What is your net worth? 1,002,000
At what age did you become a net worth millionaire? 51
What region of New Zealand do you live in? Hutt Valley
How did you accumulate your net worth, what are you invested in? The majority is in the mortgage-free house and the rest is invested into 2 KiwiSavers, 1 Govt. Super Scheme, 2 Sharesies accounts, 2 InvestNow accounts and a small $6,500 emergency fund (earning peanuts but ready for disasters).
What was your highest average household WEEKLY income after tax? $1,250
What is your career? I.T. Worker
Do you have children? YES
Do you have a tertiary qualification? NO
Did you inherit any of your money? NO
What's the approximate value of your house? $860,000
Are you debt-free now? YES
Are you in KiwiSaver? YES
Were you taught about money? NO
What is the most enjoyable thing you do with money? Having enough money to pay bills straight away and a decent buffer sitting in the bank is fantastic (i.e. not living paycheck to paycheck). Not spending it and watching it grow slowly over time is enjoyable but the best thing is the peace of mind knowing if I lost my job tomorrow then we'd be OK and would be able to survive for at least 3 years without having to work.
Do you use your money or your time to help others? YES
If YES, can you please elaborate? Regular giving to my local church which supports various charities around NZ and the Pacific, we also sponsor a child in Uganda. I also teach financial literacy to various people/groups to tell them my story and show them how they can achieve it as well.
What is your greatest financial win? Getting serious about money after being in a dead-end job as a lowly paid contractor and for 3 months at one stage we were forced to pay the mortgage on the credit card. That was my light bulb moment. That was 7 and a half years ago and our net worth was $86,000 at the time. Things changed after that when we started budgeting and planning how to get out of debt and looking at long term wealth. The vast majority of the wealth is due to house price increases however but having said that house prices were stagnant for a lot of years where I lived.
What is your worst financial mistake? Buying things we didn't really need on credit and having various loans and consumer debt. Also not having a plan sooner to break the cycle of living week to week.
What advice do you have for others? You MUST have a budget and know where you're at financially so you can make considered financial decisions. Think about every purchase you make. Automate regular bills via automatic payments or direct debits. Shop around for banks, insurance, utilities and don't be afraid to change providers. Spend less than you earn. Limit entertainment and frivolous spending. Create a budget and look at it weekly so you know where you are at and can plan for the future. Explore ways of doing things cheaper (e.g. DIY, gardening, cheaper car, buying 2nd hand clothes etc ...). Make sure you have an emergency fund even if it's only $1,000 (or even $100) to start with.
What is the point of having a net worth above $1,000,000? What does it mean to you? Primarily financial security for now and for the future. My lifestyle won't change and I'll continue to live frugally. Hopeful I've built generational wealth for my descendants. I'm the first one in my immediate family to be considered a millionaire and although at times it has sucked it is still totally worth it.
Finish these sentences:
If you want to build wealth do this… Buy assets and not liabilities and keep moving forward financially. Get some side hustles, do overtime and any extra jobs as applicable to build your wealth faster. Live frugally, get out of debt as soon as possible and invest as much as you can until you can ease off the throttle. Find cheaper alternatives for everything.
If you want to build wealth avoid doing this… Living week to week and spending the lot. You HAVE to stop spending on holidays, eating out and entertainment until you can comfortably afford to do it and even then don't overspend on these areas. Don't buy new things if you can get adequate things 2nd hand.
If these questions don’t adequately tell your story, feel free to briefly elaborate here: I got sick of having no money and my employment prospects 7 and a half years ago were grim - I'd finally reached the breaking point when things had to change. And they did. I read multiple books, watched a ton of YouTube videos on debt, wealth and finance and immersed myself into the principles of FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early). The eventual goal is to have the choice to work or not. We are not at that stage yet but this is another milestone along the way and it happened today (hence this submission) - I've been waiting to do this for a while now and have now finally joined the millionaires club! Very grateful.