Today I wanted to answer a question that was asked by Linda. She is interested in looking at the pros and cons of taking her KiwiSaver as a PENSION versus a LUMP SUM invested in the bank and using the interest to supplement her government super…
All in Retirement
KiwiSaver Fee and Performance Comparison
I’ve been hearing from a few of you because you have been opening up your KiwiSaver account statements at this time of the year. And there have been a few unexpected surprises in there.
The 4% Rule
Have you ever thought “How much do I need to save for my retirement”? I certainly have. Professor’s from Trinity University in America created a study that looked into a sustainable withdrawal rate and to cut a long story short, they came up with the 4% Rule.
It’s not what you earn. It’s what you save!
For those of you who are just stumbling upon the FI community you have to agree to be a weirdo like the rest of us and start to pay close attention to how much you are SAVING. It is arguably more important than what you are earning.
What can I learn from retirees?
I had a chat with a retired couple recently and I was torn between being polite and not too nosey and outright wanting to ask them every nitty gritty detail about their lives. I settled on the middle ground but found myself left wanting.
What to do with a windfall
One questions I ask is “if you were given $10,000 right now what would you do”? I picked that amount because in my mind it is enough to be significant, $1,000 just doesn’t make people sit up and listen, but the thought of a sudden and unexpected $10,000 does.
Maxed Out KiwiSaver
This will be the last year that we are going above and beyond with voluntary contributions to our KiwiSaver. I had been pushing up to $500 per month into both my husband and my funds but last week we reached my tipping point...
Becoming an Investor*
All your working life you are trying to increase your net worth so that when you finally stop working you start to slowly spend it to live on. If upon retirement each year you take 4% out of your pot of savings it will take about 30 years to boil the pot dry. So what can you live on a year? Do you need to invest $100K, $200 or $500K?
KiwiSaver ≠ First Home Buyer Deposit
Is it just me or are people confusing saving for a house with saving for retirement? I keep hearing about first home buyers all the time and how difficult it is to get into the market. But the question I keep asking myself is “why do people use their KiwiSaver as their primary mode of saving for a deposit?”