The Happy Saver Podcast - Personal Finance in New Zealand

I get a lump in my throat when I think about Tracey, her family and the journey they have been on together. Back in 1996, she had no money, she had less than no money actually, she was in debt. With a divorce, the recent loss of her father, a failed business and with two seriously ill children to care for she was at her lowest point. Today I tell the story of how she found her way back and how she inspired me to cherish TIME over everything else.

Ryan is a 23 year old Australian who started trading penny stocks at 16, worked pretty much full time while he was at university and has now begun his professional career in finance. He invests in all sorts of things, just to see what happens and if he fails, he adds that experience to his learning and just keeps moving forward, undeterred and full of energy for the next phase.

Arataki is a woman who focuses on the collective and not on the individual and as she has moved through life she used some difficult experiences to not hold her back, but to drive her forward. At every turn, she has been a leader to others and today she is on the cusp of financial freedom where stepping away from work means she will be stepping towards helping build up her own whanau and her wider community.

New Zealand is a fabulously multicultural place and I often find myself speaking with people who were not born here but have chosen to make this place their home. Today is no exception because Lucas was born in Southern Europe but has called New Zealand home for the last ten years. Lucas had reached a bit of a cross roads. He appeared to have what seems to be the Kiwi dream, a house and a rental property but he has come to realise and understand that for his situation he will need to keep handing over money month in month out to banks to pay down debt in order to make himself and his family comfortable in 25 to 35 years time and the thought of waiting this long actually no longer aligns with his goals in life. Will Lucas stay on the treadmill that is the New Zealand housing market or will he step off?

I stumbled upon Sandra and Paul in 2018 when I not only discovered their blog about travel and minimalism but also that they were passing through my town that very week! Naturally I contacted them and invited them over for a coffee! Such an interesting couple who have both saved up, whittled down their lives to an 11kg backpack each, quit their jobs and transitioned into a new life of travel, adventure and a location-independent lifestyle.

I’m going to tell you about a fabulous 42 year old woman I know, called Kate. We met via my blog when she reached out to me and that is when I knew that she had an interesting money journey to tell. What you pay attention to gets done and Kate worked this out from an early age so when she set her sights on moving to New Zealand, establishing a career, buying a house, paying it off and retiring before 50 there is little that will keep her from achieving her goals.

This could have been a textbook case of “Investing 101”. Tom had the key components in there like: live on less than you make, invest in mutual funds and spend mindfully while living a great life into retirement and beyond. But he was investing through the 80s so investing in the stock market and buying a Porsche had to fit somewhere in the mix right? Tom’s story gives a fascinating look at the rocky ride of a share investor, a life well lived and a net worth that reflects that it all worked out OK in the end.

Today in my final episode for this series I speak with Alison and Tom who are parents to four children under the age of four. With a house build on the cards, a tight budget and a single income, we hear how this family of six manage to not just survive but thrive.

Three kids and an almost paid for house? It sounds like an impossible dream but I’m pleased to tell you it is a reality for this Wellington couple. But it has not happened by accident, it has taken planning and a lot of time to achieve it...

Today I am telling the story of Simon, a guy I’ve actually spoken to a number of times, but everything I thought and assumed about him turned out not to be 100% correct. With a finance related masters degree I thought he would have graphs for Africa. But no, although he knows where he is at financially, much more importantly he knows what kind of life he wants to live today and into the future.