucky in today's climate.

I'm just disappointed because the process took so long for us - we got stuck in the VSC blackhole for ten months - it means I started this process over a year ago and was expecting to have been able to move a few months ago.

I took a severence package from work and had been hoping to use it to tide me over any unemployment and to put something down as a house deposit. The amount I have now gets me around $15,000 less than a month ago. It's just my bad luck/timing but it still stings. Especially if it's going to be increasingly hard to get a new job over in the US - every penny counts.

But as I said I do realise I am lucky to have something to bring over.

I bolded the part of your post that has been a problem for us - now that my husband has been here three years.

The going back over bit has been gut-wrenching to say the least. It was pretty discouraging to plan a visit and try to save twice as many dollars as needed in sterling to stay in a hotel, dine out, do any shopping or even just visit the pub. Once you are over here living and working, dollars are all you've got. The backblow hasn't been pretty.

Edited November 18, 2008 by rebeccajo

[rebeccajo 14]

Well, if you decided to start the visa process 6 months ago (fairly typical processing time) the money you were going to bring over is worth -23% less now than when you started.

I understand that.

What I am saying is even with today's exchange rates, one still comes out ahead.

I can understand people being disappointed that their home values have dropped and they won't clear what they would have six months ago. But that's GBP to GBP.

When bringing sterling over, you're still sitting pretty. That's the way I see it, anyway.

I think what people mean is that they are upset because if they had been transferring GBPs to USDs a year ago they would have got a lot more dollars for their pounds than they will at the moment.

For example I transferred a sum of money from UK to USA this time last year. If I was to transfer the same amount of money this week, I would be $40,000 worse off just because of the way the exchange rate has dropped.

Imagine though, taking dollars to the UK and being 50 percent worse off.