Time to ‘push through’, or ‘stand strong’?

I wanted to get stuff done this past Saturday. I was picking up a mini-excavator to finish some drainage. I wanted to get the kids on a working bee, and I had to get a couple reports out before Monday too. I had it all planned out.

But then it rained—no more taking ground (literally).

At the same time, I discovered our water tanks, which supply our house, were empty. A cracked water pipe feeding the tanks from the house was to blame.

I wanted to take ground this weekend / get stuff done, but I couldn’t – I had to solve a really annoying problem instead, or face The Wrath of Wife*.

Ask any investor or business owner with a bit of grey hair – great progress never comes in a straight line.

It appears interest rates will stay elevated for a little longer than we had hoped in 2024.

Property values could slip a bit further.

We have 5 months of rain ahead of us.

EEEKKK!

There’s some encouraging signs up ahead too though.

CCCFA updates have been promised. This ‘should’ make it easier for banks to lend money.

Debt-to-Income rules will come with looser ‘Loan to Valuation Ratio’ restrictions. Yes, there will be unintended consequences from DTI’s in the future, but now our deposit or equity takes us further.

Interest deductibility is coming back (and sooner). It’s not as difficult to be a property investor.

And by far, the most helpful thing we know will arrive eventually (at some stage), is falling interest rates.

If you want to know where interest rates are going this year, then follow my conversations on the Everyday Investor Podcast – I’m determined find this out this year.

It’s always ‘different this time around’, yet the outcomes are always the same. Interest rates drop, then values go up. Then we’re hit with higher rates, and lower values come next. The highs outweigh the lows, and that’s why you win over time.

So there’s a season for pushing through, and one for standing still. Wherever you go, there you are. Hang in there.

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One of the places Aussies and New Zealanders find support from during tough times, are financial advisers. Accessible, affordable and trustworthy financial advice can grow the wealth of New Zealanders yes, as well as mental health outcomes too.

Fellow financial adviser Jeff Royle, from ilender, recently called out the commerce commission on their recent draft report critical of financial advisers. In a recent podcast we trace where this bias comes from, and then what consumers really ought to know about regarding commissions. Traditional, old-school boomer-finance believes bitcoin’s bad and mortgage advisers are salesmen that can’t be trusted. Yet over 60% of new Zealanders now arrange their mortgage through financial advisers compared to going through their own bank directly. Check out the google reviews of almost any mortgage adviser – by in large they’re extremely positive.

If you have a mortgage already, occasionally you’ll know that banks cannot, or will not support you through some of your challenges. Fortunately, there are non-bank alternatives that can assist. No it’s not perfect, but it is a solution for when you’re forced to pause your ambition or take a detour in the game of life.