Amy Po-Ching - Financial Planner

30/10/2026

Wait for retirement and risk regret? Or blow it all because tomorrow isn't promised? It’s a common ultimatum and in my opinion quite short-sighted. Design a fulfilling journey as you work towards retirement.

Enjoying today looks different for everyone. It doesn’t mean grand trips abroad three times a year; it could mean more time for hobbies, family, or volunteering. In my case, it’s a secondhand convertible and a Sunday drive with my wife - low cost, much joy🤠

These small things let us live in the moment without derailing our future. Europe with three young kids might not make sense right now, but a local weekend away is a great compromise. Maybe Europe can wait until they are off to Uni.

How do you balance both worlds? It changes with your life stages, but here is a simple framework:

✅Start at the end
Work out what you need for retirement and sort your strategy (KiwiSaver, investments, savings, business or property). These take decades to build, so adjust goals to your timeframe. Remember, just $100 a week is $5,200 after a year, and $52,000 after ten.

✅Build the buffers
An emergency fund prevents consumer debt and lets your long-term investments grow uninterrupted. Income and health insurance aren't just expenses - they protect your overall plan if life goes sideways.

✅Be realistic and prepare
The fridge will break, the car will need repairs, and you'll want family holidays. Set short-to-medium-term savings goals for these so they don't hijack your retirement plan.

If things feel tight, compromise: stretch your phone upgrade to three years instead of every year, or a new sofa every five years instead of three.

There will be months when you can comfortably set aside $1,000, and others where you are fortunate to have $1 left before payday. That’s completely okay. Finding your balance is the journey 🙌

This is not personalised financial advice. General advice only.

28/10/2026

Grab your tickets here: https://www.ticketmaster.co.nz/keep-the-change-unplugged-2026-presented-takapuna-beach-06-11-2026/event/240065149252251C

24/10/2026

We often view different parts of finances separately, and that's often because we work with individual financial advisers who may specialise in one area and who don't always consider - or are not allowed to advise on - the areas of advice that all come together to paint your overall financial situation.

Having a strategy that ties everything together is vital to ensure all areas of your financial life complement each other and work towards the same goals.

What does this look like in practice?

Years before buying your first home, you've already started contributing towards KiwiSaver - making sure that it's getting as much growth exposure as possible to build up that deposit.

Once you're close to buying, considering switching to a defensive fund to protect your capital so your deposit is ready when needed.

Then the mortgage, which is a whole other world and commitment on its own. It comes with rates, insurance, and maintenance costs.

Don't forget to get that KiwiSaver back into a more aggressive fund, as you probably have 30 years of growth potential left! Your mortgage adviser might not be able to tell you that - it's generally outside their scope of work.

Now we have mortgage debt and increased bills, yet we haven't put insurance in place to protect our incomes and our ability to earn to continue to maintain these increased expenses.

But what if we have borrowed too much and there's no more room in the budget for insurance or to continue with KiwiSaver contributions? A house, with or without a mortgage, isnt much of a retirement on it own.

This jumps around a lot, but that's the point. Without a strategy and someone who brings all these pieces together, it becomes messy and difficult to get a full picture.

Where Moneyplant and financial planners like Amy come in is by being able to offer these services in-house and having a team collaborate behind the scenes, so your full financial situation can be taken into account.

The full episode with Amy is out on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3tm2bqOnRmAj6tyGvi8f24?si=YwFQneqIS26dCEy_HPxN2Q

*Not personalised financial advice - reach out to us to discuss your own situation and how we can help.

22/10/2026

21/10/2026

So often I see people ask how to choose an adviser to work with or "who's the best".

I don't believe there's one single best, best there's certainly a "best fit" for you - there's probably multiple. A key deciding factor for me is working with others who have similiar philosophies and who are direct and even brutally honest with you.
financialplanner highlights such an important part of the job and even my own philosophy and approach to this career "Create financial security, know that they're going to be okay in the future, but we got to enjoy the journey along the way"

02/10/2026

27/09/2026

What happens when your business fails — and your family home is tied to the debt?

I recently spoke with Stuff about a really difficult situation that, unfortunately, some business owners can find themselves in.

A business has failed. There’s debt to deal with. The family home was used as security. And now there’s the very real fear of losing it.

When things feel this overwhelming, the most important thing is to understand what options you actually have before making any big decisions.

There may be more than one way forward — but the earlier you get good advice and start having the right conversations, the better.

I shared some of my thoughts with Stuff on what to consider and where to start.

You can read the full article via the link in my bio.

20/09/2026

On a mission to help more everyday Kiwis create wealth and build financial security 🚀

28/07/2026

Last week I had the opportunity to speak with Rural Guardian about something I believe every woman should feel confident talking about... money.

For too long, money has been seen as something we don't discuss, or something someone else takes care of.

But understanding your finances isn't about becoming obsessed with money.
It's about creating choices.
It's about feeling secure.
It's about knowing that if life changes, you have options.

Whether you live in the city or on a farm, these conversations matter.

A big thank you to Claire Inkson and the Rural Guardian team for helping shine a light on an important topic.

When Levridge founder and financial adviser Amy Po-Ching stood in front of a room full of women at the Women in Seed Forum in Christchurch last month, the discussion quickly turned from KiwiSaver and investing to women can feel uncomfortable talking about : financial independence.But it’s a conver...