NZ Herald 20 January 2007
Q&As: Are index funds, which I recommend, inferior share fund investments, as Herald columnist Brian Gaynor claims?; A small New Zealand town has it all, a resident claims!
Holm Truths Summer 2006–07
The other B word: While some people find it easy to follow a budget, others struggle. Here are some tips for the latter group. Also in this issue: From the Mailbox — Couple who sold their house save heaps by renting. But should they wait for a price fall before buying again?
NZ Herald 25 November 2006
Q&As: Is it a good idea to go back to 100 per cent mortgage on rental and invest the money in a term deposit?; A reader supports gradually building up a share portfolio; Another charity offers Christmas gifts for the needy on behalf of your friends and relatives; Reader wants more info on charities before making gifts; A Sydney minister’s quick-witted response; Prices then and now — and how houses fit into the picture; Cathedral carvings show inflation is nothing new; A reader’s pie and doughnut confession.
Holm Truths Spring 06
Mortgage moves: How you can make the big loans work better for you. Also in this issue: From the mailbox — Is it a good idea to increase your mortgage and invest the money elsewhere?
NZ Herald 2 September 2006
Q&As: Some options for a whinging woman who can’t afford a home; Is wealthy couple wise to do it themselves when it comes to their investments?; Reader who dislikes “that word” boycotts Toyota; Getting mean over medians and averages.
NZ Herald 19 August 2006
Q&As: The average New Zealander can’t afford to buy a house, or can they? The poor don’t stay poor; How one man keeps his costs down; Flaws with a tax parable? And a man living on $1,000 a year?; An investment adviser gives us inside info on commissions.
NZ Herald 12 August 2006
Q&As: A few fewer luxuries and many New Zealanders could afford to buy homes; 2 Q&As on whether the Reserve Bank got it right with the new coins; A financial planner objects to what I said last week about how to choose an adviser.
NZ Herald 5 August 2006
Q&As: Typical but rich women ask how to find an adviser; Does local government keep house prices up? And will they ever fall?; Let’s not have the government meddling in the housing market; Doing your homework doesn’t necessarily help share investment.
The Investor 1 August 2006
Readers’ questions on renting v home ownership. My last column — which said that you may do just as well renting as owning your home, provided you are disciplined about saving elsewhere — brought interesting questions from two readers. The first one is 40 and planning to return to New Zealand with his family. “I would be happy renting until I retire whilst growing our capital in areas other than property,” he writes. “At some time later I might buy a small place to live in. However, do you think in 25 years that ownership of property might be out of reach?”
NZ Herald 29 July 2006
Q&As: Should we have a new 25c coin instead of a new 20c coin, and also a $5 coin?; Is tithing the way to go? One reader says yes, another no.