Investing used to seem the privilege of middle-aged white males — many of whom had paid off their mortgages and were looking to play the market. Perhaps they were the only ones with extra money; perhaps they were the only ones interested!
Things are quite different now. If you're reading this, you're probably an investor because you're in KiwiSaver. (If you thought you were merely saving, your money is actually being invested for you by a fund manager.) And you can — and need — to make some key choices about that.
Something else is also happening. More and more we're having to shoulder the responsibility of funding our lifestyles after we'll stop working. Instead of relying on pension plans to take care of us, we need to set up our future incomes ourselves.
That means investing. Our future income won't just come from each pay we earn until retirement, but from market returns as well.
