Our Finance Blog

Buying your first home in 2024: Is it Worth the effort or should you wait? Is it worth making the effort to buy in 2024, or should you wait and save until you have a higher…

It’s always interesting when we reflect on the past year and often I will start by looking back at what I might have predicted back at the start of the year. So I shared what I…

In many countries it’s common to see people buying a home with friends or family and it’s starting to become more common in New Zealand now too. It is also becoming more common to hear that…

One of the key roles for a good mortgage adviser is to provide people on what makes a good home loan. There are other things that advisers do like arranging the home loan and getting competitive…

As mortgage advisers, and from our Facebook Group we hear from lots of first home buyers asking “does a student loan affect getting a mortgage” and they can. The answer is YES your student loan does…

As mortgage advisers we get asked “can you get a mortgage while on maternity leave” and we’re always pleased to be able to say YES you can if you meet the criteria. But my bank said…

Today I was invited to discuss what has happened to First Home Partner on Radio New Zealand’s Nine to Noon. We discussed what First Home Partner is and how it has helped people, but also the…

Banks have moved away from providing mortgage managers, but you can still have an adviser that works as a Westpac mortgage manager for you. That’s right, a good adviser will work for you. There are some…

First home buyers are seeing Kainga Ora’s First Home Partner as a good way to get into a first home, but we’re hearing many people that find the process confusing. This is very evident from comments…

You may have heard that Kianga Ora has expanded the shared ownership scheme (First Home Partner) to now allow eligible people to buy existing homes as well as new builds. This is effective from Monday 14th…

A lot of Kiwis are saying that they are feeling poorer as inflation bites, and the fact is we have had our purchasing power reduced – quite significantly too! Did you know that your purchasing power…

Shared home ownership has become more popular in New Zealand but there is still a lot of people that have not considered it as an option for them, and maybe there is a lack of knowledge…

Often people think that a mortgage adviser just helps you get a home loan, but they can help you manage your home loans too. People that have used a mortgage adviser to help review and manage…

Now Westpac are offering a “Greater Choices” home loan that allows you to borrow up to $50,000 interest free for five years to help you create a warmer, drier, healthier and more energy efficient home or…

We’re about to announce a new option of shared home ownership, and it may suit people that like the concept but are not eligible for Kainga Ora’s First Home Partner. First Home Partner is a good…

Kiwis can be too complacent and not always focus on the important things with their finances, like KiwiSaver. The majority of people have their KiwiSaver with a bank or with the provider that they were automatically…

Today HSBC says it has stopped accepting any new retail banking customers in New Zealand and will be telling existing customers to start engaging with other financial services providers. HSBC says it’ll wind-down its New Zealand…

As a mortgage adviser I’ve been asked a lot of questions over the years, but two that often pop up are: Why should I use a mortgage adviser? What do you do to get home loans…

Are you an aspiring first home buyer or potential property investor and wondering when is the right time to buy? If you are then you are not alone – as mortgage advisers we are hearing people…