As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a mum working part-time in the health sector explains where they spend and how they save.
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Gender: Woman.
Age: 32.
Ethnicity: Pākehā.
Role: I work part-time in a healthcare-adjacent Te Tumu Waiora role. I also look after our four-year-old two afternoons and in the school holidays.
Salary/income/assets: Between $1200-1400 a week, depending on how much I have worked that week. My partner makes a bit over $5,000 per week. We have our own home together worth approximately $1.3m and in the bank we have roughly $86,000 but $50,000 of that is an orbital so we don’t touch it. We have shares in a few different companies, I wouldn’t be able to hazard a guess on those. We also have some money in Kernel accounts for both of us and our daughter (mine is $5,000) which have great returns. We have KiwiSaver for retirement savings, his at $80,000 mine at $2,000. There’s also $110 in my Sharesies account because they had a deal where if you put in a hundred they’d top it up by 10!
My living location is: Suburban.
Rent/mortgage per week: $63,000 a year, not including rates etc.
Student loan or other debt payments per week: I still have a student loan kicking around, have that automatically deducted.
Typical weekly food costs
Groceries: About $300 between the three of us. I cook each night and try to do most stuff from scratch. This is something I prioritise for our health and I know we’re incredibly lucky to have the time and money to do it. We’ll do lots of veggies and I try to find a good mix of things we love and the four-year-old will eat. She goes to kindy so we also do lunchboxes. The exception to this is if we’re hosting, in which case I’m heading to the butchers and the budget is out the window.
Eating out: We like to go out for dates, and can rack up a bit of a bill if we go somewhere nice. Sushi train is a fun one and we’ll walk down to get an ice cream maybe once a week. So this fluctuates but I’d say $10 minimum, and it’s gone as high as $600 but only the once!
Takeaways: My partner loves a cheeky curry on nights he has sports and buys lunch whenever he’s working from the office. If he’s wfh I’ll sometimes cook for him or if the cupboards don’t have something easy he’ll Uber Eats.
Workday lunches: I make my own, usually salads from the leftovers or soups. I can do veg soups for less than a dollar a serving.
Cafe coffees/snacks: We have a coffee machine but it’s a lovely treat to take my daughter for a coffee/fluffy too. This is probably $20 a week on average. We also do baking together, I try not to have us paying for unhealthy stuff while we’re out beyond that.
Other food costs: I try to keep food costs down by having a few veggo options, and we have a lemon tree and peach trees. I am an atrocious gardener though. So $30 a year on the citrus food or whatever stuff the garden shop tells me to do.
Savings: We have some money aside for a wedding. We’re doing some work on the house currently so that’s meant we aren’t really saving but that has an end date!
I worry about money: Rarely.
Three words to describe my financial situation: I could go for overeducated and underpaid but my partner’s incredible. But that’s too long. I think better is just: Lucky, lucky, lucky.
My biggest edible indulgence would be: Honestly the treats I like are pretty cheap and nasty. It’s more of an indulgence in terms of the shitload of sugar than financially.
In a typical week my alcohol expenditure would be: I tried to average it out to like $30 but honestly this would be like a rollercoaster throughout the year. Some weeks zero, some weeks shocking.
In a typical week my transport expenditure would be: $75ish per week on petrol. We have one car, maintenance, WOF etc… it probably works out at $4,000 over the year.
I estimate in the past year the ballpark amount I spent on my personal clothing (including sleepwear and underwear) was: Too much? This is where I spend a bit. I try to prioritise NZ designers, I buy second hand a lot but stuff like Juliette Hogan where I know that silk shirt will last me yonks. I’m really anti-Shein and Temu. I can be a bit cheeky with stuff I don’t need but it’s something I really enjoy that makes me feel good. It’s fun.
My most expensive clothing in the past year was: I bought a lovely Shona Joy dress, it was fun, quality and made me feel good. About $440.
My last pair of shoes cost: Some Mi Piaci boots, they were $70 off! So about $340 from memory. They have been super practical and I wear them tonnes. Reminds me of the Sam Vimes boots theory.
My grooming/beauty expenditure in a year is about: Somewhere around the realm of $3,000.
My exercise expenditure in a year is about: Shoes and running gear $500, and Pilates another $250.
My last Friday night cost: Nothing, we went to a friend’s party and had the four-year-old home in bed by 8.30.
Most regrettable purchase in the last 12 months was: A skirt I really wanted to love. Couldn’t make it work and it’s off to the second hand shop, never worn. I hope it finds someone to love it like it deserves. Or the time I didn’t get around to using mince before it went off. I get really annoyed at myself for stuff like that because it’s so wasteful.
Most indulgent purchase (that I don’t regret) in the last 12 months was: I’m about to spend $650 on a custom frame but I really, really love it. I promise it’s cool.
One area where I’m a bit of a tightwad is: Food waste. I think it’s partly from when I was growing up but also I just don’t think it is necessary. I feel like I should get creative to use things up instead of throwing stuff out. I also despise paying for free services. My partner took over my Spotify sneakily one day to get rid of the ads because I was determined not to pay. I just didn’t want to reward such behaviour. Which is definitely anthropomorphising a totally uncaring app but oh well.
Five words to describe my financial personality would be: Relaxed and grateful as heck.
I grew up in a house where money was: Allocated, neatly apportioned. We had enough, but it was watched carefully. My parents are still paying off their mortgage now and they’ve been emotionally super lovely and supportive but it wouldn’t ever have been possible for that to extend to financial support. I have worked since I was 14 and that’s where extras and fun bits came from.
The last time my Eftpos card was declined was: Last month, there was money there I just got forgetful about managing the accounts.
In five years, in financial terms, I see myself: This is more a wish for my partner, but I’d love for him to be on four days also. He works so hard. Once we’re not paying for a nanny three afternoons and holidays (and hopefully I’m earning more) it’d be so wonderful for us to have a day together as a couple and do cool stuff in the afternoon as a family.
I would love to have more money for: Holidays and charities.
Describe your financial low: At one point when I was (even more) young and irresponsible I got robbed in Mexico and I was stuck somewhere that wouldn’t let me leave without paying. That was no bueno.
I give money away to: Monthly a local children’s charity and the SPCA. I also try to pitch in when I see a Givealittle, fundraisers for schools, dance clubs etc. The buskers in town. Stuff that comes our way. Effective altruism is important but there’s so much more it just makes sense for the government to be providing (the tax adjustments were so stupid it’d make much more sense to copy Australia, have a higher amount of untaxed and then raise tax on the higher brackets)… but anyway.
