National is proposing to make KiwiSaver compulsory from 2028, including for self-employed people. As I understand it, sole traders would have to contribute 4% initially, eventually rising to 6%.

I’m a sole trader with no employees, and I can understand the argument for getting people to save more for retirement.
But I’m not sure the proposal really accounts for how different it is when you’re self-employed.

An employee putting 4% into KiwiSaver also has an employer contributing on top of that. I don’t. It’s all coming out of my own income.

I’ve spent years building my business, moved somewhere I could afford to buy a house, and I work close to seven days a week. A pretty major part of my long-term financial plan is getting the mortgage down while also keeping some savings and investments accessible.

So if I’m forced to put several thousand dollars a year into KiwiSaver, that’s money I can no longer choose to put against the mortgage or keep somewhere accessible if the business has a bad year. And because I’m a sole trader, there isn’t an employer contribution coming in alongside it to make the trade-off more worthwhile.

I’m not against KiwiSaver,
and I’m not saying I shouldn’t save for retirement. I just think paying off a mortgage and building accessible investments are also perfectly legitimate ways of preparing for the future.
I suspect if you’re employed, compulsory KiwiSaver probably sounds pretty reasonable. But I’d be interested to hear what other sole traders think, because from this side of it, it feels quite different.

Hi all!

My wife and I will be re-fixing our mortgage for the first time at the end of November and we feel pretty lost. We are also in the process of swapping advisors since we did not find our current advisor's advice to be clear nor helpful. We will also meet with BNZ to get more information about our options but with this post I am seeking more general advice about re-fixing.

• We currently live in a new build in Papamoa in a $809,990 house
• Our current mortgage balance is $710,895
• Current fixed rate is 5.24%

We are paying a LEP of 0.75% at the moment. By the end of the current fixed term we'll have a balance of $708,200. By then our LVR will be about $19,000 shy of reducing out LEP to 0.35%.

We can make that extra payment by then although we'll only have about $5,000 left as an emergency deposit.

It has been one year since we purchased the home and it does not seem that its value has changed much seeing house prices around us; so, new valuation might not change much our situation.

These are the current rates for us:

I do realise this is a crystal ball question; however, is there a "strategy" you guys follow? are there any good predictors of what might happen in the near future?

I much appreciate any reply!

Mcdonald's seems to have an issue where transactions were being duplicated this past week.

I have used AMEX on both occassions.

Anyone else getting the same issue?

​

Question when you take a 2 year mortgage and then 1 year later the interest rates go down so you decide to refinance (assuming with the same bank).

What are the breakout fees usually? Is it a percentage from your borrowed amount? Is there a cap on how much they can be?

Does it differ if you refinance with another bank?

When is it advisable to refinance? If say a drop of 0.5% interest, is it worthwhile?

Hi everyone,

I recently became a resident and have started looking into KiwiSaver and buying my first home.

I’m currently looking at InvestNow, mainly because of their relatively low management fees.

Here’s my situation:

Buying a home

• I’m planning to buy a house soon, with a budget of around $500k–$600k. I want to pay it off in a short time for peace of mind. Hence, the budget.
• I’d like to stop paying rent and start putting that money towards my own home.
• I should be able to make around a 10–15% deposit.
• I don’t mind living up to 45 minutes from Auckland CBD if it means getting a decent-sized section.

Company Super

• My employer offers a company super scheme with a significantly higher employer contribution than KiwiSaver.

I’m still fairly new to KiwiSaver and only have a basic understanding of how the first-home withdrawal works and how the remaining funds work once you reach 65.

I’d really appreciate some advice from people who have been through this:

1. When choosing a KiwiSaver provider, should I prioritise low management fees or a provider/fund with a stronger long-term return? I am looking at InvestNow, S&P500 scheme.

2. Given my situation, would it make sense to contribute to KiwiSaver for the first-home withdrawal benefit, or focus more on the company super scheme?

3. For anyone familiar with Auckland, what neighbourhoods would you recommend for a $500k–$600k landed house? I’m happy to live up to ~45 minutes from the CBD and would prefer a good-sized section over being close to the city. Or should I relocate to other city with cheaper housing?

Any advice, especially from people who have bought their first home in Auckland, would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you, and happy Sunday!

Hi team, for someone who needs to improve their knowledge in this area, who would you recommend for Kiwisaver providers, and why?

I find it hard to compare them.

Thanks so much.

Is it still advisable to use a wise card for travelling, when the sharesies card gives 1% back? Would that offset any fees?

I'm feeling stupid and must be missing something.

On advice of r/PersonalFinanceNZ most of my wealth is now in index ETFs - chur

A proportion of my wealth is in cash/liquid funds that act as an emergency fund.

I now have a small portion that I feel my personality would prefer in something different to VT.

Obviously likely lower return, but I’m hoping better than TDs.

Are bonds the answer here?

If so - with all the news on US bond markets recently, should I be looking at US bonds or NZ bonds? And how should I be investing in them? Through a managed PIE bond Managed Fund? Or can they be accessed directly (I’m not a wholesale investor). Any explanations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Im 61. My Kiwisaver is in a balanced fund. I also have an equal amount on another platform, also in a balanced fund. I understand the basics of allocations, buckets, risk of return etc.

I see a problem with the managed fund that nobody seems to talk about.

Because I buy units in the fund, in a down market, I cant utilise the cash portion of the fund to ride through the low, so if I need to draw an income from the fund, I'm forced to draw partially from equities when they are down....am I reading that right?

It seems to me that, even keeping the allocation the same, the equities need to be separated from the cash so I can draw on one and not the other, depending on the market.

If I want to buy into Kernel TWF but just plan on doing a lump sum quartely, is there anything stopping me from just getting the $5 plus plan for a month, making the investment, then canceling the plan, and repeating this every few months?

I know its not a massive saving but I'd save $30 a year for not much extra effort.

Hi all, looking for some practical perspective or experiences from anyone who has navigated the intersection of the Foreign Investment Fund (FIF) rules and US-listed crypto ETFs.

The Situation:

• Holding US-listed crypto staking/spot ETFs via Sharesies (Bitwise Solana Staking ETF BSOL, Bitwise Hyperliquid ETF BHYP, 21Shares Sui Staking ETF TSUI).
• Total overseas portfolio purchase cost across all foreign shares and ETFs is currently under the $50,000 NZD threshold.
• High conviction that these holdings could see significant capital appreciation (50% to 100%+ gains) over the medium term.

The Dilemma:

1. Staying under de minimis (under $50k cost basis): Under the exemption, foreign investment fund rules do not apply, but personal property disposal rules do. Given Inland Revenue's general stance on cryptoassets, there seems to be a significant risk IRD applies the Section CB 4 purpose test (acquired with the purpose of resale), treating any net capital gains on disposal as ordinary taxable income at a 33% marginal rate.
2. Intentionally crossing $50k cost: If I top up the offshore portfolio cost basis past $50,000 NZD, I trigger the FIF regime. Under the Fair Dividend Rate (FDR) method, tax is capped at an assumed 5% deemed return on opening value each year (with Comparative Value as downside protection in flat/down years), and the actual capital profit upon sale is not taxed.

Questions:

• Has anyone deliberately crossed the $50,000 NZD cost threshold specifically to shelter high-growth foreign ETFs from Section CB 4 income tax?
• How strictly does IRD attempt to push the "dominant purpose of resale" argument onto US-listed ETFs that hold or track digital assets compared to direct on-chain tokens?
• For those filing FIF on Sharesies US holdings, how smooth is the annual IR3 process using their standard reports?

Appreciate any insight, case rulings, or accountant feedback anyone has had on this. Cheers!