Today I thought I would tackle one of YOUR questions head on. It’s housing related, a topic that is constantly being talked about in New Zealand and one that I generally try to avoid. So here goes…
All in Mortgage
Mortgage be gone!
People tell me that they are investing quite large sums of money in order to get a return but at the same time they have a mortgage. My short and sweet response is typically that “in my humble opinion, you can’t make money while you owe money”. Once I’ve uttered my opinion the fireworks often start.
Becoming Minimalizzy
I have been banging on to my sister for years about living within her means and one day the penny finally dropped. In this guest blog post she shares her story. Take it away Lizzy...
What can I learn from retirees?
I had a chat with a retired couple recently and I was torn between being polite and not too nosey and outright wanting to ask them every nitty gritty detail about their lives. I settled on the middle ground but found myself left wanting.
What to do with a windfall
One questions I ask is “if you were given $10,000 right now what would you do”? I picked that amount because in my mind it is enough to be significant, $1,000 just doesn’t make people sit up and listen, but the thought of a sudden and unexpected $10,000 does.
Becoming an Investor*
All your working life you are trying to increase your net worth so that when you finally stop working you start to slowly spend it to live on. If upon retirement each year you take 4% out of your pot of savings it will take about 30 years to boil the pot dry. So what can you live on a year? Do you need to invest $100K, $200 or $500K?
KiwiSaver ≠ First Home Buyer Deposit
Is it just me or are people confusing saving for a house with saving for retirement? I keep hearing about first home buyers all the time and how difficult it is to get into the market. But the question I keep asking myself is “why do people use their KiwiSaver as their primary mode of saving for a deposit?”
House Building 101
The slow moving trainwreck that is the NZ housing market continues on unabated. Those wanting a first home can’t buy one because those owning many homes keep buying them to rent them out to those wanting to buy a first home but can’t afford them…
Tracking Your Net Worth
It is important to track your net worth. How else can you know where you are financially so that you can plan for the future? The most important thing is to understand your financial position today so you can be moving in the right direction.