Last month we put out the call to our readers, asking you to share – honestly – the amount you had in savings.
We know how much people love to talk and hear about money, but also know how awkward it can be to be truly upfront about it; whether it’s savings, debt or income (that’s also why we launched the new money series, Purse Strings, asking people to share their unedited, unflinching week in spending).
We wanted to start with something positive, so chose savings for our first anonymous form submission (though we think open conversations around the reality of debt are important – possibly even more so – and we hope to ask about that soon).
We deliberately kept the question simple: How much do you have in savings accounts you could access immediately if you needed it?
Some people had decent nest eggs in high interest accounts, term deposits, managed and other investment funds, notice savers – but for clarity, we’ve decided to focus solely on the amount that people had that were ‘liquid’, in accounts that could be accessed immediately. Some also had joint savings accounts with partners; we’ve included the full figures.
You really opened up: we had 178 responses, with the amount of savings ranging from nothing to $250,000. We sat down to analyse the data – sort of; we’re not data journalists! – and noted some common themes. Here’s what we learnt.
A savings breakdown
• The average amount that people had in savings was $28,545.
• Savings ranged from $0 to $250,000.
• 12 people (that’s 21.36% of respondents) had nothing in savings.
• The most common amount in savings was $10,000.
• The most common age was between 25-34, but the responses came from people aged 18 to 74.
What you’re saving for
We live in Aotearoa, so of course the thing you’re saving for most is… a house. Good luck out there babes’!
Other key goals – in order of most mentioned – were travel/holidays, an emergency fund, nothing in particular, moving, retirement, renovations and a car.
There were also several mentions of saving for children in the future, and IVF treatments. There were also some sensible people saving to clear their debt.
Unsurprisingly, given the amount of people we know who are relocating to the UK or Sydney, there were a number of people saving with the plan to move overseas.
Another, from Christchurch, noted that their savings goal was simple: “A life that does not involve working 40 hour week to weeks.”
There is a lot of anxiety – especially about being out of a job
Anxiety, paranoia and uncertainty were recurring words when people shared what they were saving for. There were lots of general rainy day funds, but a number of specific references to coping with unexpected large expenses or redundancy and loss of income.
“...with so much uncertainty it feels good to have money in the bank,” wrote a 25-34-year-old Aucklander with $30,000 in savings and an income in the $100,001 - $150,000 bracket.
“It feels scary to spend right now,” wrote a 35-44-year-old married Wellingtonian, who had a 30k emergency fund for “if one of us loses our job” (they were in the 60-70k income bracket).
Another 35-44-year-old Wellingtonian with “absolutely nothing” in savings was upfront: “I wish we could save, we need a lot”.
Unsurprisingly, given all of the recent cuts in the public sector, there were a few Wellington-based public servants who responded (their savings were in pretty decent shape, ranging from 11k to 55k). “Being out of a job,” wrote one of what they were saving for, while another replied darkly, “Redundancy lol”.
The stress of buying a house
Whether saving for a first home or just a house in general, this was the most common savings goal – with plenty of honest comments about the challenges of that. “I was saving for a house,” wrote a 25-34-year-old living in Wellington. "After 20+ failed offers, I’ve stopped trying to buy. But I keep saving and will use it for something one day.”
The stress of saving, in general
We are in a cost of living crisis, with rising inflation and costs across the board – so for many, saving can feel like an impossible task right now; a nice to have. That came through in some comments, with more honest responses about the challenges of saving.
One person, living in Wellington, had recently starting working full time (“thank god!”) and is now able to save to move overseas. For them, saving while part time was “*impossible* and I was simply working to live”.
Saving for fun!
It’s not all doom and gloom, or pure practicality. There were some people putting aside money to save up for nice things – like a pair of Margiela Tabi ballet flats, and a Saint Laurent Sac Du Jour bag.
