With the myriad of KiwiSaver funds available, it can sometimes be confusing as to which fund you should be in for your specific circumstances.

The Commission for Financial Capability has a KiwiSaver Fund finder website that can give you guidance on the KiwiSaver fund that suits your particular situation. Based on how much time you have before you start spending your KiwiSaver money, and your attitude towards risk, the website can direct you into a defensive/conservative fund, a balanced fund, or a growth/aggressive fund.

To find out more, go to www.fundfinder.sorted.org.nz

Options for parents to help
It's every Kiwi's dream to own their own quarter-acre share of paradise. Unfortunately for many young people today, not only are the quarter-acre sections fast disappearing into multi-complex developments, but it's also becoming harder than ever before with an ever-rising property market.

Every time you turn on the news, we hear something about the housing unaffordability in Auckland. Those south of the Bombay Hills start to get a bit glassy-eyed when listening to this on repeat. However, since the government's introduction of the 'LVR' rules in October 2016 aimed at improving affordability in these markets, we must pay attention as all of New Zealand is affected. Read more…

Recent changes to the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 require all rental properties to have ceiling and underfloor insulation meeting a set standard, where reasonably practicable, by 1 July 2019.

A limited number of grants (for 50% of the cost) are available through Warm Up New Zealand: Healthy Homes, on a first-come-first-served basis for rental properties occupied by low-income tenants and are not owned by a government agency. The criteria are:
• Rental property was built before 2000
• The named tenant has a Community Services Card, and
• The named tenant has been referred by the Ministry of Health's Healthy Homes programme.

It's important to keep your tenants warm and dry. To find out more, click here.

In a property market short of stock, buyers are hearing that their offer "might be a multi offer." This creates a lot of confusion and uncertainty. Although we covered multi offers in our Summer 2016 edition, we believe it's worth reiterating our advice in this tight real estate market.

Once you see a property to buy, you'll need to get your offer prepared, checked and presented quickly.

First in – first served. Right? Wrong! There are no real rules around how offers are to be presented to sellers by real estate agents. If one buyer makes a written offer, but the agent knows a second party is also wanting to make an offer, the agent is in a difficult position. Their client (the seller) will want to view all of the offers and most sellers are prepared to wait until all offers are ready to be presented. This can often mean a situation that started out as a single offer, can quickly evolve to a multi offer situation. Read more…

Your KiwiSaver funds... more flexible that you might think

By now, most first home buyers are aware that they can use a portion of their KiwiSaver balance to contribute towards the equity in their house purchase.

What isn't commonly known is that it's possible to have a home owned by a trust, or partly owned by a trust, or a home owned in part shares by other people (parents, for example) and you can still use your KiwiSaver funds to contribute towards the purchase.

This flexibility comes with certain conditions, the usual one being that the person using their KiwiSaver must use the property as their primary place of residence.

If you want to buy your first home using a trust as your ownership structure, or want an ownership structure that allows you to be flexible with parents or other sources of cash which contribute towards the equity position, it's well worth talking with us and your KiwiSaver provider to see if this will work for you.

Key tax considerations

Becoming an Airbnb host sounds like the perfect way to fund some overseas travel for yourself and rent out your home while you are away.

The popularity of online booking platforms such as Airbnb, BookaBach and Holiday Homes has grown significantly over the past few years. They are seen as easy for property owners to market and rent their property to the end user, and it turns idle holiday homes or spare bedrooms into income earning assets. BookaBach currently has more than 12,200 holiday rentals and Airbnb has 15,000+ hosts. Airbnb hosts' average annual income in 2016 was $3,800.

If you want to become an Airbnb host, you'll need to consider your income tax situation, GST and your ownership structure. Read more…