Money In Buenos Aires

We are moving into a new place tomorrow.

This means I have to put down a damage deposit and one month's rent in one go.

In Buenos Aires, the landlords want the money in USD. They don't take pesos. They don't take credit cards. And here in lies the rub.

I need $3000 USD in less than 24 hours.

The banks only disperse pesos. But the most they will give out at a time is 1000 pesos (about $230). To make one transaction is 17 pesos ($4). And they cut you off after each one. I think you can wander from bank to bank doing the same thing 13 times, but I'm not sure. I had to call back to Canada and make sure I could exceed my daily withdrawal amount.

They say you can do cash advances on your credit card - but I haven't found that to be the case.

So, to get $3000 USD, you have to make over 13 withdrawals at $4 a pop. Not to mention the banks at home charge you each time too. We figure to just withdraw the rent money, we're looking at $70 USD. Then, you need to exchange it from pesos to dollars - where we'll probably lose another $70.

To make matters worse, I just found out my brand new credit card was being used to buy things on Ebay. I don't have an Ebay account.

And suddenly, we have a miracle moment.

Turns out, if your card needs to be replaced in a foreign country, Visa can send you emergency cash. I asked for $3000 and I got $3000. I can pick it up at the Western Union tomorrow. It was only because the stars aligned that I can get money with no fees, and not spending all day searching for ATMs. So, to whomever bought that antique deer foot lamp in my name, and on my card - thank you!

UPDATE: Nothing is ever as easy as it seems.

Shaun and I called the Western Union office the next day and they sent us on a wild goose chase around Palermo. Turns out, none of the WU offices in Buenos Aires have USD. They can only give out pesos. We met a lady in line who said that everyone who rents in Buenos Aires shares our plight. After the peso crashed 10 years ago, all landlords will take is American Dollars. However, because the government is so worried about people draining their bank accounts and stockpiling American cash, they have limited the amount you can have. According to this lady, it is a complicated process. They analyze your tax records, and then tell you how much American money you can get each month. It's an absurd situation if you need a bunch of USD to pay your rent. The Western Union office told us there was a cap of USD$300 they could give out per person per month. So getting $3000 was out of the question. In the end, we got the money in pesos, and paid an outrageous exchange rate (4.46) set out by the rental company.