Spring is the time we take advantage of the improving weather, longer daylight hours and often even our better mood to get our homes in order. It is also a great time to have a financial spring clean. When was the last time you took a look at your
- Insurance?
- Mortgage?
- Credit cards
- Bank accounts?
- Shares?
- or Will?
Check out some suggestions from the Eightfold team on how you can carry out your own financial spring clean.
Insurance
– When was the last time you reviewed your Life Insurance?
– Have your circumstances changed since you started your cover?
You may be over-insured, under-insured or if you’ve got one of the bank policies – paying for very watered-down coverage.
Reviewing Life Cover, Trauma Cover and Income Protection can be very complicated and time consuming to do yourself. The great news is, you don’t have to. Let us do all the hard work for you, with the bonus that we provide this service to all Eightfold clients free of charge!
Mortgages
As Banks continue to lower interest rates, the way in which they calculate customers debt servicing has also been lowered. This means that as a customer you may be able to borrow a bit more. We are seeing evidence of this, resulting in more market activity. It also means that there may be an advantage to breaking existing loans and re-fixing at lower rates – talk to your Adviser to find out if this could be right for you.
Credit cards and accounts
With banks focusing on sales targets we’re often sold banking products we don’t need, or which become redundant over time, such as a savings account or credit card that have sat there doing nothing for years but are costing you money in annual fees. It’s good to occasionally review these and clean up or close what’s no longer required.
On credit cards have a think about card limits. If you no longer need the limit you have, from a security point of view it’s a good practice to lower that back down to what you need now
Shares
Many New Zealand investors are sporadic in their approach to buying and selling shares. In the heat of an IPO with the market talking up the investment opportunity, many of us have purchased shares. But how often do we stop to consider how they’ve performed and if you should keep or sell them? Make it part of your spring clean to review these and consider your options.
Wills
As we go through life, our family dynamic changes. We have children, lose parents and circumstances change. Wills are designed to be living documents and need to be reviewed regularly on our journey through life to ensure they reflect the legacy you want to leave behind.