Budgeting sucks, you are basically agreeing to not have as much fun so you can be ‘responsible’. In the long run you know its better for you, but when has that helped.

Kiwis don’t seem to be fans of insurance, well life insurance anyway. Even though the concept is the same, kiwis tend to be open to house, car and contents cover than life cover. I think it has something to do with being able to touch the car and visualise it being damaged than being able to visualise the impact of cancer.

When buying a house it’s not just the deposit you need, but you also need to have money for the lawyer, and any reports you want such as the building report, valuation etc.

It’s a few days before Christmas and there is a good chance that you have overspent on presents, food and drink or travel etc, and it’s all building up to a headache in January.

The government has changed the rules on overseas buyers of property, with a view that the overseas purchasers are stopping NZers buying houses.

Generally its best to avoid debt, regardless of who you are borrowing from. But if we are talking about borrowing for your house deposit, getting help from family could make it easier to get a mortgage or could make it possible, where it was not before.

A phrase being thrown around these days is “The Bank of Mum and Dad”. This refers to home buyers having Mum and Dad help out in some way.

It can be very helpful, but also has potential issues.

Here are some more tips for first home buyers to help make it easier to get a mortgage.

When it’s time to get your deposit together, 10% of the price is the minimum you need (though it could be higher depending on the property), and there are a few ways you can get this together.

Buying your first home involves taking a lot of steps before you even make an offer on a house.

We’ve put together some tips on reducing the conditions before making an offer to make the process a little more simple.

You may have noticed a drop in your KiwiSaver balance recently and been wondering what to do about it.

Buying your first home can be daunting, there is a lot of jargon and everyone is trying to get their cut.

Preparing for what you are doing will make the process a lot easier for you.

KiwiSaver is a great way to build your retirement, and the longer you are in KiwiSaver the better.

We call this the emergency fund. It’s a source of funds, either in cash or a bank account that is only there to pay for pre-defined expenses, but otherwise ignored.

There are a few options for you to consider when contributing to KiwiSaver, but what is best for you?

What exactly is a pre-approval, and how do you get one?

A pre-approval is an approval for finance to buy a home. Your income is signed off, your deposit, and your price range.

Every year around now you will be seeing information coming out about “Member tax credits”, but what are they, and is it important?

A balance transfer credit card is seen as a good way to help get out of credit card debt, as you can get a card that has a much lower interest rate, possibly even 0%.

We all know that cards have interest rates and its not difficult to work out the interest cost per month. If you have a $10,000 balance owing, on a 20% card, the interest cost will be $166 a month.

Credit cards are debt, they are about spending money you don’t have and future you has to pick up the tab for what today you is spending.

They fool you into thinking you have more money than you do. A $10,000 limit on your credit card is not $10 000 you have, it’s just pre-approved debt.