Health struggles can shake up every part of life — including finances. In this edition of Ruth’s Two Cents, Ruth shares her practical advice for dealing with financial uncertainty amid a medical crisis.
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Whether you’re facing another lockdown or a long drive, we’ve curated a list of our favorite podcasts for kids to keep them informed, entertained and thoroughly delighted. The best thing? These shows make great listening for adults too!
Money tips
What do you get when you add lack of working space, room to build and a penchant for DIY? Your very own backyard home office, of course. Ruth The Happy Saver tells the tale of her glorious writing studio, and how she and her husband built it themselves for cheap.
Money tips
With lockdown (mostly) over and socializing back in our calendars, there’s nothing like a good dinner party or at-home gathering to get your mates together without breaking the bank. But, without careful planning, a home soiree can add up to totals that rival a night out. To help you host your squad without going broke, we’ve rounded up our top five tips for hosting a party on a budget.
Money tips
Moving house is invariably stressful. Even the smoothest of moves require some pretty serious planning and hefty appetite for organization. And the cost of moving house can also add fuel to that anxious fire! PocketSmith guest writer Emma has recently moved house,and has rounded up her best moving house tips for reducing stress and saving cash at the same time.
Money tips
Blogs and podcasts are a great resource, but don’t forget about the power of a good book! Ruth The Happy Saver shares her top five personal finances reads that you can turn to for some money management wisdom.
Money tips
International travel is finally creeping back into our post-lockdown lives, and we couldn’t be happier. If you’re craving a sojourn across the ditch, we’ve packed everything you need to know about the Trans-Tasman Travel Bubble into one handy guide. You are so welcome. Happy travelling!
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Having a side hustle can be profitable, rewarding and actually pretty fun. But the financial admin that goes along with it? Not so much. Jason guides us through managing your side hustle finances in PocketSmith, so you can concentrate on making your side gig a success.
Money tips
If you did some budget planning at the start of the year, then the half-year mark is an excellent time to assess and tweak your budgets! Ruth The Happy Saver shows us how she uses her favorite PocketSmith features to ensure that she is reaching her earning, saving, investing and spending goals.
Money tips
We’ve all seen stories of people selling old stamp collections and baseball cards for large amounts of money. It’s even the main source of income for some people now, but can the Average Joe join in too? Chloe explores the world of collectibles trading, and whether they might be a good investment.
Money tips
No matter where you are in the world, the weather is changing and you’ll be heading into slippers or swimwear season. But new seasons means new expenses, and your wallet can take a hit. Ruth The Happy Saver offers some tips on how you can keep your budget intact when the seasons change.
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Our team loves settling back with a good podcast. For many of us, they’re the ideal accompaniment to household chores, exercise, commutes, you name it! Recently, we asked PocketSmithers about the podcasts that tickle their earbuds and make them happy – here’s what they had to say.
Money tips
Fixing your broken appliances is great for the environment and your wallet. But sometimes it’s not the most sensible option, whether the cost of parts are too expensive or a newly purchased machine is more economical to run. But how do you make that decision? David shares some questions to ask yourself to determine whether you should repair or replace.
Money tips
Managing a home is more than just your preferred appliance brand or the system you use to divide up chores, it’s about how you communicate with the members of your household and the behaviors you engage in to ensure everything runs smoothly. Household CFO and happy saver Ruth shares how her family of three work together to run a smooth operation.
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In this blog post, we examine the past, present, and future of this lynchpin reporting feature in PocketSmith. It's been a bit of a journey; join us!
Money tips
So many podcasts, so little time! Not to worry, we’ve curated a list of our favorite business and financial podcasts that educate, inspire and very frequently, make us chuckle. All that’s left is to pick a show, put on your headphones, and prepare to come away with something new.
Money tips
New to the world of investing? Ruth shares her journey from newbie to seasoned investor, giving us a quick 101-rundown on her favorite investment approach, the humble index fund. Find out why Warren Buffett recommends index funds as the best way for everyday investors to grow their money, as well as some quick ways to start!
Money tips
Had enough of personal finance books and financial jargon? If you need a break from reading about compound interest, sinking funds and the nuances of envelope budgeting, we’ve selected some beautiful lines from classic literature that impart some surprising lessons about money management.
Money tips
Buy, sell, and share markets - oh my! Investing has made its way into everyday chat but it’s still a difficult pursuit to get into, so we asked our very wise guest writers for advice on launching your investing journey. Emma is kicking things off this week by answering seven ‘investments 101’ questions to build the foundation of your investing knowledge.
Money tips
The rush from scoring a blender for a handful of bucks is intense, but so is the guilt knowing it will probably be busted and binned a few months later. In this article, David talks about the right to repair, and why you should consider fixing your broken gadgets and appliances before rushing out to buy something brand new.
Money tips
In part one of our financial challenges series, we unpacked some of the common challenges we’re all facing with our finances. Now, in part two, we’re delving deeper into those challenges and offering our favourite tips, tricks and resources to help you overcome them.
Money tips
Overcoming financial challenges can be tough, but knowing you’re not alone can be the difference between surviving and thriving as you tackle them. After a tough year and a ‘hit the ground running’ start to 2021, there are a few common financial challenges we’re all facing right now, so we’ve done a deep dive into what’s going on in everyone’s wallets.
Money tips
How do you avoid a back-to-school budget blowout? Ruth shares six steps that will help reduce the stress that is associated with this expensive time of year! Uniforms, stationery, extracurricular activities and school trips, she’s got it covered!
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One of the household manager’s biggest challenges is filing and retrieving things. Warranties, invoices, receipts, insurance policies, instruction manuals. Where are they when you need them? And what happens if a family member needs a document when you’re not around? In this article, Dora shares three ways to use PocketSmith’s Attachments feature to create order from chaos.
Money tips
All parents will know the simultaneous joy of dropping the kids off on their first day back at school (yay, quiet house!) and the dreaded knowledge of how much emptier their pockets are (boo, back-to-school expenses!). Ruth The Happy Saver shares her experiences now that her daughter’s started high school. Non-Kiwi readers, prepare to be shocked at how much our school uniforms cost!
