Adviser’s enthusiasm for KiwiSaver is way over the top. KiwiSaver is a good deal. But I was astonished by the claims made for the scheme by an experienced financial adviser in a recent industry magazine — and by his lack of clear thinking.
Q&As: Two questions to ask before trading up to a more expensive house; A pilot joins the call for annuities for retiring KiwiSavers; Mercer explains its alternative to conventional annuities; A KiwiSaver provider gives children a break on fees; A reader is taken aback over a headline about steady incomes — and I’m taken aback that she cares!
Q&As: Calling all KiwiSaver providers: Please let us know if you have plans to offer annuities or similar; Other payout possibilities for retired KiwiSavers; Couple who have returned to NZ but still own UK house should sell it, buy here and get on with enjoying life; Dwindling children’s KiwiSaver accounts possible but unlikely.
Q&As: Retired couple with house in Christchurch’s red zone have several options to weigh up; Three Q&As about KiwiSaver for children and grandchildren; One adviser firm accepts pay-for-performance fees, at least to some extent.
Cries of indignation, shock and fear from Credit Card Land. Three readers coming from three quite different perspectives responded to my last column about repaying credit card debt. One slightly indignant reader always pays his credit card bills in full, another was shocked at what happened when he didn’t one month, and the third has run up a $7000 credit card debt.
Q&As: Reader wants to pay financial adviser according to performance, but advisers not so keen; Adviser’s reason for putting clients into finance companies is not good enough; RFAs — registered financial advisers — must also operate under stricter rules; Grandma might want to put conditions on financial help for student grandchildren.
Q&As: How to find a good financial adviser; Difference between an adviser and a fund manager, and how they charge; Adviser should always make high-interest debt the top priority; 70-year-old KiwiSaver’s plan for her grandchildren.
Have I got a deal for you? Pssst, want a fantastic deal? I may be able to get you into an investment with returns of just under 20 per cent a year, every year, after fees and tax. And it’s risk-free…