As to bank accounts in PR.
During my July trip I stopped at Santander Bank, I figure it was the same as the US bank by the same name. It turns out that as of now they are not the same and can not simply exchange money. I was planning on opening an account with them in the US and withdraw it in PR using the same checks, but that does not work.
So I asked about opening a PR Santander checking account, they said they could not do it because I do not have an address in PR, that I needed proof of address. So I walked away.
It is like the chicken and the egg, which do you do first (get a bank account, rent/buy property, setup utilities, get a driver license)?
Looks like the right order is rent/buy property (Cash or Certified Check), then setup utilities and wait for the bill or get some paper from the renter / home purchase papers to prove address, then with SSN card, address proof, and US state driver license go get the PR license and create a bank account.
Seems to be more complicated that it needs to be.