Last week, Joseph Darby, CEO and Financial Adviser at Milestone Direct Limited, shared ten tips to help maintain and boost happiness levels. In the final article of his two-part series, Joseph provides more helpful advice on how to ‘not worry and be happy.’ Relax about things we can’t control, focus …

Joseph Darby, CEO and Financial Adviser at Milestone Direct Limited, shares ten tips to help maintain and boost happiness levels in the first of a two-part series. The last 12 months have proved challenging for many people. Against such a backdrop, happiness is still a worthy goal we should all …

Greenwashing is giving a false impression or providing misleading information about the environmental status of a company or its products. These misleading or unsubstantiated claims deceive consumers into believing that a product or service is environmentally friendly or socially responsible. Although some of the environmental claims can be partly true, …

Our term deposit rate is much higher than in similar developed countries, including Australia, the UK and Sweden. The deputy of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) recently cited this as a reason the RBNZ had to do more to bring the interest rates down. The RBNZ is our …

Research by the Financial Services Council suggests that a New Zealand financial advisor is worth the impressive sum of $1.5 million over 25 years to every person they assist. If you haven’t already received the backing of an advisor, what better time than now? The Financial Markets Authority has developed …

The typical Kiwi family of a heterosexual married couple and two or three children is no longer the norm. In his new book, The New New Zealand, Professor Paul Spoonley of Massey University looks at how our families have changed. These trends include: Increased divorce rates. More single parents. Same-sex …

Graduating from university, getting an apprenticeship or taking an OE used to be a rite of passage not just for young adults but also for their parents. It marked a glorious time when the young left the nest and the parents’ job was done. The child had been raised to …

Financial stress can be the result of rising debt, a job loss, insufficient earnings, high living costs or even money troubles in your relationship. Whatever the circumstances, being worried about money takes a mental and physical toll, plus it can strain relations with your significant other, family, workmates and friends. …

Like a pack of sharks who smell blood, the scammers are already circling. A decade or so ago, during the Global Financial Crisis, investment fraud and other consumer scams were rampant. Today it’s the COVID-19 crisis, and it’s no surprise the scammers are back in force to prey on people’s …

The great depression of the 1930’s spurred a “waste not want not” attitude that defined consumer patterns for a generation. Decades later, the oil supply shock in the 70’s led to the first efforts of energy conservation and efficiency. In more recent times, over the period of just a few …