Blog
Nearly a million Kiwis are paying too much tax on their Kiwisaver
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
Nearly a million Kiwis have been paying too much tax on their Kiwisaver and there's no way for Inland Revenue to pay it back. The maximum rate of 28 per cent of tax automatically kicks in when someone signs up to Kiwisaver. For 950,000 New Zealander's this rate is too high, but it's up to the account holder to correct it. Those affected are owed on average $44 a year for every year they're contributed.
View more
KiwiSaver changes look to provide fund access for people with shortened life expectancy
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
An Auckland man with Down syndrome has won a change of rules that will allow anyone with a life-shortening congenital condition to access their KiwiSaver funds before they turn 65. He and his mother asked a Parliamentary select committee last year to change the rules to allow him and others with life-shortening conditions to access their KiwiSaver early - because they were unlikely to live until the normal retirement age of 65. Commerce Minister Kris Faafoi said the rules would be changed to create a new category for early withdrawal of KiwiSaver funds for anyone with a life-shortening congenital condition.
View more
Generate Growth fund 10.8% p.a. over past 5 years!
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
Generate's Growth Fund ranks 1st out of 21 KiwiSaver growth funds returning 10.78% p.a. after fees over the past five years. All three Generate Funds rank 1st, 2nd or 3rd over past year and 5 years.
View more
Liz Koh: Fix your KiwiSaver Mistakes
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
Liz Koh's opinion: Mid-year is a great time to review your KiwiSaver contributions for the year to make sure you have put enough in to qualify for the maximum member tax credit paid annually in July. KiwiSaver is not a 'set and forget' investment, yet the majority of people treat it as such. There are key decisions to be made along the way which can make the difference between living in comfort or living in misery in retirement. Despite KiwiSaver having been around for nearly 12 years, the level of understanding of how to make the most of it is low.
View more
Strategies for the five ages of KiwiSaver
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
There are five ages of KiwiSaver. Each of them calls for different strategies to get the best from New Zealand's $50 billion savings scheme offers. "People jumped into KiwiSaver, many when the $1000 kickstarter was still available for their kids, and what happened was they became disengaged." And so their KiwiSaver, and those of their children, was left to prosper, or track sideways, ignored, and unloved, according to Wilson. But if people think more about KiwiSaver as a savings scheme with different opportunities for each of their five ages of their economic lives, they might find it easier to use it to their maximum benefit, Wilson says.
View more
Generate KiwiSaver continues strong performances despite volatile 2018
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
While 2018 was a volatile year for KiwiSaver funds, all three Generate funds performed strongly versus the competition over the year and the past five years, according to leading investment research provider Morningstar.
View moreKey changes to KiwiSaver start kicking in from April
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
Important KiwiSaver changes have come into force, enabling far greater choice and flexibility for KiwiSaver investors. From April 1, 2019, KiwiSaver members will have two additional contribution rates to choose from – 6 per cent and 10 per cent of gross salary – in addition to the current 3 per cent, 4 per cent and 8 per cent options. (NB: employers will still be required to make a minimum contribution of 3 per cent of gross salary). Renaming the Contributions Holiday to Savings Suspension and reducing the maximum period from 5 years to 1 year (renewable on application) – this allows members to temporarily cease their contributions, although this also means no government or employer contributions, as relevant. Changes also included renaming of the Government Contribution (formally known as Member Tax Credits).
View more
The pros - and cons - of bringing your Aussie superannuation home.
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
If you've worked across the ditch at any point during the last 27 years, you almost certainly have some Australian superannuation. Having returned to God's own country, you might be wondering whether you ought to repatriate your retirement funds. First you have to figure out how much dosh you have, and where it is. Kiwis are sitting on billions of dollars of 'lost' super, which is sucked into the black hole of the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) whenever providers lose touch with members. You can contact the ATO to find out if it's holding money in your name, along with the details of any accounts that are still up and running.
View more
Generate not invested in gun manufacturers.
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
We can confirm that the portfolios currently do not hold any gun manufacturers directly or through the underlying managers. Some of the underlying managers have small positions in conglomerates (Boeing and Airbus, Rolls Royce and General Electric) that generate a portion of their revenues from defence businesses (e.g. military aircraft and related products), but the majority of revenues generated by these conglomerates are from their better known civilian businesses. Generate’s Responsible investment policy excludes direct and underlying Fund investments into companies involved in: Cluster munitions; Anti-personnel mines; Chemical weapons; Nuclear weapons; Whaling; or Manufacture of tobacco. As part of this policy, we regularly check that the underlying managers do not hold companies in breach of our policy. The policy can be found here for further details.
View more
December was a downer but dynamic duo defeat KiwiSaver depression
Posted in Kiwisaver, Retirement, Savings on
Just two of the 13 largest KiwiSaver providers eked out positive net growth over the tough December quarter, likely buoyed by new member transfers rather than investment returns. According to the latest data from Australian research house Strategic Insight (SI), Generate KiwiSaver was one of two providers that saw funds under management (FUM) grow during the three months up to December 31 last year, up 2.6 per cent – also jumping above $1 billion for the first time.
View more