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Last week, my beautiful boy Jett had an unexpected trip to the vet. In typical Labrador style, he had eaten something that got stuck on the way out.  By the time we walked out after an Xray one day, the ultra-scan the next day, blood tests, surgery and a night in doggy hospital he was…

I remember going to a property investment seminar years ago.  It’s the only one I’ve ever been to, I was curious, so with my accountant’s hat firmly on, off I went.  The only piece of advice that stuck in my mind, was, buy a property that you could live in, that way you’ll attract tenants…

One of the most common habits I see with business owners is using the business bank account as if it was their personal account.  It isn’t. This is also how personal spending creep can happen.  You diligently take your weekly drawings from the company bank account and transfer it to your personal account. By the way,…

I had a conversation with a client last week who has quite a few overdue debtors. He knows the money is owed to him, he knows the invoices are overdue, and he also knows that the situation is putting pressure on his own cash flow. The problem is that he isn't quite sure how to…

There’s a particular kind of relief that comes from swiping a card when you’re short. The bill gets paid. The groceries make it to the counter. The petrol tank gets filled. Whatever crisis was sitting in your chest a moment ago quietly dissolves, at least for now. This was me just over 20 years ago when…

Following on from the "we're having a baby" conversation is the realisation that means we, (or I) are going to be a grandparent!!! There are potentially as many thoughts racing round in your head as the one who is going to have the baby, and depending on whether it's your first or tenth, those thoughts…

We're having a baby! For some families, this has the ring of joy and excitement to it. For others, it might not. The stress of not only caring for a baby but also the financial aspect of it can be overwhelming and daunting. When you start thinking about having a baby, money is probably not the…

I love it when a client asks me something that really makes me think, I had one of those questions last week and it's been sitting with me ever since. Joanne (not her real name) wanted to know how to talk to her parents about their spending. How do you even start that conversation with…

It seems that mum and I have become part of a trend.  Intergenerational living.  We didn't know that was what we were doing, we just wanted to live closer to each other. So that's what we did. A year after my dad died, mum and I had pooled our resources and were on the move to…

I love a girls' weekend away. It's amazing what a change of scenery can do for our health and wellbeing. Something magical happens when a group of girlfriends get together. Maybe it's because we have more time, and not so much on the to-do list, but a conversation that starts somewhere ordinary can somehow end…

One of the questions I like to ask clients in my financial mentoring work is, "What would be enough?" I'm interested in their answer as it's also a question I often ask myself, and I seem to give myself a different answer depending on what else is going on in my life. Not enough to survive.…

Have you ever bought something and later wondered, "What on earth was I thinking?" As an accountant in Motueka, I like to think I've got a handle on sensible money decisions, but this is very top of mind for me right now, as I have just purchased a GPS tracker for Jett, and I'm now trying…