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Situations like yours
538 real situations worked through, drawn from 140 guides. Somebody dismissed on day 55 of a trial. A couple apportioning a bach they let out for part of the year. A high earner who hits the ACC cap.
A calculator answers the question you already know how to ask. These are for the other case: you know what has happened to you and not what it means. Each one sets out the circumstances, shows the arithmetic where there is arithmetic to show, and says what the person should take from it.
The people in these situations are illustrations written to show how the rules land on somebody, not real customers and not case histories. The arithmetic is real and the rules are real; the names and the circumstances are made up to teach.
Starting work for the first time
A first payslip, an IRD number, a first bank account, and the scams that go after people who have just started earning.
24 situations, 16 with the sumsUnderstanding your pay and tax
What comes out of your pay before you see it, and why the figure on your payslip is not the figure you were offered.
26 situations, 21 with the sumsChanging or losing a job
Trial periods, notice, unpaid wages, comparing two offers, and what happens to the money in the gap between jobs.
28 situations, 28 with the sumsWorking for yourself
A side hustle, a gig, a channel or a trade: what to charge, what to put aside for tax, and when GST starts to apply.
23 situations, 20 with the sumsRunning a business
Margins, cashflow and the ratios a lender or a buyer will ask about, worked through on real numbers.
48 situations, 43 with the sumsRenting a place
Rent rises, bonds, flatmates, pets and insurance, including the tax that quietly applies when you take in a boarder.
23 situations, 17 with the sumsBuying a first home
What a bank will actually lend you, and the traps in off the plans, leasehold, unit titles and buying with family.
44 situations, 43 with the sumsPaying off a mortgage
What an extra payment is worth, what fixing costs, and what a reverse mortgage does to the equity in a home.
16 situations, 12 with the sumsOwning a rental or holiday home
Yield, interest deductibility, the bright line rules, and the tax on a bach that is let out some of the time.
24 situations, 24 with the sumsSaving and investing
Where a dollar goes first, what a term deposit really returns after tax, and how the standard measures are worked out.
58 situations, 50 with the sumsOwning overseas shares and FIF tax
Shares in a company outside New Zealand are taxed on a rule of their own, with three methods and a threshold that catches people out.
13 situations, 13 with the sumsKiwiSaver and retiring
Contributions, the government top up, what a balance at 65 is likely to be, and how KiwiSaver splits on separation.
20 situations, 16 with the sumsStudying
Allowances, the loan and what it costs to repay it, and what a year in a hall of residence actually adds up to.
12 situations, 8 with the sumsDebt you cannot pay
Consolidation, the no asset procedure, bankruptcy, old debts that may be unenforceable, and repairing a credit report.
36 situations, 24 with the sumsScams, faulty goods and your rights
Getting money back after a scam, what a retailer owes you when something fails, and how the Disputes Tribunal works.
36 situations, 32 with the sumsIllness, injury and health costs
ACC weekly compensation, the cost of surgery, dental and prescriptions, and the card that reduces some of it.
20 situations, 20 with the sumsSeparation, death and estates
Splitting assets after three years together, what happens to accounts when someone dies, and what an executor has to do.
26 situations, 20 with the sumsMoving to or from New Zealand
Setting money up as a new migrant, moving savings across the Tasman, working holiday tax, and transfer fees.
20 situations, 19 with the sumsRunning a household
Power, rates, the car, childcare and the emergency fund: the recurring costs that decide whether a budget holds.
41 situations, 35 with the sumsEvery situation here is taken from a guide, and the guide is where the rules and the figures are kept current. See also the arithmetic on its own, every question the site answers, the guides and the A to Z of the site. These are worked examples for education, not advice. Last reviewed 2026-09-07.