You, your wallet, and your spare change walk into a bank. What, were you expecting a punchline? Well, these isn’t one! Your financial future is no joke. That said, the wealth of savings options available to Kiwis these days will have you laughing all the way to the bank. Or credit union. Or investment company.

Or or or… do you see the problem yet?

Saving money is always a smart idea. But we reckon being spoiled for choice still presents its own set of challenges. You can cross the piggy bank off the list. It’s so pre-teen. Under the bed is also a little doomsday-prepper for our tastes. As for the rest, which option are you going to choose?

Answering that question doesn’t have to be difficult. In fact, we reckon if you keep these three things in mind it’s easy as.

1. It’s a matter of risk

Not all savings options are created equal. Some put your money at more risk than others. Think of these like the houses from the children’s fairytale ‘The Three Little Pigs’. Some protect your money with straw and sticks. Others are as sturdy as that house of bricks that stood strong no matter how much the Big Bad Wolf tried to blow it down. Phew! Whether you’re carefree or crave adrenaline, there’s a saving option out there to match. Your choice ultimately comes down to a game of risk versus …

2. It’s a matter of reward

Just like the clickbait headlines say, here’s something that may shock you! Saving money isn’t only about, well, saving money. Gotcha! We reckon you work hard for your money, which is why saving is about flipping the script and getting your money to work for you. That’s right, it’s time to multiply! Your savings, that is.

Imagine this scenario. You want to take the family on holiday next year. You have the cost of the flights covered, but what about spending money? You don’t want to take out a loan. In fact, you just got finished paying off your outstanding debts. Doing the smart thing, you set money aside and start saving.

By the time you’re boarding your flight, you’ll have spending cash to spare. And all of that without lifting a finger. How long you let your money work, though, is…

3. It’s a matter of time

It’s never too late to start saving. But how long should, could, or can you be saving for? It all depends on what makes the most sense for your money!

Retirement and other long-term goals require long-term thinking. Consider a scenario where you’re in your early 30s. You want to give your future self a helping hand, so you set money aside in a term deposit for five years. You also invest in some shares.

With time on your side, you can wait for the term deposit to reach maturity. You’re also able to ride out the ups and downs of the stock market so you can buy low and sell high without any time pressure.

However what about short-term savings? You get less flexibility, but more immediate rewards. Imagine in this case that you bought shares to help fund a mortgage on a house you plan to buy in a few years. Only, now the day has arrived, they’ve sunk harder than our hopes of winning the World Cup (ouch!). Time isn’t on your side, so you’re forced to sell at a loss.

Keep your timeframes in mind, and you’ll avoid hurdles like this. In this case, you could open a savings account or short-term deposit and maximise your returns while minimising your risk.

So, what are your options?

Low risk, low reward, any time

Savings accounts

Savings accounts make saving oh so easy. You know, the ones with variable rates. These accounts offer a small return for minimal risk. They also incentivise the savings process by reward you for sticking to your goals. Oh, they also won’t judge you too harshly if you dip back in every now and then. We all need to treat ourselves sometimes, right?!

Low risk, guaranteed rewards, with a wait

Term deposits

Term deposits will have you shouting ‘Lock it in, Eddie!’. The interest rate, that is. Unlike savings accounts, they offer a fixed rate over a set term. As these term deposit guides explain, that’s a guarantee you’ll be lucky to find this side of an infomercial. Hands off, though! You won’t have access to your money till the term is up.

High risk, high reward, but is it worth the wait?

Property investing, shares, and stocks

Earning a high return on your savings is a constant game of risk versus reward. Maybe that’s why they call it ‘playing the market’? Whether you have the creative flair for renovating or a knack for buying low and selling high, property, shares, and stocks offer some of the highest returns on your investments. Just make sure you’re aware of the risks.

At the end of the day, that’s what effective saving is all about. It’s not just setting money aside, it’s about doing so in a way that suits you and your financially savvy lifestyle. What that means, exactly, differs from Kiwi to Kiwi. So which one comes out on top for you?

The post Invest or save? Three things every Kiwi should consider before plotting a path to financial freedom appeared first on Credit Simple NZ.

Step One: Spend money you don’t have

First of all, you probably want to spend lots of money. More money, in fact, than you’ve got in the bank.

Let’s say you’ve got a good job and you’ve found a place to rent in the Auckland market and you’re happy with your lifestyle. Why not crank it up to the next level by moving out of your flat, buying a bigger car on HP and maybe going on that overseas’ holiday. You know, the one you can’t afford. It’s OK because that’s what credit cards are for, right? Get some new luggage, and hit the road for the highlife. Don’t worry about paying off the card, get another card and use that to sort out the first card and you’ll be away laughing. Sure you’ll be paying for it later, but that’s what Tomorrow You has to worry about, right? Live for the moment.

Step Two: Spend money on things you don’t need

Have a think about buying some more stuff while it’s on sale. If you’re going on holiday, don’t forget to buy lots of things you just can’t get back home. OMG did I tell you the trick about taking a suitcase inside a bigger suitcase so you’ve got two for the return trip? Guaranteed winner every time.

Also, if you have more stuff than you’ve got space, get yourself a lock-up container to store your extra couches, beds, dressers, dining room tables and exercise gear in because one day you might need that extra furniture and hey, it’s only money, right?

Step Three: Join the gym

And get a wine club membership and subscribe to some online services that automatically renew every month or year and which you hardly use and get pay TV and never check your mobile phone bill or your electricity bill to see if you could get a better deal. Just don’t worry about that stuff. You’ll be happier not paying attention.

Step Four: It’s all too hard

Remember, you’ve probably got 20 or 30 years to go before you retire so you’ve got heaps of time left to sort that out.  Or if you’re already in your 40s and saddled with a mortgage and car repayments and those credit card interest rates it’s still OK. You can just say it’s all too late and there’s no point starting now. After all, a little bit goes a long way when you’re old and surely the government won’t let you starve, right?

Step Five: I don’t really need to retire anyway

And let’s not forget, the government is talking about moving the retirement age to 67 or something so you probably won’t get to retire anyway. It’s all ages away so you’re sure they’ll have it all figured out by then and besides, your great uncle told you once that he hated retirement and missed going to work every day so y’know, this is the perfect excuse not to retire. Instead, you can always get a second job and deliver pizza or something like that in the evenings. Yeah, that’ll be fun.

Anyway, retirement planning is boring and it’s a long way away and I’m having far too much fun spending money now so let’s not look too closely at that bank statement, OK?

The post Five ways to screw up your retirement: a lifelong project appeared first on Credit Simple NZ.

If you’re anything like the average Kiwi, you see retirement as something that happens after you turn 65 (or, *cough*, 67). You stop working, live off the pension, and you’re Officially Retired.

But it doesn’t have to be that way, and there are people all over the world challenging ideas about post-65 life. Here’s five things you should know about the New Retirement.

Your finances can be on FIRE

One of the ‘new ways’ is called FIRE  –  Financially Independent and Retiring Early. You don’t have to wait until you’re 65 to retire  –  there are people doing it in their 30s! The retirement age is tipped to go up, but that doesn’t mean you have to do what everyone else is doing.

Resources on early retirement abound

There are heaps of FIRE bloggers all over the world. Blogs about FIRE (such as Mr Money Mustache and Mr Tako Escapes) are encouraging people to sort out their finances early and be more frugal with money with a view to having more independence, sooner.

Minimalism is a winner

Part of becoming financially independent is downsizing your life and your expectations. There’s a whole movement on minimalism not just in the world but also right here at Credit Simple.

Home sweet home

You don’t need a mortgage-free house in Auckland (or in Wellington). You just need a mortgage-free house. Some of the smartest cookies out there have sold up their city property to live like kings in other (very sunny and picturesque) parts of the country.

KiwiSaver is still a no-brainer

Even if you’re going to retire early (yay!), KiwiSaver is still a no-brainer, particularly if your employer is contributing 3% (rather than having a total remuneration package) and to glean the $521 tax credit each year if you make the contribution threshold.

The post Are your finances on FIRE? (That’s Financially Independent, Retiring Early) appeared first on Credit Simple NZ.

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We haven’t paid into the Cullen Fund for seven years

Heard of the Cullen Fund? It’s named after Michael Cullen, who was Minister of Finance in 2001 when the fund was set up. It’s also called the NZ Super Fund, and it’s designed to partially fund our retirement pension. The fund is currently $33.1b. In July 2009 the National government stopped contributing to it, and if that hadn’t happened, it would have been $52.6b in January this year (according to the NZ Super Fund). So there’s basically less money to go around for pensions, and population statistics show there’ll be more people needing retirement support in the years to come. It’s a good idea to have your own game plan for retirement.

Your employer doesn’t have to pay your KiwiSaver

If you’re in KiwiSaver, your employer is legally obliged to contribute 3% on top of your regular pay. They can’t get out of this, and if your employer isn’t paying, you should ask some hard questions about why. Your employer shouldn’t reduce your take-home pay because they have to make a contribution on your behalf. However, you do have the option to negotiate through ‘good faith bargaining’ to get a salary package where your employer’s contributions are offset against your pay. You might do this if, for example, you want to put that money into a house deposit instead, or if you don’t see yourself waiting until 65 to retire. Read your employment contract with a fine tooth comb, and question anything around KiwiSaver if it doesn’t sound right. There’s more at the KiwiSaver government website, and in this NZ Herald article.

But KiwiSaver is pretty much a no-brainer investment

KiwiSaver is one of the best investments around in terms of instant return on your money. Two reasons. Firstly, your employer matches your 3% contribution, and that’s money you otherwise wouldn’t get (unless, like we said above, you negotiated a different package). And it’s a 100% return on your investment. Secondly, if you contribute at least $1,042.86 each year, you get the $521.43 tax credit from the government – also a pretty solid investment. Read more about the benefits at the KiwiSaver website, and we also like this analysis by a Kiwi blogger.

If you were born after 1972 you’ll retire at 67 not 65

Did you catch this one recently? The current National government (which isn’t paying contributions to the Cullen Fund, see above) wants to raise the retirement age. That’s actually sensible, because research shows people are working longer than ever and life expectancy is increasing, and with a fatter chunk of the population heading for retirement all at once, it’s likely we won’t be able to afford pensions for everyone. So if you were born after 1 July 1972, you’ll be affected by the changes. Read more on the New Zealand Superannuation Fact Sheet.

If you’re a tradie, the argument isn’t 65 vs 67, but more like 45 vs 50

Are you in a physically demanding job? Many people who are active in their working lives day to day will be worried by the proposed changes, above. However for tradies, the argument isn’t retiring at 65 versus 67, but more like how soon can you possibly retire. E tu Union national industry organiser Joe Gallagher spoke about the proposed changes, saying many people won’t physically be able to physically continue their jobs until retirement. “By their late-40s they’re starting to break. Their knees, elbows, backs are all feeling the wear and tear.” So if you’re in a tough job physically, it’s even more important that you get your ducks in a row for retirement.

The post Five simple facts about retirement for Kiwis (and why you need to get your ducks in a row) appeared first on Credit Simple NZ.

Have you got your free five hundy for the year yet? That’s $521 free money of yours sitting at the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) waiting for you to claim it. Here’s how to milk your KiwiSaver.

The big five hundy

What? Yes, every single person in the country aged over 18 can get $521 a year back from the government. But you’ll need to be in KiwiSaver to get this tax credit (read more on the IRD website).

When you sign up and start contributing, the government tops up your savings at 50c to the dollar for every buck you bang into your KiwiSaver, up to $1,042 each year. There aren’t many times in your life when you see any of your tax come back to you, so take advantage of it.

If you earn $34,762 or more and contribute the minimum 3 per cent to KiwiSaver, then you’ll qualify for your big five hundy without even having to think about it. But if you aren’t contributing at least $1,042 each year, you’ll need to top it up.

If you’re 25 now and make your minimum contributions every year that annual chunk of free money will grow to around $50,000 by the time you retire. (Imagine how many fancy holidays, dinners out, and other fun you could have with that money.)

You don’t even have to work to get your five hundy; you only have to be 18 to qualify. If you’re a student, stay-at-home parent, unemployed, on sickness benefit, or only work part time, you still qualify so long as you deposit up to $1,042 into your KiwiSaver before the end of June. You can do it using your online banking and paying the money to the IRD with the word ‘KiwiSaver’ in the reference.

But wait, there’s more

If you work and you’re not in KiwiSaver, your employer is pocketing three per cent extra pay that could be lining your KiwiSaver. That’s because Kiwi employers have to match your contributions up to three per cent of your pay.

To qualify you need to join KiwiSaver and commit three per cent of your income to your retirement savings. We know it can be it hard to give up what feels like three per cent of nothing on a low salary! But that three per cent is relative small and will have a huge impact on your financial future. So try your absolute best to juggle your spending to do it. You’ll be grateful later when you go to buy your first home, or kick back and relax at age 65.

Wait: there’s even more!

There’s a whole lot more ‘free’ money up for grabs year after year. This is the really smart bit. Money invested in KiwiSaver grows little by little by little and before you know it doubles and doubles again.

Because the earnings on your KiwiSaver are automatically reinvested they compound over time. Famed brainbox Albert Einstein called compound interest the “eighth wonder of the world”. It’s a bit like a snowball, which given time gets bigger and bigger if it keeps rolling.

If you keep at it, you might even become a KiwiSaver millionaire on money you might have blown otherwise. Who can complain about that?

Oh, and one last thing

Wanna buy your first home? After at least three years of saving in KiwiSaver you’ll be up for more free moolah called a HomeStart grant. After five you could get a free grant of $5,000 per person or $10,000 for a couple to buy your first home, or double that if you’re buying a brand new property. There are of course some rules, which you can read about here.

What you need to do now (before June 30)

You’ve probably heard all the excuses of why people haven’t joined KiwiSaver: “I don’t trust the government”, “I’m too poor”,  “there’s no kick-start any more”, “I’ll never live to 65”, and so on. Don’t be fooled. There’s too much to lose by not joining.

Repeat after me: “I want free money, and I’m going to open a KiwiSaver account today / top up my contributions / restart my contributions.” You can do it without going bonkers just by by controlling your frivolity money, and sending a bit of it over to KiwiSaver.

The post Free money, anyone? Cash in with KiwiSaver appeared first on Credit Simple NZ.

Hey Gen X! Here’s what you need to know about your money and finances before you turn the big 5-0.

The next decade and a half is going to tick away fast and some of us need to grow up and get serious about our finances.  You don’t want to be stuck at home eating baked beans whilst your friends post their fabulous post retirement travels on social media do you?

Home truths about your finances as you get older

You and me both (none of us is perfect) need to face up to some home truths:

Same old, same old doesn’t work. If you have no savings, or shock horror still have debt it’s not going to disappear miraculously. A lot of naval gazing and some hard cold change is needed.

Poverty can come to those who ask for it. Are you staring down the barrel of poverty in retirement? That’s what’ll happen if you still have car loans, HP, credit card balances and other sorts of debt (such as spending hidden on the mortgage). If that’s the case you’re not going to be able to retire come 65/67.  Do you really want to work ‘til you drop?

You may end up unemployed or sick. It’s much harder to get a job or even an interview after the age of 50.  Employers prefer “someone more suitable”, which means “younger”. What’s more many Kiwis eat up their retirement savings after falling ill in their 50s or early 60s. Oh, and you’ll find it harder to get a mortgage the older you get. Banks won’t lend to people whose only income is New Zealand Super. Depressing huh? That’s why you need to save now and insure yourself.

Beware of what your boomerang kids cost you. Modern day offspring come flying back every time they need a handout or somewhere to live. If you do agree to help them buy a home or business, don’t expect that money back when you need it. The moral of the tale is that the time has come to put yourself first.

How to create a retirement pot of money

If that made you feel depressed, the good news is that you can do something about your situation. Start today.

Move from financial inertia to action. Get a budget, pay off your consumer debt, stop extending the mortgage, don’t mistake wants for needs. This is your last chance to get some serious savings behind you. Wealth comes through action not inaction.

Spend less. You can change. Look at your last bank statement, list everything category from most essential to least essential and start chipping away at the bottom half of the list. It might need a radical rethink. For example most middle income Kiwis could cut 50% from their grocery bills and be healthier for it. Start with the booze, meat and packaged foods.

Be a good Gen X and maximise your KiwiSaver. You may think KiwiSaver is a government plot, or you could invest better yourself. Nowhere else will you get a 50% return on your first $1042 from day one. If you’re employed you can also throw in your employer contributions. Just bite the bullet and do it. Gen X will be the first generation to build up some serious KiwiSaver money.

Consider buying a rental property or two. It’s good to diversify your savings and a rental property might work for you. Beware however: first-time landlords can make a lot of mistakes such as putting potential capital gain ahead of rental return and/or not pricing out renovations properly. Sometimes an ugly duckling such as a concrete block unit is a better investment than the best house on the block.

Be honest with yourself about your finances. If you’ve just read the bullet points above and said: “but I’m different”, or “that doesn’t apply to me” then go back and look for ways to make it apply to you. Change for the good only happens when you seek it out.

This might all sound a bit depressing. But it’s best to know, than to stick your head in the sand.

The post Worried about the retirement age going up? Here’s how to kick your finances into shape before you hit 50 appeared first on Credit Simple NZ.

Let’s have a quick talk about the meaning of life. Well, maybe not the whole nine yards, but do you have moments in your cubicle when you wonder if the way you’ve got your life planned is the smartest way to go at it. What are your plans for financial security, and where do you hope to be when you retire? And how soon do you want it to happen?

Here’s an unnerving thought: is it possible your plans for working and putting some money aside for your retirement are the worst way of going about it?

Writer Jack Parkerson thinks we’ve got it all wrong. In The Easy Way To Retire Early he says we’re taught that we can retire once we have a certain amount of money stashed away. We decide the amount of money we need by calculating how much we’d be able to withdraw each year until we die. If that number lines with how much we think we’d be able to live on, then that mean we’re probably safe to retire, he says.

Parkerson has his doubts about that. He thinks you can get it wrong, and that plugging away at saving is the long slow hard difficult way to do it.

So if you want to retire early, he says, you have just two options that will actually work for you: passive income and frugality.

Passive income vs frugality

Passive income is money earned without actively working for it (maybe a few hours a month will be needed for maintenance and so on). You might earn it from dividends, interest from share investments, or rental property. Then there are the more creative possibilities: write a book, create an app, sell a course, really, anything that you can create digitally once, and then sell. And the tried and true option: start or buy a business that can operate without you in it.

And then there’s frugality. When your monthly expenses are lower, he says, your passive income goals can be reached sooner. How much would your monthly expenses decrease if you didn’t have a car payment or you gave up that nice place you’re living?

This is actually an idea people are talking about more and more: minimalism; living on the bare necessities; cutting out excess in your life; stepping off the consumer treadmill. It’s not for everyone, but if you can do it, you’ll transform what happens to your money. And the less you’re spending, the more you have available to invest in creating passive streams of income.

How are you planning for your future? Is Jack right? Is passive income and frugality your only realistic option for retiring early? Join the discussion on our Facebook page.

The post Two easy ways to fast-track your retirement appeared first on Credit Simple NZ.

I banked a cheque the other day (yes, I know! Some people are still using cheques) and as I stood there at the counter, the teller asked me if I had my KiwiSaver with the bank.

“No, it’s elsewhere,” I said.

“Why don’t you bring it to us?” he asked.

“Because I’m with another bank and their fees are lower,” I said. 

“But you should have your KiwiSaver with your everyday bank,” he argued.

Now this made me a bit angry pants. Generally speaking, there’s zero benefit to you as a consumer to have your KiwiSaver bundled with your everyday bank. Sure, some people can’t handle the idea of dealing with multiple banks, but let’s be clear: you don’t get a kickback from your bank, or a thank you card at Christmas, for having it all together in one big financial lump.

The bank, of course, does benefit; they get your extra business. 

I asked our man at the bank why I should have my KiwiSaver with the bank. What benefits would the bank give me?

“It just makes sense to have it all together,” he said, shifting uncomfortably in his seat, realisation dawning that the woman who had just banked a cheque (I KNOW  –  A CHEQUE) might have been born at night, but it wasn’t last night.

I gave him a hard time for a while, and I hope he won’t continue trying to persuade people into bundling their KiwiSaver, “just because”.

I’m not the first person to experience this. Journalist Tamsyn Parker wrote about it for the NZ Herald, where Financial Markets Authority spokesperson Paul Gregory said that people approached by their bank to switch their KiwiSaver business should ask for three reasons why they should switch and then ask the bank to back up those reasons with evidence.

“If they say they have the top performing fund in the last five years ask them to prove that. Make the person work for the business.”

Banks have an obligation to represent their KiwiSaver scheme in a way that’s accurate and balanced, and above all, they should put the customer’s interests first, says Paul, and remember that bank tellers may get a commission for sales they make.

Personal finance writer Diana Clement says:

“I’m horrified to hear this. As far back as 2014 the Financial Markets Authority put banks on notice for using underhand tactics to lure customers’ KiwiSaver accounts away from their competitors by using the ‘do you want KiwiSaver with that’ approach.

“The FMA investigated and found that banks were using all sorts of tactics such as asking customers if they would like to be able to access their KiwiSaver information online alongside other bank account information, without explaining that this will mean the customers must transfer their KiwiSaver to the bank. Or, signing customers up for a credit card, personal loan or other products and providing a KiwiSaver transfer form alongside other documentation for signing, leading to customers inadvertently agreeing to transfer their KiwiSaver to the bank.

“Tellers don’t the skills and training to provide adequate advice for individuals to make a decision at the counter about the future of their retirement savings. If you’re approached in this way about your KiwiSaver account, proceed with caution.”

The information in this blog post is general in nature and does not constitute personal financial or professional advice. It is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual. We do not guarantee the accuracy and completeness of the information and you should not rely on it. Before making any decisions, it is important for you to consider your personal situation, make independent enquiries and seek appropriate tax, legal and other professional advice.

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Before we had the Kardashians to keep up with (yes, there was life before the Kardashians), we kept up with the Joneses. The Joneses were more figurative than literal and didn’t have their own TV show; they represented the people next door who owned more (and better) gadgets than you.

The Joneses and the Kardashians – along with social media, celebrity culture and reality TV – are responsible for creating the #YOLO attitude: You Only Live Once. It’s a lifestyle choice that millennials often buy into, and is epitomised by the @richkidsofinstagram. (Haven’t seen them before? Go on, have a look. We’ll wait.)

YOLO culture says, don’t worry about later on, just live for the present. It’s all about pursuing great life experiences, and you don’t want to end up with FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out).

Many young Aucklanders buy into YOLO culture, for example, because they’re locked out of the housing market. Owning property is an impossible dream, so why even bother trying? I know one guy who does actually own, but he doesn’t think he’ll ever be able to pay off the large mortgage, so he spends all his available cash after mortgage payments on frivolous holidays to Vegas and eye-wateringly expensive bottles of wine.

There’s an emphasis on taking on debt to fund your lifestyle, which leads to sometimes unnecessary student loans, maxed out credit cards and high-interest consumer debt.

So how do you deal with YOLO and FOMO culture?

1. Envision your YOLO future and pay your future self first
It’s not necessarily having a YOLO approach to life that’s bad, but the lack of acknowledgement that your choices today create the life you live tomorrow. Sure, you do only live once, so you need to make sure that your whole life is great, rather than screwing up your future. Retirement Commissioner Diane Maxwell uses a future-oriented mindset to keep focused on her spending and think about what she’ll want later on in life:

“Sometimes I say to myself, rather than doing something now, I’ll buy that for myself when I’m older,” Diane says. “Rather than having a bottle of wine now, that’s a bottle of wine put aside for when I’m not earning. Rather than having a coffee in a café now, I might say I’ll donate that coffee to myself when I’m 70.”

2. Start seeing debt as a disease
Tackle your debt as soon as you can. No amount is too much! Start with the smallest debt and it will create a snowball effect; you’ll feel proud and achieved for having paid off even a tiny debt and it’ll motivate you to keep going.

3. Say no, not YOLO
Start living within your means and practice saying no to expensive outings, holidays and possessions. Just because someone else can afford it doesn’t mean you should have to keep up. Got a friend who likes to go out for dinner and split the wine bill equally but you only ever drink a glass? Push back. Don’t be afraid to say, “I can’t afford it”. There’s no shame in being financially sensible.

4. Downsize your expectations of greatness
Do you really need the latest and greatest of everything, or can you trim your possessions and spending? If your paycheck doesn’t allow you to spend freely, figure out what’s really important to you and put your money towards that. For example, say you don’t care about clothes but you love wine and music; stop buying new clothes and start visiting op shops. Or if you don’t care about wine, grab a cleanskin.

5. YOLO within your means
Budgeting is key here. Split out your paycheck into expenses, KiwiSaver/retirement, building your emergency fund, your ‘saving for X’ fund, and what you have left is your YOLO money. Go wild!

The post Are you YOLOing your finances? appeared first on Credit Simple NZ.