Latest from Diana Clement: Real Money

Diana Clement: What spending habits are hurting you?

Do you want to be poor for the rest of your life? Your habits will dictate the answer far more than your earnings.

Diana Clement: Simple tips make you a financial superhuman

Organising your money properly can pay off with savings and extra cash.

Diana Clement: From debt to depression a vicious circle

Once depressed, debt becomes a vicious circle, says Judi Clements, chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation.

When do budget cuts become too extreme?

Using drier lint instead of cotton swabs, home dentistry and free range guinea pigs. When does extreme budgeting go too far?

Diana Clement: Top 6 life insurance mistakes Kiwis make

Diana Clement looks at the six biggest life insurance mistakes that Kiwis make.

Diana Clement: Credit rating redemption is possible

Bad credit ratings happen to people in all walks of life. Sometimes a catastrophe such as business failure, divorce or illness leaves an erstwhile financially healthy member of the public in dire straits.

Diana Clement: Pet investments put the 'fun' back into funds

'Have you got a pet investment?" My mother leaned across a cafe table to ask me this question a few weeks back and the idea for an article was born.

Diana Clement: KiwiSaver - the bits that make us grumpy

Rejection of hardship withdrawal applications and problems with first-home buying generate many complaints to watchdogs, writes Diana Clement.

Diana Clement: Booking charges sting

Whether you want to book tickets to an event, pay for a carpark or buy a movie ticket online, fees and charges are sucking you dry, Diana Clement writes.

Time to do away with those rose-tinted glasses

Making a dodgy investment decision is easy. Frame it with the wrong facts and figures and it's bound to look good, Diana Clement writes.

Tips for surviving on super

Making the move from being a working person to living, at best, in reduced circumstances, and at worst on NZ Super alone, is difficult.

Early errors can teach valuable financial lessons

Admitting you've made a mistake can be painful. Learning from that mistake can make someone. Money gurus share mishaps from their youth for you to learn from.

Diana Clement: Kiwis open their hearts and wallets after a crisis

Kiwis have been opening their wallets over the past fortnight for the Vanuatu relief effort.

Diana Clement: Pays to check bank rates

Are zombies eating your bank interest? Zombie accounts are the ones that pay low interest rates - sometimes as low as zero.

Diana Clement: Love at first byte, but no sure profit from collecting

Collectibles are subject to the laws of supply and demand. They can provide some protection from inflation, but aren't the best hedge around, writes Diana Clement.