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The government’s first home loan scheme is designed to help first home buyers, but across most of the country it’s becoming irrelevant. Milestone Direct’s mortgage advisers (“mortgage brokers”) have previously helped many young Kiwis gain homeownership with the First Home Loan (FHL) scheme back when the scheme was more accessible. First Home Loans are unwieldy and bureaucratic, with... Read more Read more

Winter is coming. It can be cold, gloomy, and costly. But there are some things you can do to save yourself from some costly spending. Here’s a few tips to help save your sanity by saving you some money. The strategies below will help you save energy, money, and stay comfortable during the cooler months. Some of the tips below are free and can be used daily to increase your savings;... Read more Read more

Ideal timing for a life milestone in one era will inevitably change in the next. In years gone by, wars, economic turmoil, and other events lead many individuals and families to delay or bring forward many of life’s plans. In the same vein, many of today’s younger adults are reaching milestones later than their parents’ generations – from leaving home to becoming parents themselves. Instead of... Read more Read more

Every day we are constantly reminded that the harder we work at something, the greater the reward. It’s a mantra which is reinforced in childhood, in the office, at the gym…and in most cases, it pays dividends. However, when it comes to investing, this is the exact behaviour you should avoid. Successful investing involves time in the market (riding the ups and downs), minimising... Read more Read more

In an interesting move, New Zealand’s financial markets regulator has just released a warning about catfishing on dating application (“app”) Tinder, reporting that at least one young Kiwi professional has been scammed out of more than $100,000. This was no rookie scam, the cat-fishers went to significant effort over a five-month period. What is catfishing? Catfishing is a... Read more Read more

Tiny houses have seen a huge rise in popularity overseas over the last few years, not just because of their minimal footprint but because of their cost efficiency in a situation where house prices continue to rise and available land continues to decrease, particularly in and around major global urban centres. What is a tiny house? A tiny house is a small cabin-like home built... Read more Read more

The longer we take to pay off bad debt, the more it costs us and that means the more it holds us back from doing the things we really want in life. So, if there’s room in our budget and we have got even a little bad debt, it’s a smart move to put more towards getting rid of it before looking at anything else such as building up savings or investing. Differences in interest rates ... Read more Read more

Aside from the global pandemic, the NZ housing market has hogged the local media headlines for the last year or more. House price increases are rampant in most parts of the country, perhaps 22% and climbing, and this has supported a view that the housing market has become a one-way bet, benefitting property owners and bolstering investor demand at the expense of those wanting to get onto the... Read more Read more

The last 12 months have proved challenging for many people. Against such a backdrop, happiness is still a worthy goal we should all strive to achieve. Even though happiness levels will never rank a 10 out of 10 every minute of every single day, with a few tweaks and improvements we can all give ourselves a happiness boost by implementing some of these 19 rapid-fire ways to boost... Read more Read more

KiwiSaver is now well entrenched in the New Zealand financial culture. However, there are a multitude of us who still do not fully understand how it works, in many cases this is because of misinformation or changes that have occurred to KiwiSaver since it was first launched. So it’s time to bust some of the most common KiwiSaver myths. Here’s the top 10 misconceptions about KiwiSaver... Read more Read more

According to Robert Kiyosaki, famous author of the groundbreaking bestseller Rich Dad Poor Dad, the parents of millennials need to learn that financial struggle is necessary for success. Kiyosaki has highlighted the scourge of those who define adulthood as financial independence yet still have to rely on their parents for monetary support, even well into their 30s. Whether it be... Read more Read more

It’s now more affordable to buy a house in San Francisco or London than in Auckland. In fact, a new report has ranked Auckland as the fourth least affordable housing market in the world. The value held in an owner-occupied home is a source of pride to many New Zealand (NZ) families. This has meant the last few decades of NZ house price increases haven’t always been seen as an issue, as... Read more Read more

New Zealand is set for another recession this year, Westpac’s economists say – but it won’t be enough to stop the runaway housing market. A recession is a significant decline in general economic activity. It is usually recognised as two consecutive quarters of falling economic output measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP). GDP is the total monetary or market value of all the finished... Read more Read more

Whether your goal is to pay down debt, save and invest more, or even retire early — increasing your income is key. Thanks to the internet and technology, there are so many ways to make a little side-money today. This gives more people a chance to bring in some side income or even turn their side hustle into a real business. One classic money-making idea is to flip items or resell for a... Read more Read more

The banks are at war again, slashing mortgage rates to new record lows. One-year special fixed rate terms are now under 2.5% for those with more than 20% equity (or a 20% deposit for first home buyers). Such a figure is hardly believable if long-term interest rates are considered. Rates across other terms are also well-down on anything anyone in NZ has seen before. So... Read more Read more

A flood of new investors are surging into share markets (also called stock markets). This isn’t just a New Zealand phenomenon, it’s happening worldwide. Here are the top seven reasons that people lose money on shares, and for a few pointers on how amateur investors can turn many of these weaknesses into strengths. 1. Most shares underperform the market average This may... Read more Read more

Greenwashing is giving a false impression or providing misleading information about the environmental status of a company or its products. These misleading or unsubstantiated claims deceive consumers into believing that a product or service is environmentally friendly or socially responsible. Although some of the environmental claims can be partly true, companies engaged in greenwashing... Read more Read more

The season of the holidays is getting further in the rear-view mirror for most of us and so are the (sometimes awkward) family congregations and gift exchanges that came with it. Holiday-related gift-giving practices are universal across every human culture worldwide. In fact, you could probably argue that major “holiday” events across all cultures are just an extravagant excuse for... Read more Read more

Everyone has a bad day at work now and then. You may leave your office vowing you will put your notice in soon. But how do you know when you should give your job a second chance, or when it is really time to quit? Read on for the top 13 warning signs that you should leave your job. 1. You’re unhappy most of each day doing this work This is not rocket science – the clearest sign... Read more Read more

The "gig economy" is an emerging class of temporary and flexible jobs. It is on the rise as businesses hire more independent contractors and freelancers instead of full-time employees. Nowadays, if you jump online, you will see job adverts for Uber drivers, freelance writing and design work. For some, the gig economy is an ‘in-between’ where they work a gig outside their regular employment... Read more Read more