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personal finance

Drones flying
Five ways technology can save you money

Robots – artificial intelligence, chatbots, robo-advisors and the rest – are big news in the banking and finance industry. Packaging financial smarts into a programme or algorithm looks like a great way for big banks, insurance companies and airlines to help guide customers through complicated decisions and save (the company) money along the way. It’s early days though, and chatting with a robot can sometimes feel a bit like, well, chatting with a robot. Take this experience I had the…

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In the market for a credit card? Check out our credit card matrix before you decide

What’s the best credit card for you? Chances are it’s not the one (or ones) in your wallet. We Kiwis are terrible at trying to justify our credit card choices. We come up with all sorts of ‘facts’ to confirm our poor decision. If you have an open mind, however, and navigate the complex matrix that is credit card choice, you are the one who will reap the rewards. When it comes to the matrix of credit card choice, the…

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Man behind trolley in supermarket
600,000 Kiwis are taking advantage of this money hack – are you one of them?

Recently I heard a story about a turkey who fills up his car with $40 worth of petrol, hangs up the pump, pays for it inside, then immediately fills up with another $40 and goes back in and pays for that too. He reckons he’s getting a better deal by hacking the AA Smartfuel system. There was much eye rolling and sighing at this seemingly silly caper. But it turns out this turkey is one of 600,000 Kiwis (not turkeys)…

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Rollercoaster
Mortgage rates: Are they taking us for a ride?

Do we have decent competition in the mortgage market here? Are the banks as ready to sharpen their pencil as they across the Tasman? Looking at the numbers, you might wonder if we’re being taken for a bit of ride. New Zealand’s banking base rate – the official cash rate – is 1.75% and until recently was 2%. Australia’s is 1.5%. So yes, you might expect the mortgage rates in Australia to be a little bit better than New Zealand.…

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Confident woman on couch in her home
How should you talk to your bank? Like a boss, says Damian Christie

When the time comes to re-fix your mortgage rate, it pays to shop around, says TV presenter, documentary producer and man with a Twitter account, Damian Christie. “I’ve always thought the banks are pretty hopeless at retaining their customers,” Damian says. “They offer a lot of enticements to new customers: free TVs, free money, low interest rates.” But that seems to be where the batteries run out. “It seems like they just assume people can’t be bothered moving once they’re…

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Friends holding wine glasses
Never drink your rent (and other sensible life advice)

It can be a dry old topic, personal finance, and it can sometimes inspire feelings of sadness due to one’s lack of savings, which is why I used to imagine it might be more fun to work in in banking pocketing ludicrous bonuses for throwing around other people’s money while sustaining a truly ludicrous social life possibly due to illicit substances. Unfortunately, I have since worked for a bank and I didn’t once get to roll around in piles of dosh…

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Auckland skyline
If house prices crashed by 40%, what would the country look like?

Imagine, in this uncertain world, that house prices – those house prices that keep rising and rising and rising – finally run out of rocket power. Imagine, even, that they actually drop. Maybe 10%, maybe 20, maybe 40. Would that be economic doom for us all? Are people so deep in mortgage debt that a big fall might bring the whole New Zealand economy down with them? Hive News publisher and business commentator Bernard Hickey has been following our housing…

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Southland
Southland the place to be (and buy) if you’re under 30 and looking to get into the property market

We’ve had a peek at some mortgage data to see how young Kiwis are getting on around the country with getting into home ownership. And it turns out young Southlanders are in the best place to get a foot on the property ladder, with double the success rate of under-30 home buyers in Auckland. Our data shows 8.3% of mortgagees in Southland are under 30, compared to a tiny 4.4% in Auckland. When it comes to property, young Southlanders are…

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