Q&As:
– Where to get help for worrying family member
– One way to help your child into the house…
– … And tax changes shouldn’t get in the way
– Capital gains already taxed if you aimed at profiting
– Tax on NZ Super when you continue to work
– Quitting job ‘best thing I could have done’
Q&As:
– It’s not worth staying in highly paid job you hate
– How rainy day money might help with mortgage
– Don’t forget finance company collapses
– How rental property is different
– Am I unfair, or is the reader?
– Big-hearted landlords
Q&As:
– Share market not yet like tulip bulbs — stay invested!
– Are passive investments the next bubble? Plus a note on mis-timing the market
– Low-risk funds not all like bank term deposits
– Risk and return do go together, despite reader’s claims
– Landlords can get hit in a long-term rental
Q&As:
– Safe, accessible, and going backwards — invest beyond bank accounts
– KiwiSaver a good spot for grandfather’s gifts
– My “cavalier response” last week about p/e ratios angers reader
– Comments from a café in Thames
– Why long-term rental leases might not work…
– … And how they might be made to work
Is paying down your mortgage still the best strategy?
What to do with extra savings — beyond KiwiSaver minimums etc.
Also lump sums — inheritance, redundancy, win
– Mortgage used to be the winner — after include tax and fees. Now — with 2–3% loans?
– Other options: more into KiwiSaver, non-KiwiSaver funds, shares, rental property?
– The main issue: risk — needs to be high enough risk, long-term. Can you cope with volatility? Are you strong financially?
– Other issues: security (psychological and financial), simplicity, but diversification, learning about markets
– Penalties for paying fixed-term mortgage early
– Conclusion: perhaps do what you want!
Test your knowledge of financial basics
Commission for Financial Capability did a survey:
– 22% got everything right
– Men did better and so did older people
– The questions — and later the answers
– Women with children did worse — why perhaps?
What is investment risk and what can you do about it?
New free booklet I wrote: Hit and Myths — an introductory guide to investing — at fma.govt.nz
Today we look at one of the booklet’s 8 Myths About Investing: “Investing is too risky”. Types of risk:
– You won’t get the return you want because of inflation
– You won’t get the return you want because of volatility
– You’ll lose some or all of your money
Importance of diversification
You can also watch a webinar I did with FMA on investing, at fma.govt.nz
Q&As:
– Rule shows how long it takes for an investment — and a debt — to double
– One reader quits Bonus Bonds for term deposits…
– … While another suggests a way to keep the fun rolling on
– Bonus Bonds exit annoys businessman
– Move from term deposits into KiwiSaver fund ups the volatility
– Better to leave the money in two countries than one
Plus:
– Your questions, a webinar and a guide to investing
Q&As:
– Help abounds for young man who helped parents get a mortgage
– My tax info not good enough for accountant
– How to tell how strong your bank is
– Can you be in more than one Simplicity fund?
– House buying plan depends on two impossible forecasts
– Put most of savings into house deposit
– Young man loses house deposit in receivership
– Divorced woman, 59, should put most money into new home
Q&As:
– Am I helping the big guys at the expense of small investors?
– Why you might want to be in more than one of your provider’s KiwiSaver funds
– Tax on KiwiSaver and other funds is gentle
– Limit buys can work well when buying shares
– Investing versus paying down mortgage in low-rate environment …
– … and taking diversification into account
– Be in KiwiSaver as well as making extra mortgage payments
– Take mortgage “holiday” or spend savings?