A lot of people are surprised and a bit shocked after last the US election results and while I won’t be discussing the actual results of the election and the fall out (plenty of the media, who were wrong about the election will spend time telling you what will happen), it’s important to know about the market impact.

Money Mind-set is the concept of having the right thoughts about money and setting your mind set accordingly.  It’s about focusing to spending only money you have, not racking up debt, and saving as much as you can for your goals.  A good money mind-set will help you grow wealth better over the years, and remove all the money stress most people have.

Today is the 6th birthday of DUX Financial.  It’s crazy to think it’s been 6 years, but it means I have now been at DUX longer than any other financial company.

Leaving aside the overblown hyperbole of the journalists in this article (I don’t think any company advertises itself as a cluster bomb company, but whatever), it’s important to know where you are investing and if you have preferences to not invest in certain areas, to see what you can do about it.

Building a home is an exciting, and often fraught experience, and it’s hard to get concrete knowledge on what to do.  Often the builders hold onto information and make it difficult for you to know what your options are.

The rules around Trans-Tasman transfers are a bit odd, and a giant pain in the neck, but worth it.

It took years for the two governments of New Zealand and Australia to get to a place where we could get Trans-Tasman portability, and while the KiwiSaver providers leaped at it, the Australian ones, not so much.

It’s adviser bashing time at the New Zealand Herald again as they breathlessly announce that some Financial Advisers only deal with a few KiwiSaver companies.  They never say outright it’s bad, but it’s the impression they are trying to give.

It’s not a surprise to read about people racking up lots of debt on the mobile lenders.  People will always find a way to borrow if they are that way inclined.

It’s pretty damning about their processes and sales tactics.

While what Youi does was obvious to those in the industry, with their direct push model, and focusing on cheapness rather than benefits, it’s not just Youi who does this, they have been the most blatant.

The government has announced some changes to KiwiSaver withdrawals for 2nd chance first home buyers that will come into place on the 1st of July 2016.

I am not convinced that the answer to people not planning for retirement, is more Do It Yourself (DIY) focus. Sure, it’s better than nothing, to use the calculators etc., but the problem with these is the placebo like effect of having run the calculator, and then your brain basically deciding you are done, and then you go back to whatever else you are doing, and spending.

Far be it for me to suggest that a student association is unlikely to put out a press release saying everything was fine for students, but they are not exactly the best source for an unbiased opinion.

I am guessing the journalist on this story was not a student in the mid to late 1990s when you could download your entire living allowance money in one go.

Harsh that the AMP KiwiSaver gets singled out here for who has lost KiwiSaver business, when in reality the banks are creaming most of the KiwiSaver transfers from everyone, as they ‘touch’ clients more often than the other providers.

Auctions suck when you don’t have a 20% deposit.

The bank won’t sign off on the property, and short of paying for a valuation before you bid, you have to either just bid or hope, or you have to pay for the valuation, and then might not get the home.