Hi everyone,

We sold our house (after splitting it into two flats) in Bristol early last year then emigrated to New Zealand. Managed to transfer the funds from the sale at 2.84 dollars to the pound. The rate is now nearer 2.5 so on our 100K if we move it back to the UK we will have made roughly 13K.

My reasoniong for moving it back is two fold: Firstly, if we decide we don't like it here afterall then we simply have the money back in the UK at a bit of a profit. All good.
Secondly, if we stay, we will not be looking to buy for about 9 months. If the recession hits the US and the UK then I can only imagine NZ will follow along shortly after (as much of the trade for NZ comes from the US and UK). I also imagine that the NZ economy will fair worse than the UK economy at that point. This points to an increaseing exchange rate for NZ dolars to pounds (i.e. we might get back up to 2.84 : 1 or even higher).

Does that make any sort of sense or am I about to make myself considerably poorer? Oh for a crystal ball...

Cheers

Welcome to New Zealand
2.84 wasn't too bad, but if you'd timed it better you'd have got 2.96.
At 2.49 now, it certainly is volatile.

I'm glad to see someone thinking about this subject.
Don't forget you don't pay tax on interest earned outside NZ for 4 years for new migrants. But that is a small point compared with the exchange rate movements.

The GBPNZ$ is pretty low at the moment, and I agree the NZ$ could well fall. But it isn't guaranteed.
May I suggest you spread the risk a little more.
What about Yen? The NZ$JPY rate is quite good now. It peaked at about 96, has been down at 75, but is currently up at 85.13. I'm hoping for it to fall to at least 70.
You can open an ASB or ANZ foreign currency account (free if you put enough in). So convenient and local. Although you may worry about whether any of the banks will have trouble!

Also what about some gold and maybe a little silver.
Again, with NZ$, you can go for the New Zealand Mint, or AGV, or the Perth Mint.
Just in case. But also should do well, specially if you have NZ$ and the NZ$ falls as gold rises.

Personally I wouldn't touch the GBP at the moment.

As you can see we're in Christchurch. Just done our 2md Xmas here.
Steve

No reply ?

Sorry dude, been busy.

I certainly see your point about spreading the risk. At the mo I have all our cash in a 1 year fixed rate ASB account and am trying to keep a careful eye on things in case I need to withdraw it is rush (should the bank look shaky).

I know that in the UK there is a government savings insurance / guarentee for up to £35K of savings but don't really know what there is here. Also, although I can keep an eye on what the bank is doing in NZ, I don't know how closely it is linked to Oz. Obviously if things go bad in Oz, I don't want to suddenly find all the NZ funds going off to prop them up!

I am definitely going off the idea of GBP. Just reading around the forums in the last few days and a few business papers, things certainly look bad for the UK economy. I'll wait till it's 1:1 and then exchange

I'm new to having a wodge of savings. How does one get into gold? I assume it's not stuffed under the bed?

Cheers

Hi,
Yes so have I !

There is no (I repeat NO) protection scheme in NZ.

Actually, you may have just missed the best time to buy GBP. GBPNZ$ bottomed at about 2.49, and IMO is on the way up.
BUT, that's only because the NZ$ is falling.
I'm expecting the GBP to fall but the NZ$ to fall more.
IMO it's better to move into a currency that is moving up, rather than pick another one that's just moving down less quickly !

Yen is still a good bet, but more risky than when the NZ$JPY was up at 96. That would have been a really good time to buy Yen.
96 down to 80 now! Quite a gain.

To buy gold, you have different categories:
1. ETFs - paper ownership of gold you can buy/sell via broker. Popular with traders, but IMO (and that of others) not as safe as they could be in a crisis.
2. Via one of the companies that store allocated physical gold for you.
3. Buy physical and have it delivered to you.

For (2), you have Bullion Vault and Gold Money in the UK, but you need £s.
For you with NZ$, the Perth Mint would probably be better.

For (3) The NZ mint is probably the best bet. You can buy 1oz Gold Kiwi coins at about 6.5% above spot, and they will buy them back at spot.
That makes coins a better option than bars!
They will store for you, or you can use a bank etc safety deposit box. They are only about $30 to $50 per year.
If you are in Auckland there is also the ASB Vault. You can even buy your own deposit box, and rent it out when you don't want it. From $2000 I think.

IMO get at least 10% gold and just hold it. Don't panic if it drops. Just hold and be patient.
And read this: http://www.jsmineset.com/

I hope that helps.
Cheers
Steve

Cheers dude, lots of great info there. I did some more checking the other night and found the link on the reserve banks site that talks about the lack of deposit insurance (and why that isn't really a problem at all!). Shocking, isn't it. Still at least the NZ banks have to have thier own reserves even if they are owned by the Aussies.
I'll seriously look into gold tomorrow, shame I didn't about three weeks ago (or 5 years!)

I'll let you know how I get on.

Mark

I've just been looking at the NZ Mint. Do you know if they are happy to advise on the best deal (i.e. coins vs bullion) for a quantity of money or do they leave that up to you?

I think I'd leave it with them in allocated storage, if I had them at home I'd forget them when we moved...

Now I just have to decide how much to spend

Hi Mark,
Give them a ring on 0800 696 468. You'll get to talk to either Michael or Michael
Very friendly and very helpful.

If you want them to store it for you, I suggest you ask them what the best option is.
As I said, because they mint coins, they do a great deal on coins.

The price does depend on how much you want to spend. The more you spend the cheaper they are.

Many people have been expecting a BRIEF drop in gold when the **** hits the fan. Which could be this week!
But, as always it's tricky. You might miss the dip and see the price rocket upwards.
IMO having some NOW gives you that bit of safe haven security.

Good luck.
Steve

Hi Steve,

Well I have done the deal with Michael (or Michael, I'm not sure which) and money has exchanged hands. The storage at the mint seems expensive (2% of total value per year) so I have looked into vaults here. No problem with the vault itself ($200 per year) but I would also like insurance on the stuff too. Do you have any recommendations for an insurance broker or know of any? I have had a google but it doesn't give me any answers. I have asked the vault for a recommendation but not sure if they'll know of anyone.
Also, our contents insurance doesn't cover it (not really surpised there!).

Cheers