Should I invest outside KiwiSaver?

In short yes. But here’s the thing, where or how to invest is less important than why to invest.

If this is about a parallel investment line alongside KiwiSaver so that you can retire earlier than KiwiSaver is available, then yes you should. But you should make sure you have your plans right for paying off the mortgage, your timeframes, goals, appetite for volatility etc.

Too many people come to see me to invest for investing sake, but don’t have an idea of why, or what they want. And they often don’t have the basics of their financial structure right, they are living outside their means, or don’t have their emergency fund set up.

I see KiwiSaver as a good vehicle for long term investing and providing your income fund in retirement, but if you don’t want to wait until 65 to access it, then you need to look elsewhere. Whether it’s direct shares, businesses, rentals or other funds is not as important as knowing why or what your goal is.

So before you get back into the rat race of working life, consider if you are further ahead in real terms than 5 years ago (ie outside of general inflation or house capital gain), and where you want to be in 5 years, and build a plan around that, then look at where to invest.