You’re a tradie – how does KiwiSaver work for you?

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Do you have your KiwiSaver sorted? Or does it seem like too much hassle? As a tradie, you might be keen to set yourself up for retirement ASAP, but is it worth it? And how does it really work with your role?

What do you get out of KiwiSaver?

KiwiSaver is a great way for you to build up that cash as you go through life so you can have a sweet retirement when it comes time to down-tools and head for your golden years. Depending on where you’re at, you can also use your KiwiSaver savings to help you buy your first home (something a lot of us could definitely use, right?).

As an added bonus, you also get an extra $521.43 worth of free money from the government every year if you chuck in at least $1042.86. Usually your employer takes care of that and money comes out of your wages for your KiwiSaver, but when you’re a contractor, it’s a little different.

You’ll need to do the hard yards

If you’re a contractor, you’re self-employed in the eyes of the IRD so you’ll need to get your KiwiSaver set up yourself. It’s not too difficult, you just need to do a little bit of research and talk to the right people to get you started. You’ll need to pick a provider and the type of fund that works for you depending on how much risk you’re willing to deal with, and then you’ll have to regularly put money in there voluntarily.

It might seem like a lot, but once it’s all set up the way you want, you could have tens of thousands more than you first thought once you retire!

Free money? How do I get that?

As long as you put in at least $1042.86, you’ll get the free money from the government! This payment is made automatically every year provided that you have put in that much over the year, so it’s important to keep an eye on how much you’ve actually been putting in.

The best rule of thumb is to put just over $20 a week into your KiwiSaver account over the entire year (from 1 July to 30 June) – if that seems a pain to remember each time you get paid, just set up an automatic payment and set and forget!

Want to know how much you could actually have at retirement with KiwiSaver? Check out this awesome calculator here.

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