With the NZ Super weekly rate for individuals rising to $375 on Wednesday, a question comes to mind: how can anyone pay rent with that amount and still have anything left over for living expenses?
NZ Super seems to do a good job of keeping people out of hardship - if you don't have high housing costs. And KiwiSaver can help you get on the property ladder sooner and pay off a mortgage well before retirement.
As of this week, the amount of your KiwiSaver savings you can withdraw to buy a first home is increasing. Now even what we call "the big five hundy" - the $521 you can get from the government each year - can be used. So you can take out all but the $1,000 kick-start that you get when you join.
Also new this week is the KiwiSaver HomeStart grant, which means that, depending how long you've contributed to KiwiSaver, the government will give you: