We don’t think too much about taking our car in for a Warrant of Fitness when it is due. For a lot of people, they do it because they must, instead of doing it because it is good to know that your car is road-worthy and will continue to be a safe place to be for you and your family.

The other reason getting a Warrant of Fitness is a good idea is that it can identify problems with a car that, left to get worse, could end up costing the owner a lot more in the long run.

Like a Warrant of Fitness for a car, a regular financial review can identify things that a borrower is doing wrong (and doing right) and things that could be done better. For most of us a residential property is the most expensive item that we will ever own and (again for most) it comes with a lot of debt attached. Reviewing how your loan is structured could literally save you hundreds of thousands of dollars over the lifetime of the mortgage.  

Unlike most cars, property tends to go up in value over time, so a review can also identify opportunities to acquire investment property, or to upgrade to a better property.

Another important part of a financial review is KiwiSaver – Do you have it? Are you in the best scheme for you? Are you with the provider that suits you best? Insurance and risk are huge considerations as well and needs change over time as you get older. Increasing or decreasing the size of your dependent family and upsizing or downsizing your homes and property are examples of the changing requirement for the amount and type of cover you need.

The benefits of a financial review are many, and the potential gains and savings to be made by taking just one hour each year to sit down and talk about it with an Adviser are huge. More than enough to pay for the Warrant of Fitness you have to do for your car.

Whatever your plans or goals are – they start by looking at where you are and where you want to go. We know how important a review is and so we offer this service to clients at no cost.   

New Zealand's banks keep making healthy profits, despite a drop off in lending numbers and lower returns from interest. The banking sector recorded $1.45 billion net profit after tax (NPAT) during the March quarter, with this big sum coming as a surprise to many. The big increase in profits was primarily driven by growth in non-interest income, as the banks continue to diversify in the current low interest environment.   

Signs of life are returning to the Auckland housing market, with prices rising across the city for the second month in a row. While prices are still down on a quarterly and annual basis, confidence seems to be returning as the market gets ready for spring. Even though the gains are modest at this stage, they come during winter when the market is normally struggling.  House prices are also up across New Zealand on a monthly basis, with quarterly prices down and modest gains recorded for the year.

With the housing market in a bit of a slump at the moment, and sales figures subdued, creativity goes a long way towards clinching a sale. While clean white walls, a tidy yard, and a freshly made bed are all likely to make a good impression on potential buyers, some crafty sellers are prepared to go the extra mile. From novel listings and fun games through to unicorns and dinosaurs, there are lots of different ways to get more people through the door and speed up the sale process.

Video games and video game culture continues to influence the wider world. More than a pastime for bored teenagers and lost adults, video games are now recognised as both a professional sport and a powerful form of addiction. This dichotomy highlights the complex relationship that exists between gamers and their favourite hobby, with video games best understood as a warped mirror that reflects society rather than a positive or negative force in their own right.  

Lab-grown meat, also known as cultured meat, has been called the future of food by leading scientists and industry experts. Produced by the cultivation of animal cells rather than the slaughter of animals, this new and novel form of meat is likely to hit the supermarket shelves in the not too distant future. Despite the many environmental benefits attached to lab-grown meat, our attitudes surrounding high-tech meat will need some major adjusting before this food source is widely accepted.