The Happy Saver Podcast - Personal Finance in New Zealand Ruth - Personal Finance Blogger

Lucy, Steve and their two teenage children openly talk about money in their family. It comes from them trying to make sense of their complicated financial upbringing and then joining their financial lives together at 19. When they were young, they made many decisions because their backs were against the wall, and they now know they want their children to head out into the world more prepared than they were. While I understand that failure is a good teacher, I just don’t see why you would willingly set your kids up to fail with money when it is far easier to do as this couple is doing and instead just teach your kids some basics from the get-go.

In this episode, we hear from Jess, a single 52-year-old woman who reached out to me in early 2022 when she sent me a lovely email telling me she had been using my blog and podcast, plus The Barefoot Investor, to learn more about money to help her keep on track with some long-term money goals. After paying off her credit card debt, Jess was working on building up her emergency fund, but beyond that, she struggled to see how she could ever afford a home of her own. In a subsequent email, Jess expressed feeling left out while reading my Millionaire Questionnaire responses, as they mainly featured coupled-up, double-income people who appeared to own property. So, when I got an email telling me she had just signed up to buy a home of her own, you bet I wanted to know how she went from a house being out of her league to owning one.

I met 29-year-old Dylan when he heard my call out for younger people to get in touch and share their stories with money. Through luck and good timing, aged just 21, he found himself buying his first property, an empty section, and then one thing led to another; he stumbled upon a cracking good deal, paying just $18,000 for a second section. This sounds impossible, and stories such as this need a deeper dive. As a sound bite, it's a good one, but I know that there is a lot that goes on behind the scenes that is never explained. Well, today I will explain, sharing not only how he purchased property but the numbers behind it, the lucky breaks he has had and the fact that since he learned about FIRE, he is now diversifying by investing in KiwiSaver and ETF share investments. Plus, he advocates good financial management to both whānau and friends. And now that he is joining his life with the love of his life, this late 20-year-old is on an excellent trajectory for a great financial future.

In this week's episode, I wanted to revisit an earlier episode with an update on Nathan from episode 71, and introduce a new guest, Sam, a 16-year-old Year 12 student who is starting a financial journey similar to Nathan's and already demonstrates a forward-thinking mindset towards his financial well-being. He recognises that financial stability is vital to achieving his goals. Nathan and Sam's experiences provide a valuable opportunity to educate young people about the importance of financial literacy and equip them with the tools they need to make wise financial decisions.

I’m looking forward to telling you all about 37-year-old Tui. She described herself as someone who has worked hard to get her financial house in order, and in the last three years in particular, she has made great progress. She had spent her teens and twenties gathering life experiences by living and working overseas, getting an education, beginning a career and buying a home with a friend. But more recently, she has increased her understanding of personal finance, and when she added that new knowledge to her situation, she has moved ahead, now with her partner Marcus, in leaps and bounds. Amid a pandemic, they bought the house from her friend and changed careers, and I know you want to learn how that has all worked out for them! Spoiler alert: really well!

Nic described herself as a 42-year-old professional who sometimes has to pinch herself at the job she has. It’s a tough demanding role in a field she loves that pays really well. A mum to two tamariki and a partner to the world's most laid-back, carefree non-money-driven man. Her money journey started slowly, full of bad decisions, good luck, and some great times. Now she finds herself in the very fortunate position of earning an above average income, which up until recently, she spent. More recently, she has realised she is in a position to do things with her money that will have a lasting impact. New information on how to handle money better has made her cringe at past decisions. Nic has come a long way, but the journey is not over yet, but she has a plan now, something she never had before. She has her WHY and the HOW defined. She now just requires the discipline, focus and drive to pull it all off!