What is your net worth? NZD$1,179,291
At what age did you become a net worth millionaire? 41. My husband would have been 40. I am Singaporean, married to a Kiwi. We have two sons (aged 7 and 11).
What region of New Zealand do you live in? Otago
How did you accumulate your net worth, what are you invested in? Slowly, and without too much intent if I'm being honest! We have always strived to live within our means. Currently, again not out of some savvy investment strategy, we have, through having two countries we call home (NZ and Singapore), accumulated three properties. Two are family homes in our name (still with mortgages), and the third is part-ownership in an apartment (mortgage-free) for my mother-in-law to live in. Some funds in KiwiSaver, and it’s equivalent in Singapore (the Central Provident Fund). As well as some shares I was "gifted" as part of my previous job.
What was your highest average household WEEKLY income after tax? This was probably in Singapore, where wages were higher and cost of living much lower than in NZ. Our combined annual income after tax was probably about $180,000 a year.
What is your career? I work in Marketing, and my Kiwi husband is in academia (he previously worked in the Singapore civil service).
Do you have children? YES
Do you have a tertiary qualification? YES
Did you inherit any of your money? NO
What's the approximate value of your house? Family home in Dunedin: NZD$600,000; Apartment in Dunedin: 33% share of NZD$360,000; Apartment in Singapore: SGD$550,000
Are you debt free now? NO
If NO, how much debt do you have and what is it for? Mortgage in NZ: NZD$218,000; Mortgage in Singapore: SGD$120,000 (current rental yield of 9.1%)
Are you in KiwiSaver? YES
Were you taught about money? YES
If YES, how were you taught? My parents modelled good saving and spending habits. We never bought on hire purchase, and only bought items using money we'd saved up. I've had savings accounts since I was a child. I wasn't really educated about growing that money though. It was pretty much always about saving, and living within your means. As a young child, I've also always had a variety of side hustles. Again, modelled by my parents. You can say I've been earning some kind of wage since I was 12 years old (my first job was as a TV presenter in a Singaporean kids' TV show!). I then went on to teach tuition to kids, write articles for magazines, conduct surveys on behalf of research companies, buy and sell used goods online, ghostwrite books. Anything that utilises an inherent strength that someone will pay money for, I'll be happy to do!
What is the most enjoyable thing you do with money? I love love love talking to my kids about money concepts like budgeting, opportunity cost, growing wealth, compound interest, good and bad debt. I operate a Sharesies account with my older son (11 years old) and that's lots of fun. We've just had Chinese New Year, and every gift of cash provides a great learning opportunity for my sons.
Do you use your money or your time to help others? YES
If YES, can you please elaborate. I work for PocketSmith, and my motivation to move into the personal finance space was to grow the number and quality of conversations we are having about money in NZ and beyond! I work in marketing, so also have donated time to fundraising for causes I believe in.
What is your greatest financial win? Probably the 10 years where my husband and I lived in Singapore. We deliberately lived a simple life, didn't opt for the trimmings that come with the expat lifestyle (like a condo with a pool). We bought a lovely public housing apartment, didn't have a car, I was a stay-at-home-mum (with multiple paid side hustles) for 18 months with each of my boys, so we didn't need to pay for expensive childcare or have live in domestic help. We managed to save quite a tidy sum of money which enabled us to put a large down payment on our house in Dunedin, without having to sell our Singapore apartment.
What is your worst financial mistake? Being over-insured in Singapore, paying for an investment-linked life and critical care insurance policy and not bothering to read the fine print or understand the fee structure of the darned thing.
What advice do you have for others? Taking control of your money isn't scary! It's actually hugely fun, and brings my family closer. It's certainly never too late to start learning more about your financial state, and how to chart your own course to meet your goals. We're all different, so don't get pressured into adopting a certain type of money personality. Do you, but make sure you walk through life with financial clarity, not blindfolded!
What is the point of having a net worth above $1,000,000. What does it mean to you? At this stage, it's about ensuring we won't be a burden to our kids. It's also about achieving one of our main goals in life, which is to be able to live between our two home countries of NZ and Singapore.
Finish these sentences:
If you want to build wealth do this… Have full understanding of your incoming and outgoings. Budget, in whatever way works for you. Set SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time-bound) goals.
If you want to build wealth avoid doing this… Frittering away money on the good-to-haves. Avoid keeping up with the Joneses. Surround yourself with likeminded people.