Q&As: Just because a so-called financial expert is confident, that doesn’t mean he or she is right; If you haven’t worked for a while any time in the last five years, you may well be in for a tax refund; Don’t delay joining KiwiSaver, even if you’re worried that you could be made redundant; KiwiSaver tax credit lark for the newly retired is too good to be true.
Q&As: Wealth doesn’t have to equal filth — New Zealanders’ attitude to money may leave them more worried about financial issues; Take your pick between share fund managers who try to outperform the market and those who don’t; Members of work super schemes can do well by also being in KiwiSaver.
Q&As: Reader explains why he won’t invest in shares; Data suggest New Zealand doesn’t actually over-invest in property; New Zealanders’ lack of interest in shares hurts more than just individuals; Help is available for horseracing “addict”.
Recession could be a blessing for most. The response to a question in a recent survey bothered me a little. Asked what they would do with a $10,000 cash windfall, 54.3 per cent of the respondents said they would pay off debt or save the money — down from 58.3 per cent three months earlier. It’s not exactly a huge drop. But I was hoping for a substantial increase.
Ill wind not as bad as it seems. An email from a Christchurch reader has got me thinking. “In any game it is either a win, loss or a draw,” he writes. “Right now there are plenty of losers, nationally and globally — individuals, institutions, banks, organizations, even one or two countries. So who are the winners?”
Christmas giving that makes you happier too. Struggling retailers aren’t going to like this, but how about we make 2008 the year we stop spending ridiculous amounts on Christmas presents we don’t need — and often don’t even like?
Q&As: Does charity begin in the home country? Salvation Army programme looks good; List of overseas charities with Christmas gift offerings; National’s KiwiSaver changes could discourage single Mum trying to get ahead — but there’s hope they will be altered; The whole KiwiSaver mortgage diversion issue will be much easier for many under National’s changes. Plus: Readers on KiwiSaver.
2 Q&As on National’s proposed changes to KiwiSaver. Meaningful Christmas presents. Readers’ views on KiwiSaver.
Is saving always good? In some circles, saving has a bad name. People think it’s about deprivation — “I either save or I spend, and spending is more fun.”
The Other B Word. Budgeting is rather like eating healthily or exercising. Some people like to do it, but for others it’s a chore. And for many it’s a source of guilt. They think they should do it, but they don’t. This article could be yet another telling the laggards how they will be much better people if they keep track of all their spending. But that’s hardly likely to make any more difference than other such articles. As poet Robert Frost wrote: “Nobody was ever meant, to remember or invent, what he did with every cent.”