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What happens when your rent looks a lot like a mortgage, but lenders keep saying no? We sit down with Mark to unpack how he and Shelly went from casual work, rising rents, and thin savings to owning a low maintenance beachside unit in their 60s—without pretending the numbers were easy. We walk through the moments that changed their trajectory: both securing full time roles, setting clear non-negotiables (no renovations, stable cash flow), and using KiwiSaver to close the deposit gap. After p...
A black belt in progress, a shared birthday, and a mission to help families thrive—this conversation with Lucy Edwards of Lucy Nutrition blends heart, humour, and hard-won tactics for eating well when prices feel impossible. We start with the human stuff: finding strength through taekwondo, turning a hard space into a happy one, and choosing health as a daily practice. Then we roll up our sleeves and get specific about what actually works in a busy Kiwi household. We map out a simple system ...
A 50 basis point cut just landed, floating rates slid, and yet those four and five-year fixes barely blinked. We unpack the why behind that mismatch, translating market dynamics into clear choices for homeowners who need more than headlines to make the next fix decision. We walk through how banks price long-term rates off wholesale markets and inflation expectations—often “pre-pricing” central bank moves—so the long end can bottom before retail rates catch up. From there, we weigh certainty ...
Markets don’t wait for permission slips. We open with a candid look at why agriculture and some NZX names are surprising on the upside, and how those signals can help everyday buyers read what’s next for property. One quick portfolio check turns into a useful takeaway: listed property stocks often move months before the housing headlines catch up, giving first-home hopefuls and investors a way to learn the cycle in real time. From there, we dive into the construction landscape. It’s been bru...
Markets have a way of whispering before the economy speaks. We zoom into New Zealand’s most telling tickers—retirement village operators and a key challenger bank—to read what might be next for housing, credit, and confidence. If you live and breathe property, these listed signals can become your early-warning system and your roadmap. We unpack why Somerset’s steadier execution and Ryman’s rebound matter far beyond their share prices, touching everything from build pipelines to downsizing de...
A single night out changed everything for a self-employed dad-to-be—until a well-structured plan kicked in. We sit down with adviser Blake Sutton to unpack how income protection, trauma cover, and private health insurance work in the real world, not just on paper. Blake’s three-generation insurance story takes us from hospitality floors to claim forms, and from corporate constraints to building Ridgeline Insurance around people, not policies. You’ll hear the anatomy of a claim that mattered:...
One small omission on an insurance form can snowball into a denied claim when you need help most. We dive into the real meaning of disclosure for health-related risk cover, why non-disclosure shows up at claim time, and how to build a simple, future-proof record of your medical history so underwriters see a clear and credible story. We start by stripping away the jargon: disclosure is just your answers to medical and occupation questions, and those answers must align with what’s in your medi...
Hate open homes and bidding wars? We take a clear-eyed look at private home purchases and map out when they shine and when they sting. From tenant-to-owner deals to family sales and investor shortcuts, we unpack the real-world pros, the bank rules that matter, and the due diligence that keeps your budget and sanity intact. We start with the upside: less competition, first access, and the unbeatable win of not packing boxes when you already live in the property. Then we add the guardrails. Ba...
Buying a home on New Zealand’s West Coast sounds simple until you try to secure insurance, line up a valuation, and satisfy your finance clause—all while lenders and underwriters grow cautious about flood risk. We open the door on what’s really happening across Westport, Greymouth, and Hokatika, and share a first-home buyer’s story that shows why due diligence can make or break your purchase. A builder’s report became the turning point: after struggling to find anyone local, our buyer paid e...
The dream of a glossy first home is powerful—until the repayments start calling the shots. We take an honest look at the fork every first-home buyer faces: chase convenience and lifestyle now, or choose common sense and practicality that sets you up for bigger wins later. Through candid stories from our own first purchases—tiny floor plans, borders to boost cash flow, and unapologetically modest choices—we show how a smaller start can become the foundation for a future build or a forever home...
Want a warm, efficient new home without a cold shock at settlement? We pull back the curtain on how lenders actually assess build loans and what it takes to move from signed contract to keys in hand. From contingencies and valuations to approval timelines, we share the practical steps that keep your project funded and on track. We start with the three main build paths—turnkey, housing under construction with progressive payments, and labour‑only—and spell out the real trade‑offs. Turnkey can...
Most money rules weren’t written with women’s lives in mind. That gap shows up at retirement, in the middle of a separation, or when confidence takes a hit after caregiving breaks and career pivots. We sit down with Elizabeth Maloney Geany—former nurse turned financial adviser and founder of Know Your Worth—to talk about designing a plan that fits real life: messy, busy, and full of change. We get specific about the gender gap in KiwiSaver balances, why late-life “lifestage” switches can be ...
Buying your first home can feel like learning a new language under pressure, and the sale and purchase agreement is where that pressure peaks. We open the contract and walk you through the parts that matter most—names, price changes, deposits, conditions, and the one date that starts your finance clock—so you can move from uncertainty to control without blowing your timeline or budget. We dig into why your purchaser name has to match your ID and loan documents exactly, how to handle counters...
Rates are finally drifting down—and the numbers are a game changer. We take a real $700k mortgage, drop the rate from 7% to 4.49%, and show how repayments tumble from about $4,657 to $3,543 a month. That’s roughly $1,200 back in your pocket every month, or around $324 a week. The big question becomes strategic: do you take the cash flow win, or keep your repayments the same and attack your principal to cut years off your term? We walk through both paths with live-style modelling and clear, s...
A cough, a reality check, and a genuinely helpful shift in health cover design. We dig into AIA’s new specialist and testing support add‑on—a smarter way to secure access to private specialists, diagnostics, and imaging without paying for full health insurance. If you’ve felt priced out of comprehensive cover, this conversation lays out a practical middle path that focuses on the high‑impact moments: getting answers fast so you can act with confidence. We talk through exactly what’s included...
Stepping up the property ladder presents unique challenges compared to buying your first home – a reality Lorraine Peterson knows firsthand. Having sold her first property before securing her next one, Lorraine candidly shares her experience navigating the uncomfortable limbo between houses and the emotional rollercoaster that accompanies this major life transition. The conversation delves into the fascinating dynamics of buying and selling in a declining market. While Lorraine faced the dis...
Are you trapped in a high fixed-rate mortgage while watching interest rates tumble? The financial sting of being locked into rates around 7% until 2028 or 2029 has many Kiwi homeowners questioning if they should break their fixed terms and refix at today's lower rates. This question doesn't have a simple answer. Breaking a fixed mortgage involves substantial upfront costs—we discuss one client facing an $8,000 break fee—but the long-term savings from dropping to a rate that's 2% lower might ...
What happens when you grow up hearing "people like us don't own homes"? That limiting belief gets passed down through generations, creating invisible barriers to financial freedom that can feel impossible to overcome. In this raw, emotional conversation, we share the inspiring journey of a client in his early 30s who just became the first person in three generations of his family to purchase a home. As immigrants ourselves, we understand the unique challenges faced by migrant communities and...
Wondering whether to build your dream home with a friend or go with a major construction company? You're not alone. The unexpected financial implications of this choice can be staggering – sometimes reaching six figures. The construction industry is bouncing back across New Zealand, with Otago leading the charge at 9% above its 2022 peak. As more Kiwis consider building, they're facing tough decisions about who should handle their project. We dive deep into a real case study where clients di...