WealthDesign

June 2016 is fast approaching, so ensure you don’t miss out on the full $521.43 government contribution by confirming you have paid the minimum $1,042.86, for the previous 12 months.  If you have fallen short of the minimum contribution, you can top up prior to the end of June, to make certain you receive your government contribution.

IMPORTANT:  Please top up your KiwiSaver at the beginning of June, as it can take a while for your KiwiSaver provider to process the payment – we don’t want you missing out on what you’re entitled to!

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Captain Sully Sullenberger landed the plane, as a result of training, skill and expertise. It was an amazing display of skilful flying.  If you Google Sully, you find a picture of a grey-haired guy. That is what comes with experience. You can’t beat ‘time in the chair’ to teach you life’s lessons.

Financial Planning is no different. Time brings experience and experience saves you from disasters.

Blue-eyed enthusiasm is great for some things, but not when it comes to investing.  The scary thing is that the big guys are desperately trying to corner the advice market. The problem is, a bank teller or the bank’s investment advisor, is paid by the bank and therefore, must follow the party line.

Do you want someone with training and experience, who is in your corner, not someone working for a fund manager or a bank? Someone who will work on your behalf, someone with total transparency, and someone who will stand beside you, for the long haul? 

Do you want some ‘grey-haired experience’ when it comes to your investments?  Look no further! (Okay, if there was hair there, it would be grey!)  I’ve been in the game for long enough to get grey hair, but more importantly, I’ve got the skill and experience to get the outcomes my clients are looking for.  Paradoxically, I’m also about thinking outside the box, and ensuring that I’m abreast of the leading trends and forecasts.  By marrying sound investment wisdom with leading edge thinking, you end up with a successful investment portfolio.

Call me today, and let’s get you on the road to financial success – in a way that’s right for you.

John Barber
WealthDesign – a life well planned

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I remember calling my father the “old man” when I was 18 – now I’m older than he was, back then! But I never thought getting older would be so much fun. I have got to travel, I have the privilege of working in a field that I love and I have a family I adore. It’s just at 18, old is anything over 30!  

I heard this cool story the other day, about one American man who made his fortune later in life, proving that life doesn’t end when you’re 50.  I liked this bit!

His name is Stewart Horejsi and he turned a modest $10,600 investment into an $8,016,867 fortune. Horejsi piggybacked on the success of a man who rewrote the rules of investing.  You may have heard of him. His name is Warren Buffett — the billionaire share market investor.

Like Horejsi, Buffett amassed his wealth later in life too. In fact, as Buffett blew out the candles on his 50th birthday cake, he had just 1% of his current fortune. Think about it – at an age when most give up hope, Buffett was just getting started on the remaining 99% of his fortune!

Which means it’s never too late for you to build your wealth, too. See, Buffett got rich by picking the right type of shares and holding on to them for years.

But I know what you may be thinking. Shares are risky, who do I ask for advice, what should I buy instead?

We all hear about the disasters – the ASX is a bloodbath right now and picking the wrong shares could harm your wealth. Which is why I think you’ll want to lean forward in your chair and listen in now.  The best way I know to create wealth is with dividend shares. These are companies that make a profit year in year out and pay a large percentage of that profit out to investors.

If it is good enough for 92.5% of Buffett’s portfolio to be invested in dividend shares, then it should be a strategy for us all. These shares are one of the keys to how he systematically amassed his riches.

One of the obstacles is knowing which shares to buy. At WealthDesign, we pay for independent research on the Australasian share market. We are happy to show you our strategy around selecting local shares, providing you with the research and advice on your options. We will give you this research, as we believe investors are smart enough to understand the marketplace.  They just need to be shown how.

John Barber
WealthDesign – a life well planned

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We are very fortunate in New Zealand to have a guaranteed government superannuation scheme which isn’t means tested, and which is available to everyone over 65.  The amount is the problem.  It’s $374.53 per week for a single person or $288.10 per married person – enough to cover the basics, but nothing more.

The question is how to invest to top up on this base. Recently a pension provider, Lifetime Income Limited, introduced a new pension fund to the market.  Investors can lock in a pension for life, based on their age. Today the rates (after tax) are as follows:

Age at first                                 Lifetime withdrawal rate
withdrawal                                                       (after tax)

65 to 69                                                                5.0%

70 to 74                                                                5.5%

75 to 79                                                                6.0%

80 to 85                                                               6.5%

This won’t be for everyone, but will have a place in long term retirement planning in this country. 

Give WealthDesign a call to see if it is something that would work for you.

John Barber
WealthDesign – a life well planned

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A bankrupt’s KiwiSaver are off limits to creditors according to a recent Court of Appeal ruling.

This was tested in court recently when an official assignee tried to access two bankrupted KiwiSaver investor’s funds. The official assignee argued that the funds should be available under financial hardship but the Court of Appeal disagreed.

The key message of this ruling is that regular payments into KiwiSaver are protected for the intended purpose and are safe from creditors. This is a very important point as investor’s KiwiSaver balances start to become significant.

KiwiSaver is a really simple process, however, there is some important information that could significantly influence how successful your KiwiSaver is, which we know about and are keen to ensure you know too!  Planning prior to life’s events can make a big difference to your experience of life.  If you want to discuss the nitty gritty around KiwiSaver, give us a call.  

John Barber

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