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We all know that sinking feeling of knowing you’ve been ripped off. Unfortunately, in the financial world there are quite a few offerings, products, services, and outright rip offs that you should be aware of. Awareness can help you avoid that sinking feeling.
While many of these financial offerings are appropriate under the right circumstances, it can sometimes still be difficult to...
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Like a pack of sharks who smell blood, the scammers are already circling.
A decade or so ago during the Global Financial Crisis, investment fraud and other consumer scams were rampant. As any crisis spurs a degree of fear among at least some of the population, it’s no surprise the scammers are back in force to prey on people’s uncertainties, fears, and lack of knowledge in some areas...
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Despite financial wellbeing in retirement being essential, you’ll still frequently see some concerning headlines about funding retirement or retirement planning. For those of you who’ll retire soon, or have just retired, read on for eight secrets to ensure your golden years are free from financial worry – and can become the best years of your life.
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The financial markets took a tumble over the past month and have since recovered much of what was lost. However, many in the media largely focussed on the share market falls, talking it up as being catastrophic and unprecedented and warning of impending doom and gloom. However, the recent market fall (technically called a correction) is perfectly normal and historically occurs when...
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A report recently sent by QV has shown the property trends that we’ve become used to are finally starting to change. This could mean major things for first home buyers, especially those who live in large city centres. The key change reported is that housing is becoming more affordable for home buyers due to the following reasons:
Changes in growth rates or property
The...
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Traditionally, term deposits have been a popular strategy for many retirees and Kiwis who weren’t quite sure about how to choose or access other investments or needed to access the money in the near future.
What has happened with term deposits?
Before the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), New Zealand’s Official Cash Rate was sitting at 8.25%. The official cash rate tends to...
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We have seen a substantial rise in investment portfolios over the past 12 months. However, a new government is now in place and it intends to make a number of sweeping changes to the social structure of New Zealand.
We know from past experience that there is a long-term trend line with investment values for different assets and if markets rise or fall too dramatically, then they will...
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None of us are perfect – that’s what makes us all human! We all make mistakes (big or small) every day. Sometimes our mistakes are minor with few consequences, and other times our mistakes are major, perhaps we make a mistake which impacts our health, those close to us, or somehow costs us money?
We improve our chances of avoiding such mistakes if we’re aware of the common mistakes...
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Ever wondered how the rich spend their money? Here at Milestone Direct, our advisers see such a wide range of people that we understand the spending habits of a wide range of New Zealanders – including the rich.
To help you replicate the habits of the rich, here are seven ways the wealthy spend their money. For those of you wondering what’s so great about being rich after all, scroll...
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Avoiding investment scams is becoming even more important, as recent Australian data shows investment scams have now overtaken romance and dating scams as the most lucrative method of fraud.
Historically, investment scams have been common both overseas and in New Zealand. In fact, it's nearly the 10-year anniversary of when the world’s largest investment scam was discovered. This...
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Investment scams can happen to anyone. They’re often very sophisticated. The people involved sound credible and the websites look very professional, usually including testimonials from other investors. It can be hard to tell a scam apart from a genuine investment opportunity.
What to look out for
The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) advises that an 'investment' is likely to be...
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For many, it can seem like becoming wealthy is an impossible task. This feeling can be made worse by present-day realities such as expensive housing and low interest rates for any money we save in the bank. Thankfully, according to research which canvassed a wide range of millionaires, becoming wealthier requires only two qualities that anyone can develop: perseverance and resilience. That...
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Knowing how to increase your wealth is a challenge in the present environment. The world is still returning to a ‘normal’ state after the global financial crisis of 2008. For example, while New Zealand is still experiencing historically low interest rates, much of the world has negative interest rates. Another example is housing affordability, which is an issue worldwide, not least of all...
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Whenever the economy gets turbulent, the fans of investing in gold emerge. They’re sometimes called “goldbugs” and will shout from the rooftops that the world is doomed, and that the only logical investment is gold. They usually make at least a few good points, and their arguments can sound quite convincing.
But, is gold all it’s made out to be, and if so, what’s the best way to invest...
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Property investment has been a great method of wealth creation for many New Zealanders over the years, especially for generations such as the ‘baby boomers’. But recently, a lot of things have changed, or are about to, including:
Especially in larger cities, yields are too low to make a cashflow profit, It is becoming harder to offset any rental property cashflow losses...
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What is KiwiSaver?
KiwiSaver is a voluntary savings initiative to help you with your long-term saving for retirement or to assist you purchasing a first home. KiwiSaver Schemes are managed by private sector companies called KiwiSaver providers. You can choose which KiwiSaver provider you invest your money with, and while you can switch between providers you can only be a member of one...
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Bob (not his real name) is a consultant who lives in Christchurch. He’s invested in shares for many years, owns his own home, and is in KiwiSaver.
Recently, Bob lost $67,000 through a ‘boiler room’ share scam after an overseas company called him, offering him the chance to invest in a pharmaceutical firm.
He said no, but out of interest, researched the company online...
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