Set some money goals
When you moved to New Zealand, you may have drafted up a mental list of things you'd like to make a reality in your new home.
Would you like to retire from work early so that you can enjoy what the country has to offer? Or are you planning to buy your dream house by the beach? Maybe you’d like to have enough disposable income available to you to be able to travel to visit family and friends overseas regularly.
Whatever your aspirations are, now could be a great time to make a list of the goals that are most important to you.
Get to grips with the local financial landscape
Things can be quite different when you move to a new country, so you may want to take some time to understand how things work here.
That might mean getting a sense of what things cost - what's reasonable for groceries, for example, or how much you might expect to spend on filling up your car. How is the cost of living here changing, and what might take you by surprise?
Here are some resources that might help:
- Stats NZ’s searchable database of food prices, which will give you an idea of the average price of a range of items. There is also Grocer, a tool that lets you compare prices at supermarkets.
- Real Estate Institute data releases give insights into how the property market is performing in different parts of the country.
- The Gaspy app will help you find cheap petrol prices.
Once you get this sense of what you'll need to spend each month, and what your income is likely to be now and into the future, you can start prioritising.
Develop an investment plan
Once you have your goals set out, you can start navigating your financial roadmap by sorting your investments.
This will probably involve looking at what you currently have, including overseas pensions and other investments, and considering how they might be of use to you in New Zealand.
You might decide to move your pension or other investments, and set up some more in this country. Particularly if you're in employment, it could well be worth exploring your KiwiSaver options.
Your UK pension
If you’ve moved to New Zealand, we can help you to work out whether bringing your UK pension here is a sensible option. There is a four-year window of time in which you can transfer the money, tax-free. Some people find it makes sense to move their pension to their new home country, but the decision needs to be made carefully.
Ready to get going?
If you'd like to talk about whether moving your pension to this country is a good idea, as part of your wider financial plan, get in touch with us. We are experts when it comes to UK pension transfers and can help you weigh up the various factors at play to work out the right path for you.
Disclaimer: Please note that the content provided in this article is intended as an overview and as general information only. While care is taken to ensure accuracy and reliability, the information provided is subject to continuous change and may not reflect current developments or address your situation. Before making any decisions based on the information provided in this article, please use your discretion and seek independent guidance.