The Happy Saver Podcast - Personal Finance in New Zealand

118. Living Well, Spending Less

10 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Emily and I first met over email and via one of my Phone A Friend chats back in late 2023. Like me, she loves regional Aotearoa and everything it has ...

117. Owning Rental Property Is a Business

17 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

I really enjoyed creating this episode because it explores a form of investing that doesn’t often feature heavily in the wealth-building stories I u...

116. Separating Finances After Decades of Marriage

27 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In today’s episode, I had the great pleasure of speaking with Carla. She lives in a small regional town in the South Island with her husband and the...

115. I Feel Like I’m The Only One

16 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Jennifer first emailed me in early 2023 after listening to all my podcasts. She knew I was a big advocate for parents teaching kids to invest and had ...

114. Engineering a Solid Financial Life Together

18 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today I’m sharing the story of Steve and Sarah, a UK couple who, many years ago, packed up their lives, moved to Aotearoa, and built a really solid ...

113. Late Financial Bloomers: Proof It’s Never Too Late to Start

28 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Maria and Michelle were late financial bloomers who only really got started in their 50s. Now 71 and 69, they’ve paid off their mortgage and student...

112. Resilience, Balance, Community, and Happiness

07 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week, I’m sharing the story of Rachel, a 90s kid from Timaru. Rachel is the youngest of four, with three brothers, and a ten year gap between h...

111. Moving Closer to Financial Independence

17 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In today’s episode, I spoke with Marian, who in turn spoke on behalf of herself and her husband, Jon. Originally from the Netherlands and now based ...

110. No More Using the House as an ATM

27 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest, Gail, has been on quite the financial trip and she’s still very much on it. Back in 2019, at age 41, she experienced a wake-up call...

109. Putting Up Some Financial Scaffolding After 50

06 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week's podcast is all about 51-year-old Julian. We picked up the phone for a good old kōrero in late June 2025. Let’s just say, if talking wer...

108. Living by Design, Not by Default

16 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In today’s episode, you’ll hear from an awesome couple, Kate and Taka, aged 33 and 34, who are doing life and money a little differently, and doin...

107. Revisit with Hamish: An investor with military precision!

25 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This is a revisit episode, I enjoy doing these because I like you wonder, “Whatever happened to…?” I last spoke with Hamish in 2021, Episode 50,...

106. Revisit with Neil: A Financially Complicated Breakup

04 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This episode revisits my August 2022 conversation with Neil in Episode 69, A Financially Complicated Breakup. Now 52, Neil has lived in New Zealand fo...

105. A Lumpy Journey – No Need to Go Anywhere in a Straight Line

14 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, I chat with Tracey, a long-time reader and listener of The Happy Saver who first came on my radar through her detailed Debt Free Ques...

104. I Have Stopped Sleepwalking Through My Finances

23 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

After my long kōrero with Sammy to prepare this episode, my head was spinning from all the twists and turns of her story. After 57 years of personal ...

103. 20-Year-Old on the Path to Financial Freedom

01 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In November 2024, I attended Black FI-Day, New Zealand’s first financial independence hui. Nearly 40 people gathered for this three-day event to sha...

102. Once you have won the money game, stop and enjoy life.

11 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today, I’m sharing the financial ins and outs of Alan and Katie Donegan, the world-travelling English couple behind Rebel Finance School. Over the y...

101. Pushing Themselves - Financially Going For It!

18 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I first met today's guest, Ajith, when he emailed me with a couple of questions back in 2024. He’d come across The Happy Saver while on the hunt for...

100. A Solo Journey to Financial Independence

17 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In mid-October 2024, I brewed a coffee, sat down, and gave Poto a call. She’s been a long-time listener of the podcast, drawing on insights from pas...

99. Work, Life, Balance: With Plenty of Free Time!

26 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week, I’m making a bit of an exception and chatting with someone who was a bit reluctant to talk about money. Which is ironic, given this is a ...

98. Life and times of a property investor, turned global traveller.

05 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In today's episode, I will be sharing the financial journey of Jack, a Kiwi from the lower North Island. Jack found The Happy Saver when he was search...

97. Revisit with Chris and Rosemary: These two are not mucking around!

15 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s episode is an update on North Island couple Chris and Rosemary. Their first episode came out in March 2021 — it was episode number 49. Sin...

96. Reality Check

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Today's episode began with an email from a Kiwi couple in their mid-40s, who asked to be called Tokyo and Rio, inspired by the show Money Heist. Tokyo...

95. On the Verge of Lasting Change. Hopefully.

04 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

When I received an email from a guy called John saying that he and his wife Betty have gone from being terrible with money and trying (unsuccessfully)...

94. Continuous Improvement

14 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Ruby stumbled across The Happy Saver in October of 2022, prompting her to email me with a couple of questions. She’d recently signed up with Sharesi...

Part 6: INVESTING

24 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Congratulations, you have made it to the final episode of this series of six: INVESTING. Investing can be incredibly complex, but I found a way to sim...

Part 5: DEBT FREE

10 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Get out of debt, and stay out of debt. I think of debt as a phase of life that I moved through. That period has passed, and I’ve moved on. Jonny and...

Part 4: KIWISAVER

26 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The fourth part of this six-part series is one of the easier topics to cover, KiwiSaver. Joining KiwiSaver is a no-brainer, and it still surprises me ...

Part 3: EMERGENCY FUND

12 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The best thing I ever did was set some cash into a bank account, which we could instantly access in a financial emergency. It is an amount of money se...

Part 2: BUDGET

29 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In the first episode in this series of six, I quickly showed you how to calculate your net worth. It will take a little longer today, but I want to ex...

Part 1: NET WORTH

15 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Welcome to the first episode in a short six-part series. On my blog, thehappysaver.com, I created a comprehensive Financial Independence Series of six...

93. Revisit with Nic: In the process of making a financial U-turn!

26 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Today, I have an update on Nic from Episode 78, released in March 2023. A lot can happen in a year, which I wanted to share with you today. When Nic a...

92. An adventurous 19-year-old

05 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

I met 19-year-old Josephine in mid-2023 when she emailed me with some questions about money. I actually already knew a little about her because her Mu...

91. With only $100 in the bank, something had to change.

13 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In early January, I was lucky enough to have a long chat with Grace, who is now in her late 20s. Grace has been following my podcast since 2019, which...

90. Revisit with Bradie and Paul: The First Year of Early Retirement

23 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

I’m particularly excited about today’s podcast because it is a revisit episode with Bradie and Paul. This is actually the fifth time we have caugh...

89. Creative Planners Working Towards a Retirement of Plenty

28 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I chatted with Isobel and Sam for almost three hours on a sunny Sunday afternoon. As with all of these interviews, straight out of the gate, we were i...

88. Birds of a Feather Flock Together

07 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, I’m going to be sharing the experiences of Scott and Jane. This couple are from completely different backgrounds and also from diff...

87. My Partner Died Without a Will

17 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today I am really looking forward to sharing the financial ins and outs of Rachael, a wonderful wahine who has been listening to this very podcast for...

86. You can’t live with a lifestyle that is above your income.

16 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The standout for me today is how quickly you can change your financial lot in life simply because you decide to. Helen and Scott are 45 and 42 respect...

85. Revisit with Kiri: The Rollercoaster Continues

05 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I’ve been corresponding with Kiri for about five years now. Those back-and-forth email conversations eventually led to me picking up the phone and c...

84. Early Retirement: But still working stuff out.

14 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today, I have the pleasure of sharing the story behind how Tony and his wife Karen came to create a net worth of $2.8 million and retire aged 49 and 5...

83. Iron Fisted Lucy

24 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Lucy, Steve and their two teenage children openly talk about money in their family. It comes from them trying to make sense of their complicated finan...

82. From Paycheque to Paycheque to Home Sweet Home

03 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we hear from Jess, a single 52-year-old woman who reached out to me in early 2022 when she sent me a lovely email telling me she had ...

81. Turning good opportunities into reality!

12 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I met 29-year-old Dylan when he heard my call out for younger people to get in touch and share their stories with money. Through luck and good timing,...

80. Young, Bright, and Financially Wise

28 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this week's episode, I wanted to revisit an earlier episode with an update on Nathan from episode 71, and introduce a new guest, Sam, a 16-year-old...

79. I'll drink to that!

14 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I’m looking forward to telling you all about 37-year-old Tui. She described herself as someone who has worked hard to get her financial house in ord...

78. In the process of making a Financial U-turn!

28 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Nic described herself as a 42-year-old professional who sometimes has to pinch herself at the job she has. It’s a tough demanding role in a field sh...

77. Saving is the new shopping!

13 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When Rachel told me that she had very recently moved from a super consumer to thinking instead that saving was the new shopping, I knew the story of t...

76. Part-time work. Full-time life.

29 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week I’m sharing the financial life of Ngaio and Ben, a Coromandel couple in their early 30s. They struck a chord with me because I love seeing...

75. If it’s not simple, you shouldn’t be doing it.

01 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week I caught up with a couple in their mid 20’s, Richard and Jane. Their express aim in putting themselves out there is to comfort the other t...

74. Interesting things happen to interesting people.

18 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week I’m sharing the story of Ayana, a woman who sure does have a zest for life. However, life keeps throwing her curve balls, and she has to k...

73. No student loan for me!

04 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today I’m excited to share the story of Pipi, a 20-year-old wahine from Auckland. Pipi got her first part-time job at the age of just 13, and now th...

72. An inheritance goes a long way!

21 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I’ve met countless people who have received an inheritance, yet today they are in a really poor financial situation. It’s what you DO with an inhe...

71. 19 Year Old Goes to Polytech Debt Free

07 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Being only 19, and one of the younger people I’ve interviewed didn’t mean that today's guest Nathan had less to share. In November of 2022, he wil...

70. Our Money, Our Future

24 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest, 33-year-old Freya from Auckland, emailed me because she wanted me to interview more younger women who had their money sorted and also...

69. A Financially Complicated Breakup

10 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Neil has come a long way in life since his move from London to New Zealand in 2005. His one-year adventure has turned into 17 and counting, and year o...

68. On the trail to FIRE!

27 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I managed to cross paths with 35-year-old Dani because both of us are runners and seeing the trails she was enjoying always inspired me to lace up my ...

67. How to Use Your Nest Egg in Retirement

13 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Sometimes, a minor conversation lights a spark and makes me want to know more about a person. This was the case with today’s guest Zoe. She emailed ...

66. You've gotta know your numbers!

29 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Senia and her small whānau moved to Ashburton, New Zealand, from Samoa back in 2010 and quietly began to take on consumer debt. Until one day, enough...

65. I am no longer at the mercy of fate.

15 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Australian based Kiwi Dad of two Jon went through a relationship separation and a financial crisis some years ago but is now on track to be mortgage-f...

64. Building intergenerational wealth through property investment.

01 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today I have a chat with Jay. He reached out to me with a story to share about him and his wife Shelle and their property investment journey. He sees ...

63. Revisit with Bradie: Suffocating Mortgage Debt to Financial Independence in Six Short Years

18 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This is the fourth time that I’ve interviewed Bradie for this podcast! Why do I keep coming back for more? Because I am hooked on her journey from s...

62. I retired at 39!

04 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week I’m sharing the story of early retiree Brendan. We’ve met in person many times now, even more so since he moved to Central Otago in late...

61. Revisit with Bella: I don’t want a student debt hangover!

20 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In today’s podcast, I’m doing a revisit with Bella who I interviewed in Episode 52. She shared the realities of student loan debt in New Zealand a...

60. First Home Buyers

28 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Kiri and I have been emailing each other since mid-2018 discussing all manner of money related things as they unfolded for her whānau of three. Kiri,...

59. The evolution of a workable financial plan.

22 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

I first heard from Andy when he was 29. He emailed with several questions and observations, and the bit that stuck with me most was that he was pretty...

58. Leaving the big city for the Good Life

15 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

This week I’m sharing the story of a central Hawke’s Bay couple Rach and Becs. They made the bold move to leave both of their families behind and ...

57. You can plan not to be broke

08 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Over the years Janet, who is 59, has worked out that other people can be unreliable, so she is better to plan for her own success, instead of relying ...

56. House Rich, Cash Poor

01 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today I’m introducing you to Fatima. By working hard and being at the right place at the right time, she had managed to buy several properties but t...

55. Steep Grade Charge Down - Leaving Debt in the Rearview Mirror Forever

25 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

I’m starting out this series of six new episodes with a woman that I know pretty well, the reason being that she is one of my sisters! It took a lit...

54. Where are they now? A revisit with Lucas, Callum and Bradie.

05 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

For the last episode in this series, I have once again reconnected with a few people that I’ve interviewed before. I like to check in on people and ...

53. On a flight path to financial independence.

28 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When Julian and Sophie met in 1999 they each had a car, a very small amount in savings and no debt. Just 21 ‘short’ years later they have an appro...

52. I don’t want a student debt hangover!

21 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In today’s podcast, 26-year-old Bella shares the realities of student loan debt in New Zealand and how you can meander your way into debt, but it’...

51. Family first, live within your means, always have an emergency fund.

14 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Aria and her husband Dave didn’t grow up with much so once they got together they knew they didn’t want to live paycheque to paycheque like many o...

50. An investor with military precision!

07 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

I first heard from Hamish when he sent me an email in late 2020 telling me that back in 2018, at the age of just 24 he had saved up and bought a $379,...

49. Everything I thought I knew about money was wrong

30 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

“Well this is awkward” I thought when some guy called Chris started secretly emailing me without his partner’s knowledge! Big long emails with t...

48. Everything is working out perfectly!

20 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Jen freaked out at 49! She considered herself to be halfway through her life and had big concerns about what the other half might look like. She becam...

47. Matching income with expectations is the secret.

13 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

So often people tell me that they ‘wish their parents had talked to them more about money’ when they were growing up. Well, in today’s podcast t...

46. I'm sick of living pay cheque to pay cheque!

06 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Alana’s debt of choice was buying household items on Hire Purchase. Lots of them! But before long she had precommitted her income years into the fut...

45. Stop the bus! You paid off your mortgage?

29 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This week, I’m heading South to one of New Zealand's more underrated cities, Invercargill, where I had a chat with Steve who described his financial...

44. Please can I buy a boat?

23 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

When a former multisport athlete turns the same motivation, hard work and attention to detail that they used for their sport to their personal finance...

43. Help yourself first so you can then help others

16 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

There were many points during Ella’s 40 plus years that her gut instinct told her to make a few changes to the way her family handled money. Many of...

42. Coming a long way in a short space of time.

20 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this final podcast of this series, I’m doing a recap of two people that I’ve spoken with earlier. Firstly there was Bret from episode #20, a gu...

41. Turbulent Times

13 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This week I tell you all about Catherine and her husband Luke. Both of them had been enjoying successful careers and had been working to a financial p...

40. It's never too late to change.

06 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This week I’m going to share the story of Linda, a woman in her early 50’s who has had a huge shift in mindset over the last ten months. Linda’s...

39. Battling the desire to just spend, spend, spend!

29 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Becky described herself as a spender at heart who has to constantly battle against the desire to just spend, spend, spend. The spiral began with inter...

38. Keep On Truckin

22 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Aaron and his wife Shannon have a young son, just six months old and it’s what they did in the lead up to his birth that got my attention. They deci...

37. This is what Starting Young Looks Like

15 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Often when I speak with people their one regret is that “they didn’t start saving and investing earlier”. Well today, you are going to hear abou...

36. Divorced and Determined Budgeting Queen

26 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

When I think of Mandy, the word that keeps coming to my mind is ‘determined’. She was living the good life right up until she wasn’t. We pick up...

35. Rebalancing the Portfolio

19 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Jo is a busy Mum of a two year old, they had just returned from an overseas trip and she is juggling parenting with a 30 hour work week, while her par...

34. I'm keeping the dog!

12 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

I came upon Tracy via Instagram. She was on a debt repayment marathon, trying to pay down $94,278 of consumer debt and was estimating it would take he...

33. A Debt Free Birthday

05 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What do you do when you become debt free for the very first time in your life? You email me to share your fabulous news of course! That is how I came ...

32. The Ultimatum!

29 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this week’s podcast I spoke with Farrel and Chihiro, a Christchurch couple in their early forties who are a great example of how to get two peopl...

31. Cherishing time over everything else.

22 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

I get a lump in my throat when I think about Tracey, her family and the journey they have been on together. Back in 1996, she had no money, she had le...

30. Young investor tries it all from penny stocks to margin lending.

24 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Ryan is a 23 year old Australian who started trading penny stocks at 16, worked pretty much full time while he was at university and has now begun his...

29. Being curious and asking questions gets rewards.

17 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Arataki is a woman who focuses on the collective and not on the individual and as she has moved through life she used some difficult experiences to no...

28. To stay on the million dollar mortgage treadmill or not?

10 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

New Zealand is a fabulously multicultural place and I often find myself speaking with people who were not born here but have chosen to make this place...

27. Minimalists go off on an adventure!

02 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

I stumbled upon Sandra and Paul in 2018 when I not only discovered their blog about travel and minimalism but also that they were passing through my t...

26. Single Income is No Barrier to Becoming Financially Independent

27 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

I’m going to tell you about a fabulous 42 year old woman I know, called Kate. We met via my blog when she reached out to me and that is when I knew ...

25. 1980s Yuppie Went Without to Invest Money from a Young Age

19 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This could have been a textbook case of “Investing 101”. Tom had the key components in there like: live on less than you make, invest in mutual fu...