I would like to pay cash for my house that I found in USA. But this cash is from Russia. WIll it be a problem?
When I pay cash how exactly does it work? Do I sign a check or do a wire transfer through the bank? Will the seller ask where my money came from and if I’ve earned them in the States?
November 18th, 2008 at 5:53 pm
Can’t pay Cash.
The Title company will alert the authorities.
They will tell you
to go get a Cashier’s check.
Then the Bank will turn you in
(lol)…..it’s because of the terrorist and tracking illegal money.
It’s best to have a paper trail…..have the funds wired from
where ever it is coming from. So Home land security can
see that you are not a terrorist.
and
they do check. Specially if you are using large sums.
November 18th, 2008 at 7:11 pm
When you say that you are paying in “cash” I assume that you mean that you are not taking out a mortgage, etc. I do NOT recommend actually paying with currency (i.e., a suitcase full of rubles!). All money flow between countries is now heavily regulated under Patriot Act provisions and you will make your life much easier by simply sending a wire transfer between established accounts or writing checks on established bank accounts. All cash transactions over a certain amount have to, by law, be reported by banks to the government, which may look further into it.
I suggest opening a bank in the US and then wiring your money from Russia into that account. It will make life much easier for you if you can present a check drawn on a US bank. The seller has no business asking where or how your money was earned, but they will want to know that you really do have the cash and that you will be able to deliver it on time and in US dollars upon closing. Typically when purchasing a home, you will need to make a deposit payment, so for that you might just wire transfer the appropriate funds to the trustees account (typically the bank account of the attorney helping the seller) from Russia.