How can I improve my NZ credit score from 674 to 1,000?

Hi everyone,

I recently checked my Equifax credit report in New Zealand, and my current score is 674 out of 1,000.

I'm looking for advice on how to improve my score, ideally getting as close to 1,000 as possible.

For those who have managed to significantly increase their credit scores in NZ, what worked for you?

How long did it take, and are there any specific things I should do or avoid?

Would appreciate any advice or personal experiences. Thanks!

30M, single, no dependents, living in regional Australia considering moving back to New Zealand. Own a modest old house in New Zealand worth approximately 1M with 605k left on the mortgage. 20k emergency fund saved. 130k invested between KiwiSaver and Aus superannuation. Zero non mortgage debt or other investments.

My total income in NZ will be 130k NZD + KiwiSaver vs the 240k AUD + super I’m currently making in Aus. I’m grateful for my career which is a rewarding and essential and very very niche/specialised public service role. Unfortunately it is completely non transferable to other industries and it’s rare opportunities come up to relocate within the same career. I may have to wait 3, 5 or ten years before this NZ opportunity comes up again, there’s no certainty when it will again.

My property in NZ is old and modest, but is in a truly wonderful area super close to the beach in an amazing city. I have strong family and social ties to that area which I miss, even though I’m happy enough right now in Aus. It is a family sized home and honestly my dream to raise kids in it one day. That’s why I’m drawn back there so strongly.

I worry about being house poor in NZ with a large mortgage. It would be tight if I accept this position, especially in the future with kids and some light house renovations. I’m finally at a point with my experience/income in Aus where I’m able to pay down 80-100k off my mortgage balance each year which is why I’m torn about going back to NZ too early. Ideally I’d get two or three more years in Aus and mortgage down to 300-400k. But I don’t have agency over when an opportunity will come up again.

So should I stay in Aus indefinitely longer or come home? Curious if anyone has some recent experience or advice? I’ve been thinking/considering it lots and hoping to hear some new insights.

Thankyou all 🙏

Messed up and haven't paid my taxes for the last 3 years

So as thr title says i ahve messed up ans not paid my taxes for thr last 3 years.

Ive been working self employed and have only really been in the country for 4 months out of the year each year.

Ive wabted to square everything up for ages and at least want to be clear on what I owe the ird so I can put this behind me.

The issue is I conpletley mis understood the ird rules.

I thought it was calculated off of earnings not revenue.

23/24 I did contract work made around 43k total earnings

24/25 I am still contracting I was charging clients for supplies, I made no profit or any extra on this. I made 92k, 43k of which was my earnings. 38k was the cost of supplies, 11k was adiotional labour. The year was only so high because of one job that bought in a revenue of 42k in January.

25/26 I made 54k

I just want to fix this all up. I have enough cash to file 23/24 and potentially 24/25 if it is just earnings as that was only around 43k also. If I own 15% gst on top of that 92k im kinda screwed. Because I guess ill owe it on 25/26 also. Or am I exempt because I was under the threshold for this recent year.

Just want to have an idea whats going on before I contact the ird and an accountant..

Especially around my gst obligations..

Honestly carrying this around is making mw sick. I can barely sleep anymore, I just wanna clean everything up.

Would love some advice on how to approach this moving forwards.

I am currently considering moving my KiwiSaver fund out of the standard high growth kernel KiwiSaver fund into something less exposed to tech stocks in case of the AI bubble popping.

Is this a good or bad idea? What fund options would you consider?

I am not near retirement age, but am considering buying my first home in the next two years or so and will need to use my KiwiSaver to help fund the deposit.

I am 22 and recently had a multi 6 fig business exit. Planning to keep building/scaling businesses and hopefully have more exits over the next 10+ years.

Want to put a resonable amount into index funds now and keep adding large lump sums from future profits/exits. Probably only a couple transactions a year rather than weekly/monthly investing thing.

Ideally want one platform I can use for decades even if the portfolio eventually gets to $1m+.

Looking at InvestNow, Kernel and Simplicity atm. What would u guys recommend for my situation? And any advice welcome 🙏

Throughout my late teens to late 20s I had no clue what I was doing with my money nor did I care. I was running around unsupported with wildly unchecked bipolar disorder. Starting new degrees and projects at the drop of a hat when manic, flunking them when depressed. I always worked but couldn't keep up with my bills or debt because I would have impulsive shopping sprees or spend my weekends doing drugs and drinking to feel some relief. I ended up with big student loans, overdrafts, personal loans and going into defaults on credit card or hire purchases.

Anyways, fast forward 6 years later. I'm stable, supported, medicated, a homeowner, in a long-term relationship, and a career woman (with a pretty kick ass job dare I say). I have no idea how the hell I did it, considering how many times I convinced myself I was a failure, not worthy of life, and had promised myself so many expiration dates. But here we are!

Unfortunately, I am still feeling an overwhelming sense of doom. I feel like I'm too far behind to set myself up for my future. Listening to all the debates and broadcasts with the elections coming up, for the first time in my life it has really got me thinking about my future and retirement.

Salary: $91,800

Kiwisaver: $10k in an aggressive fund with ASB

Home: Value around $670k, with $600k owing (shared mortgage with partner)

Savings: $1k (I had about $7k, but had recent medical and vehicle bill)

Personal Loan: $23k owing. This was $27k. @ 13.9% (for necessary medical purposes)

Fortnightly outgoings:

Mortgage (including rates, home insurance, utilities): $1150

Personal loan: $230 per fortnight

Coach/Nutritionist: $102.50

PlayStation: $15

Car Insurance: $40

Medical: (GP, Osteo, Physio): $50 - $70

Sports: $2500 - $3000 yearly. (I compete in triathlon, part of the local tennis clubs, cycling clubs etc). This is a lot, but participating in these sports and clubs help me look after myself and stay well.

Then just your standards like groceries, food, dog food, medicines, petrol.

If I keep my spending on track, I can save probably around $300 a fortnight. My partner and I have completely different finances, except for our shared mortgage account (I don't blame him wanting to given my historical spending habits)

Sorry for such a long story. But if anyone has read this far, do you have any advice on where I can start? Even if it is something small (little and often habits are better for me as it stops be from going impulsive and all in haha). I am pretty financially illiterate. I am trying my best to learn through online resources but there is so much out there it feels insurmountable.

My partner and I are looking for a new home, and he is very averse to body corporates, as it is another bill to pay. I understand some apartment complexes have had some horrific remediation projects, and that has been very tough on owners.
However we are looking at solely freestanding homes, where the BC only takes care of a shared driveway and any communal areas - not the buildings themselves which the owners take care of. For example, one I am looking at currently is only costing $2500/annum in BC fees. I said to him it is a benefit to have a private driveway and cul de sac for our kids to run around in.

Am I being naive? This kind of property seems low risk. Or is my partner being unnecessarily risk averse? I would love to hear from people who have both good experiences or thoughts for me to think about.

Edit: comments have been very helpful so far. Thanks all for your perspectives. Seems I also need to clarify if the BC cost covers building insurance.

Edit 2: thanks for educating me guys. BC does in fact cover building insurance. Does this mean I do not need a separate policy for loss and damage to the building? Breakdown:
Building and liability insurance $1,566
Body corporate management $343
Gardening and lawns $183
Long-term maintenance fund $365
Insurance valuation $55
Legal services allowance $52

How does everyone organise their budget in a spreadsheet?

People seem to range from using a very simple list of expenses to 10 sheets of complicated formulas

What works best for you?

Any suggestions where to park 50k.
Want to be able to access it with a couple days notice.
Not relying on it for emergency fund as have offset mortgage available if need be.

I really liked the chart submitted earlier showing long-term returns based on when you began and when you withdrew - https://www.reddit.com/r/PersonalFinanceNZ/comments/1x689ic/chart_showing_returns_when_you_invested_vs_when/ .

In the comments I saw someone vibe coded the 'rest' of it - i.e. to get it up to date with today. I decided to do something similar, reproducing the original but with NZ house prices.

Just wanting to feel what most people are saying on moving to a more high-pace, max velocity culture company with significantly more money VS staying at a slow-pace work life balance but steady income.

I've been approached by their team lead and given a salary band and based on what he saw my experience would be 40-60% (180-220k) more than my current income (130k) which would be massive jump.

The interview pack that they gave me seemed to suggest "high-velocity", "work hard", "do whatever it takes" culture. I do see the potential of growing my career there but given that culture, I'm expecting high-pace, stressed, high pressure environment. Probably not exaggerating saying that 40% jump comes with 50-60 hours/week workload.

Interview process seemed to be overly exhausting and complicated. Mentioned 4-stage interview including interview with executive at the last stage.

The dilemma is that my current workplace is a sweet gig. Low pressure, close to commute with highly flexible with great team. Can see the business growing further with current climate, however, have been in the company for 14 years.
The downside is that the income barely move and generally get around 5k increase every year.

Situation is early 40s, still early/mid in my career but with young family of school aged kids and aging parents overseas and sandwich generation. Given the situation, we feel like flexibility matter the most, however the additional income would be a great addition as would alleviate so many issues.

Gut feel is this could be the wrong move, however understand that this may be what I needed to grow professionally.

What are your thoughts? Thanks

EDIT: adding figure to give more context

I found this image today here and I thought some of the community might find it interesting.

It shows the real return on investment in the s&p 500 based on what year you invested and how long you held. It basically converges on about 4% (not the 6% or 7% which seems to be bandied around).

Kia ora y'all,

So I'm looking at buying a home cheap for 250k from someone I know and trust with a 5% deposit. The home is valued by the council at 355k. Would that mean if I got it properly valued and it was worth that I would have ~100k odd equity in the home that I can then utilize, for example for a Reno loan or to get out of the low deposit higher interest rates? Like would that for example bring my 5% stake in the home up to 167.5k/47% of the home if it did get valued at 355k?

Would I be able to refinance my mortgage utilizing that extra equity to alleviate the low equity margins and reno the place?

Apologies if that sounds dumb new to this.

Hi everyone,

I’m trying to understand how the Labour Party’s proposed 28% Capital Gains Tax (slated for July 2027 if they win) would actually work for a normal "home and income" situation. I’ve been reading through the policy details, but tax rules for mixed-use properties get confusing quickly, so I’d love to know if I'm understanding this right.

To keep the math simple, I’ll use some round, hypothetical numbers to explain my plan:

Context: Let’s say I bought a property right at the COVID peak for $1,200,000, but with a 30% market drop, it's currently valued lower (around $840,000).

Extention Plan: For simplicity purpose, let's assume I do a home extension down the track (costing say, $300,000) to build a small flat attached to the house. It will likely be finished after the July 2027 rollout date.

- The new flat will take up about 25% of the total property area. It won't have separate council utility meters, and the plan is just to get long-term flatmates or boarders to help cover expenses. We live in the other 75% as their main home.

- We also want to save up for solar panels and a battery setup (say, $25,000) to keep power bills down for everyone.

From what I can gather, here is how the CGT would handle this if they ever sold the property years from now:

1. The Peak-COVID Rule: Because the original purchase price ($1.2M) was higher than the July 2027 market value ($840k), the tax baseline automatically locks in at the higher $1,200,000 mark so the owner isn't penalized for buying at the absolute peak.

2. Adding Renovations: Even though the extension and solar happen after 2027, the cash spent on them ($300k + $25k) counts as capital improvements. This gets added to the baseline, pushing the total tax-free threshold to $1,525,000.

3. The Pro-Rata Split: The 75% main home part stays completely tax-free. The 28% CGT only applies to the 25% rental portion of the profit made above that $1,525,000 milestone. So if the house eventually sells for $1,700,000, the overall difference above the baseline is $175,000. The tax would only apply to 25% of that difference ($43,750), making the final tax bill around $12,250.

4. Day-to-Day Taxes: Because we are doing long-term flatmates with a single meter, can just claim 25% of the shared power/rates bills against the rent?

Does this logic sound right to those who have been following the policy closely? Am I missing any hidden traps or missing details about how pro-rata splits work when a renovation happens after the tax comes into effect?

We may rent the space on and off basis. May be one year we may give space on rent but next year we may not. How would it work?

Really appreciate any guidance or corrections if I've misread the policy!

My fiancee and I are currently earning $215,000 a year (before tax, roughly even split).

We are planning to have three kids. We want to be able to afford decent holidays, nothing amazing but a couple of NZ holidays each year, and the odd trip to Aus or the islands every second year.

What do you think would be a reasonable size mortgage to take on to achieve this lifestyle, assuming we have more than a 20 percent deposit.

I’m keen to hear from others with similar income and kids.

I wish I didn't appear so dumb but I have a full xro subscription, and an accountant. I also have a rental property under a business. I'm clueless and very time poor when it comes to managing the finances.

can anyone share what tips and tricks you have used in xero (or tools outside of xero) to make things easier?

things like this are what I'm struggling with

- pdf invoices from my property management company that has their fee, the income from rent on there that needs to be split out into different categories (I honestly don't even know what at this point lol)

- this might include maintenance charges fixing a roof or lock or whatever

- these vary often

- pdf invoices from contractors for work done

- pdf invoices for a new fridge or whatever

- again, pdfs for rates invoices I need to match up to direct debits

are folks automating this classification of transactions? does xero do it somehow automatically?

I feel like everything is a PDF which makes processing any of this super clunky.

I googled for a training course but haven't found anything that seems relevant yet

One larger safe DCA and a smaller one hitting higher growth stocks. Thoughts?

hello :) i am a 23 year old using sharesies for kiwisaver. i heard that kernel is better for fees but my portfolio is doing pretty well. would u stick to sharesies or move to kernel?

Hi everyone. Aucklander here born, bred and lived here my entire life. I’m contemplating whether or not to pursue moving to Sydney aka. The great pilgrimage of 90% of young kiwis even tho I’m in my late 20’s now.

Keen for some outside perspective from people who've made (or decided against) this move, as it has sat in my mind for a few years now (maybe like 10 years because all my mates have left NZ)

My situation: - Late 20s, DINKs, own my home in Auckland - HHI of around $300k (I’m on about $130k + 20k bonus and my partner is on $140k + 10k after added overtime/ weekend work) - planning to start a family in about 3 years with my parents and siblings both in Auckland

If we stay in NZ: - we’re on track to pay down about $150k off the mortgage by the time we plan to have kids (give or take 2-3 years from now) which would make it serviceable on my income alone and give my partner some breathing room to take at least a year off from work - we also travel 1x internationally even whilst being able to top the mortgage up each year - I'm up for a promotion as soon as next year: +$20k onto my base and eligibility for a bonus of around $80k - My family lives close by, so we'd have support once kids come along - I already travel to Sydney 1–2 times a year for work - most of our friends have moved to Sydney with about 2 friends left in Auckland vs about 20 in Sydney. So our social life in Auckland is unfulfilling

If we move to Sydney: - I'd likely move to just the same role I’m in now and forego my career advancement for another few years - Package would be about $120k AUD base + $40k AUD bonus (less guaranteed). On paper that's a bit more than I'm on now, but less than the promoted role here, and I can appreciate Sydney costs are higher - I'd probably lose the mortgage paydown plan (we want to keep our NZ home while we move there) - No family support nearby when we have kids, so we'd be leaning on paid childcare a lot more. From what I can find, Sydney daycare runs roughly $140–220 AUD a day before subsidy, but I'm not sure what people actually end up paying out of pocket. Any Kiwis with kids in Sydney able to share real numbers?

The main reason I'm considering it is that pretty much all my friends are in Sydney now and for myself, I’d like to move to a different place with a breath of fresh air.

Do I just continue to suppress my long term yearn for moving to Sydney?

Kia ora,

I have a sizeable deposit already, so I do not need to dip into my kiwsaver to purchase a home. Im weighing up whether to top up the initial deposit a bit more, or keep that money invested, as generally speaking, it seems like ill get higher returns in most index funds or kiwisaver high growth funds compared to paying down the mortgage.

But, ive got some cash to spare. I could bump up the deposit by say, 20-30k, and still have an emergency fund leftover, and some cash in investments. Im just not sure if I should make my life easier in terms of mortgage repayments... or .... squirrel it all away for future gains via compounding interest.

Please help!

EDIT - i have compared rate of return for both, but this time including after tax returns on kiwisaver / index funds... it seems like, post tax, that brings the returns down to somewhere around 8% depending on the fund. Not that much higher than the interest rate on a mortgage. thoughts?

Hi ya'll, I currently have 100% allocation in Kernel high growth kiwi saver fund. I have another 20 years before needing it. I am not sure whether to keep it at high growth or customise like other people to S&P 500/ World ex-US/ emerging market split. I am quite scared as I've always gone with the pre-made kiwi saver fund but the 20% home bias is making me think twice in staying with high growth. I am worried I screw up my own fund. Any thoughts? Should I stay with high growth or switch and customise? thanks

I currently use a spreadsheet and categorise all my transactions each month. It works fine for tracking spending, but I'm looking for something that goes further and identifies where I could potentially cut costs to reach financial goals faster (house deposit, holiday, emergency fund etc).

Most apps seem to just show where money was spent rather than what changes would make the biggest difference.

Has anyone come across an app that does this well?

Thanks everyone! I should have said I have no intention of spending the full 500k. I'll keep a vague eye out for something closer to 400 and keep saving for now.

And can I actually afford to buy my own place and still live?

I'm single in my late 30's, and earn 75k a year (before tax).

I have 100k saved up, including kiwisaver.

I don't have any debt, and no kids.

Looking to buy a small place in Christchurch.

A mortgage broker has gotten me pre-approved for 500k, based on needing to get a housemate to pay $250 a week. Looking at what is in my price range i'll be in the cheaper areas, which is not a problem for me, but can I realistically expect to ask $250 rent plus bills on top for Linwood?

My rent with bills included is $200 where I currently live, and i'm starting to wonder if I'd be better to stay put and keep saving. With the way the cost of living is going i'm worried i'll never be able to afford to leave the house again if I buy a place.

Hope this topic is acceptable in this forum.

I'm thinking about leaving my job. I will have to give 30 days' notice.

I still have about a week of accrued holiday left.

How is this usually done? Or rather, what are the possible outcomes here?

1. They will want me to work the 30-day notice period and will pay me for my accrued holiday (and won't let me take those days off).
2. They don't want to see me anymore and will pay me for the 30 days, but won't pay extra for the accrued holidays because they claim that the holidays are part of the 30 days they have given me off.
3. They make me work for 3 weeks and then make me take the last week off as paid holiday.

I don't know what to expect. Is this somehow regulated, or is it totally up to the employer to set or for us to negotiate?

Thank you for any insights.