Cooking the Books podcast: Should first-home buyers buy a business instead?

Should buy a business instead of property? Photo / 123rf

Each week BusinessDesk and the NZ Herald's Cooking the Books podcast tackles a different money problem. Today, it's whether a business could be a better option than a first home. Hosted by Frances Cook.

A catchcry for years now has been that first-home buyers feel locked out of any opportunity to buy their own home.

There is a change in the air, for sure, with house prices now falling for the first time in years.

The latest figures from the REINZ House Price Index show prices are down 7.1 per cent in the last year, and national prices fell $40,000 in just the past month.

But it's still pretty expensive overall, with the national median house price at $810,000 in July.

Well, some people think they've got an alternative way for young people to secure their financial future.

The argument goes that you should buy a business instead, giving yourself a different kind of asset, and the possibility of dramatically increasing your income.

Would it work?
Maybe.

For the latest podcast, I talked to Chris Small, managing director of ABC Business Sales.

Chris Small of ABC. Photo / Supplied

For the interview, listen to the podcast here.

• If you have a question about this podcast, or a question you'd like answered in the next one, come and talk to me about it. I'm on Facebook here, Instagram here, and Twitter here.

• Listen to the full interview on the Cooking the Books podcast. You can subscribe on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, or