Mike's Minute: Your retirement savings are in your own hands

The Mike Hosking Breakfast

There was a survey out last week that broadly supported the Government’s moves around KiwiSaver, as in the 3% and 3% going to 4% and 4%.

But they wanted the Government to do something about the cut in contribution from the state.

Small hint – if you rely on the Government for any consistency around long term projects, forget it.

From the very beginning of KiwiSaver, the Government were always going to be the weak link.

When it comes to big picture stuff, dedication and focus from a government is a casualty of the three year political cycle. They were never going to be our friend on retirement savings.

The best advice I offer anyone, including our kids, is do it yourself. It's your life, your decision and your future, so do it yourself.

To show you how hopeless we are at saving in this country, figures released last week in America showed their KiwiSaver, what they call their 401k, hit a record high at 14.3%.

So while we are mucking around on 3-4% they are up to over 14%.

Here is the kicker – the industry says it really should 15% if you want to be comfortable.

A psychological step change is required and I'm not sure we will ever get there.

Whether its employer contributions that get offered instead of more pay, or whether it’s the Australian style compulsion, a lot of countries do it a lot of different ways and most of them have dealt with the age of retirement as well.

We basically are stuck with 65-years-old, and angst around even a debate about changing it, and far too many people who get to retirement and are stuck with a state-funded payout that has never been good and will not serve you well, if it's all you have to live off.

There is of course no reason for this to even be a problem. Lee Kuan Yew many years ago in Singapore took a third world country, told them to save, forced them to save, and now they are rich.

The answers are all there. Australia has it sorted, the Norway fund is famous, and even the Americans at 14.3% seem to have it solved.

We need to look and learn and then get our act together and apply a bit of basic discipline to our long-term futures that don’t rely on a government.

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