Jenee Tibshraeny: NZ Herald Wellington business editor on the concerns surrounding new KiwiSaver changes

There are fears Finance Minister Nicola Willis is opening a can of worms by potentially allowing young farmers to dip into their KiwiSavers to buy farms.

She explained she was seeking advice from the IRD on the matter, which is yet to be considered by Cabinet.

NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny weighed in on the debate.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:09):
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Heather Duplaic Ellen I Heather.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
In addition to attracting the international foreign home buyers, the
fifth rules that you've previously discussed, the FIAF rules still
outstanding putting foreigners off coming to New Zealand. Michael, thank
you that those rules are the ones about how long
you need to stay in the country or not stay
in the country in order to avoid certain taxes and stuff.
It's all the shambles by the looks of things. Eighteen
past six. Now there are fears that Finance Minister Nikola

(00:39):
Willis might be opening a can of worms if she
lets young farmers withdraw their kei we saver funds to
buy a farm. G Native Chraney is The Herald's Wellington
Business editor. Hey, you know, a hey, what's the problem?

Speaker 3 (00:52):
Well, you know, if you say that you can dip
into your kei we saver to buy a farm, then
where does it stop. Can you dip into your key
we saver to buy a business, or to buy cryptocurrency,
or to buy art or whatever else you think might
help set you up for your retirement. I mean arguably
already by allowing people to use the Kiwi sabor to

(01:13):
buy a house a first home. You know that that
is a controversial thing. But if you start allowing farms,
then then where does it stop.

Speaker 2 (01:23):
So could we say okay, I mean I agree with
the distinction that's being made here because I think when
you start getting into buying herds and flocks and stuff
like that, then it's basically why don't you buy your
first set of tools or your coffee shop or whatever.
But could you say a farm is like a house
because you can live on it.

Speaker 3 (01:40):
Well, I guess you could. But then you'd say, well,
if you want to live on the farm, then you
could use the exemption that exists, which says you can
use your keyw saber to buy your first home.

Speaker 2 (01:51):
So you can't live in that first home. You can't
live in it yet because you're living on somebody else's
farm and working that farm.

Speaker 3 (01:58):
Well, you know that's true. I mean the other thing
is like if I have to live in Wellington for
my work, but I want to buy a house in Auckland,
then then that's also a problem. Like if you need
to be here for work, but you want to buy
your house there, then you know, then that's a problem.
So that's that's just how it works under the rules.
You know, I just wonder.

Speaker 2 (02:16):
If is that potentially the thing that needs to be
eased up a little bit, that you can live wherever
you want, but your first home, wherever it is, you're
able to use key we say before.

Speaker 3 (02:26):
You know, look, as someone in that generation that has
struggled to get into property, you know, it's it's kind
of galling when they put these rules around things. But
I think the concern is is that if you allow
people to buy houses they don't live in, then that's
an investment property. And and you know, do we want
to be encouraging people to use their KEB savers for

(02:49):
investment property or do we want to help them use
their QB savers just to put a roof over their heads.
But I think this is the exact sort of debate.
You know, that would that the first time exemption has created,
but if you extend it, then it just sort of
exacerbates that debate. Now that you know that there might
be good merit in and you know, the farmers would say,

(03:10):
we're actually it's much better for us to invest in
a farm than have our money tied up in the
share market, you know, supporting American companies. That might be true,
but the issue is here that if you tinker with KEI,
we save it, which is meant to be a really
stable scheme. You know, it has to be stable because
we're investing it in the long term. If you tinker

(03:31):
with it too much, people stop trusting it, and if
they stop trusting it, they don't want to invest through it.
So I think that's kind of one of the most
compelling arguments that people who don't like this idea have made.

Speaker 2 (03:43):
Yeah, hey, thank you, Jane, I really appreciate it. Janetib Trainy,
the Herald's Wellington Business editor.

Speaker 1 (03:48):
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