Making Cents

Free Power Forever? The Real Cost, Payback Time, and Battery Truth on Solar in NZ

18 months ago, I spent $89,000 on home solar and an electric car. I told you about it, and was flooded with questions on how this could work for other people.

(You can listen to the previous episode from 1 April, titled "I Spent $89,000 on Solar And Electric Car In NZ… Was It Worth It?")

This episode is the follow-up, answering every question from the practical (does my roof even work?) to the financial (do I actually need a $10,000 battery?).

I’ll break down:

• Would solar work on your house, and what it takes to make solar power work
• How to run the numbers to find out how long solar would take to pay itself off. I’ve got a three-figure back-of-envelope calculation anyone can do with last year's power bills
• Do you need a battery to make solar power worthwhile?
• What to do if money's tight, or you rent
• Where solar power is heading next, including balcony solar and virtual power plants

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Production and video editing by Lana Byrne

Audio engineering by Tash Chittock

Filmed by Fanaticals

Why do so many high performers end up exhausted and burned out?

Mindset coach Sarah Robb has spent years working in this area, and says that unfortunately, many of us burn ourselves out, usually trying to prove we're good enough.

At 26, Sarah had lost both her parents, in difficult circumstances.

What she built afterwards became the foundation for how she now coaches high achievers, business owners, and ambitious women through burnout, imposter syndrome, and self-doubt - without losing their drive.

In this episode:

• How to stop burnout without giving up ambition
• Why energy management matters more than time management
• The hidden reasons we hold onto limiting beliefs
• How to set boundaries and say no without guilt
• How to build self-compassion (not just self-love)
• Why presence, not productivity, is the antidote to overwhelm

If you've ever felt successful on the outside but exhausted on the inside, this conversation is for you.

This episode of Making Cents is proudly supported by Odoo. Go to https://www.odoo.com/r/hpl now and try it for free, for 15 days.

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Production and video editing by Lana Byrne

Audio engineering by Tash Chittock

Filmed by Fanaticals

Frances Cook joins the TVNZ Breakfast team to talk through one of her favourite money hacks, using the second hand market to both clear out the clutter at home and score serious bargains on everything from furniture to kids clothes.

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Are there still good property deals in New Zealand right now? Here's where to actually look.

A listener wrote in with the question everyone's asking: prices are technically down, but they still feel expensive. Interest rates aren't friendly. Rents don't cover the mortgage.

So is property investment still worth it, or has the window already closed?

On this episode of Ask the Experts, Katie Wesney from EnableMe is ready to talk about what changes the calculations on whether property investment is worth it.

In this episode:

• New builds vs. existing homes: which one actually protects your money
• The real relationship between rental yield and capital gains
• Why buying outside your own city can be a smart risk-mitigation move
• Which parts of New Zealand currently have the strongest property fundamentals
• How to use equity in your own home instead of waiting to save a deposit
• The difference between a genuine bargain and a property that's "cheap for a reason"
• The one question to ask before buying ANY investment property

If you've been told property investment doesn't work anymore, this episode will change how you think about it.

If you have a letter you’d like us to answer, please send it through to [email protected] and you might feature on our next episode!

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Production and video editing by Lana Byrne

Audio engineering by Tash Chittock

Filmed by Fanaticals

There's actual behavioural science behind why we freeze up around money, and it's the same science that Mark White-Robinson has built a business around solving.

Mark is the co-founder of Feijoa, an app that rounds up your everyday purchases and tips that spare change straight into your KiwiSaver.

Seven months in, his users are on track to build millions in retirement savings.

The trick to money is usually small habits, over a long time. That's it. But there's a real science to making them stick.

In this episode we get into:

• Why doing nothing is usually the worst financial decision you can make
• The three things that stop people taking action with money (and how to get around them)
• Why 1 million eligible New Zealanders are missing out on over a billion dollars a year in free KiwiSaver contributions
• The behavioural tricks built into Feijoa, and how to steal them for your own money life
• What open banking has changed for everyday Kiwis

This episode of Making Cents is proudly supported by Odoo. Go to https://www.odoo.com/r/hpl now and try it for free, for 15 days.

Follow me everywhere!

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Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribe

Become a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest

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Production and video editing by Lana Byrne

Audio engineering by Tash Chittock

Filmed by Fanaticals

Frances Cook joins Jim Mora on RNZ Sunday Morning to cover the latest in money news, from why the job market feels so tough right now and where the work actually is, to the AI investment boom, social media spending traps and whether nicking the hotel soap counts as a financial strategy.

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Your side hustle is making real money. Now what?

Because when the income is real, things are growing, you can suddenly realise the whole operation is held together with sticky tape and good intentions.

Income from a job, income from side work, all of it landing in the same personal account with no clear picture of what's coming in, what's going out, or what any of it means for tax time.

This week on Ask the Experts, James Gibson, head of Revolut Business, walks through exactly what to do when a side hustle outgrows its informal beginnings.

It’s a question that a lot of self-employed New Zealanders will recognise: how do you set up your finances properly when your side hustle starts making serious money?

This episode is proudly supported by Revolut Business. Sign up online and get a one-month free trial at this link https://get.revolut.com/e9Jc/makingcents1 T&Cs apply, subscription fees will apply at the end of the trial, see website for details. Revolut Payments New Zealand Pty Ltd.

This episode covers:

• When to open a separate business bank account for your side hustle
• How to manage multiple income streams without losing track
• What happens if you mix personal and business finances, and why it matters at tax time
• How to track self-employed income and expenses without an accountant
• Budgeting and cash flow basics for first-time business owners
• Simple financial systems for the self-employed that don't require a finance background
• How to structure your money when you're employed and self-employed at the same time

If you have a letter you’d like us to answer, please send it through to [email protected] and you might feature on our next episode!

Follow me everywhere!

Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZ

Instagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknz

TikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknz

Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribe

Become a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest

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Production and video editing by Lana Byrne

Audio engineering by Tash Chittock

Filmed by Fanaticals

There’s a wealth transfer ready to happen right now, but only if you know where to look for it.

A generation of baby boomers built their businesses over decades. Now they're ready to retire. But they can't find buyers.

Which means there are businesses out there right now, with existing customers, existing income, existing systems, waiting for the right person to take them over.

Jeremy Pak has a ringside seat to all of it. He's a chartered accountant and managing director of Velocity Capital, who spends his days helping New Zealanders buy and sell businesses worth millions.

What he's learned about how wealth actually gets built in this country might change how you think about your own options.

In this episode we cover:

• When to buy a business, vs starting one from scratch
• How to fund a business purchase even if you don't have cash sitting around (including vendor finance)
• What Jeremy is seeing in the market, and why he's forecasting a threefold increase in business sales next year
• How to stress test a business before you buy it
• Which types of NZ businesses Jeremy thinks have the potential to earn the most

This episode of Making Cents is proudly supported by Odoo. Go to https://www.odoo.com/r/hpl now and try it for free, for 15 days.

Follow me everywhere!

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Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribe

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Production and video editing by Lana Byrne

Audio engineering by Tash Chittock

Filmed by Fanaticals

Financial freedom sounds great in theory, but what does it actually take to get there as a normal person?

In this webinar, Frances Cook is joined by Sheppard & Ormsby chartered accountant Bronwyn Candish and EnableMe national coaching lead Katie Wesney to break down what financial freedom really means, how to find the money to invest, the biggest mistakes people make along the way, and one thing you can do this week to get started

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Instagram / Frances | Money | Investing (@francescooknz) • Instagram profile

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Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribe

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Being weird with money is the smartest thing you can do, to get financial freedom.

Most of us are following the same money playbook, and it’s not working.

Around 30% of New Zealanders don't have $1,000 in savings, and over 60% couldn't cover a real emergency.

Frances Cook, financial journalist and host of Making Cents, shares exactly how embracing "weird" money habits helped her build financial freedom, and how you can do the same.

In this episode:

• Why the standard approach to money keeps so many of us stuck, and what to do instead
• The hedonic treadmill: the psychology trick that's draining your wallet
• How to figure out what actually makes you happy (it's probably cheaper than you think)
• The secondhand challenge that changed Frances's finances
• Why a cheaper daily life and big one-off experiences beats an expensive lifestyle every time
• How to stop spending on what other people want, and start spending on what YOU want

Follow me everywhere!

Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZ

Instagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknz

TikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknz

Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribe

Become a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest

#MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedom

Production and video editing by Lana Byrne

Audio engineering by Tash Chittock

Filmed by Fanaticals