Investing in managed funds such as KiwiSaver is a great way to save for retirement. For investors with small amounts or who wish to make regular, small contributions, managed funds offer a cost-effective, simple solution with diversification to help reduce investment risk. One of the disadvantages of managed funds is the lack of transparency around exactly what your money is invested in. Fund managers don’t like giving ...

One of the biggest fears for retirees is the prospect of ending life in a rest home, and seeing the family fortune eaten up by fees. While at any given time only around 5-7% of people over the age of 65 are living in residential care, statistics show that just under 40% of older people die in care. To be eligible for subsidised residential care an assessment is done to demonstrate that you have high needs and cannot be c...

The basic principles of financial success do not change over time. Despite this, younger generations don’t always take on board the lessons learned by their parents and grandparents. With age comes the benefit of hindsight and an understanding of the consequences of choices made early in life. These are the timeless principles that young people need to know: Get into the habit, right from your very first pay, of not ...

There is nothing complicated about money; you either spend it or save it. Over the course of a lifetime it mostly gets spent, so saving is just money to be set aside for spending at some point in the future. This is a really important point, because in setting it aside there are two key considerations. The first is how to get the best rate of return on the money while it is being held aside, and the second is how to make ...

As every investor knows, there is no such thing as a completely risk-free investment, and the lower the investment risk, the lower the investment return is likely to be. The challenge for investors is to strike the right balance between risk and return, to find investments that give a reasonable rate of return with an acceptable level of risk. The art of investment portfolio construction is to try and find ways to increas...

As the saying goes, there is nothing more certain in life than death and taxes. The minute we are born we are on a gradual path towards the inevitable, while paying taxes along the way! Around the age of eighty people start to become conscious of their mortality. Beyond this point, a traumatic health event, such as surgery, a critical illness or a serious fracture, can trigger a sudden decline in overall health which may ...

Choosing the time to retire is a key life decision that some people find extremely difficult. No doubt we can all think of someone who has stayed in the workforce a bit too long. There are a number of reasons why people can be reluctant to retire. Worries about not having enough money to retire on – based on either real or imagined concerns A lack of social connections and interests outside work Fear of loss of s...

Here we are half way through the year, with distant memories of summer, the start of the New Year and all those resolutions that were made. In the middle of winter, everything seems like a hard grind. In the darkness and cold it is easy to let go of promises made to get fit, lose weight and save more. Whatever your goals, here are some simple tips to get you back on track. Measure your progress. There is a saying in ma...

The concept of wealth is a mind-set rather than a number. There is no such thing as a threshold of net worth which, once exceeded, defines you as wealthy. Quite simply, you are wealthy if you feel wealthy. Research shows that most people feel they are not wealthy regardless of their net worth. Robert Frank, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, once wrote that even wealthy people say they need twice as much wealth as t...

Your retirement years are around a third of your adult life and it’s worth planning ahead to make sure they are the best years of your life. Approaching retirement age is a bit like running up to the finishing line after a marathon race. A big spurt of effort is needed just at a time when you feel like giving up and taking it easy. If you are five years or less away from retirement, your ability to change your financ...