In a previous article we discussed what we mean by investment risk in a general sense. You can read that article again here. Understanding how much risk you are willing to take is usually a good way to figure out which KiwiSaver fund is right for you.

We continue this series of helping you get to know your KiwiSaver better. Let’s now look at our Income Fund.

This Fund invests in cash, term deposits, NZ bonds, overseas bonds and mortgages. Traditionally, this type of fund has been seen to be a lower risk investment with lower long-term returns.

The Income Fund is usually suited for members who need access to their money fairly soon or for those who prefer a somewhat consistent performance (rather than “bigger” increases/decreases in performance).

There are factors which affect the performance of this Fund which include:

• Interest rates: This is the chance that changes in interest rates will affect an investment’s value. In the case of bonds, an increase in interest rates mean that the capital value of the bond will decrease.
• Inflation: This is the chance that if returns are below the inflation rate, meaning the “purchasing power” of the money will decline.
• Foreign exchange rates: This is the chance that the movement of the NZ dollar against other currencies will affect an investment’s value.
• Costs: This is the chance that the cost of managing an investment could significantly affect the return from the investment.
• Solvency/default: This is the chance that the financial institution or borrower is unable to repay some or all of the investment.

While the Income Fund is our lowest risk option, it does not mean that it is immune to negative returns. There can be occasions when a negative return is produced, particularly around interest rate changes. Historically, negative returns for the Income Fund happen less frequently than with the higher risk funds.

For more information about our Income Fund you can read more here. If you have specific financial questions or need financial advice, we encourage you to seek out a financial advisor.

Keep an eye out on our future newsletters as we continue to unpack your questions about KiwiSaver and help you get to know more about your investment.

For many investors “risk” is a scary word when it refers to their investments. A couple of sayings in the investment world are “no investment is without risk” and “investors who take on more risk expect to receive a higher level of return over time”. But what is risk in terms of your investments?

Investment risk is perhaps better called investment uncertainty. Put another way, risk is the chance that an investment’s actual outcome will differ from an expected outcome. The more likely it is that we can predict the future value of the investment, the lower the investment uncertainty (or the lower the risk).

Investments in income assets, like term deposits and bonds, are typically lower risk. We have a pretty good idea what the value will be when the investment matures.

In comparison, investments in growth assets, like shares in companies and property, are higher risk due to the uncertainty of knowing what the future value will be. The several funds within a KiwiSaver Scheme will usually consist of a mixture of these income and/or growth assets.

Here at Christian KiwiSaver Scheme, we have 3 funds for you to choose from: Income Fund, Balanced Fund and Growth Fund. The difference between these funds is the different mix of these investment assets e.g. The Income Fund is made up of only income assets, whereas the Growth Fund is made up of mostly growth assets.

You can choose which Fund – or which mix of funds – is right for you depending on what level your tolerance for risk is. For instance, you may decide to choose a fund that has smaller highs and lows, or you may decide you want a fund with potentially big highs and lows which you can tolerate over a longer time period.

Over the next few newsletters we will be covering more content such as this. We have received many great questions from our members trying to get to know their KiwiSaver better. We hope we can support your financial wellbeing by helping you understand more about your investment.

We have put together a couple of scenarios based on different life stages. First, we look at how a younger investor may view their KiwiSaver investment, followed by someone who is looking at retiring sometime in the next couple of years.

Scenario 1: I am in my mid-30s and am in a ‘growth’ fund.

At Christian KiwiSaver Scheme we have three funds members can choose from, and you can select one fund or a combination of all three depending on your risk appetite and goals. For example, if retirement is still some years away, you may consider leaning towards a growth fund.

However, this choice may also be affected by your approach to life. If you tend to grow nervous every time the market changes, your attitude towards ‘risk’ might not suit a growth fund. Growth funds can be described as higher risk but with the potential for higher returns.

You should also factor in your own personal circumstances. A lot of people choose to be in a growth fund to maximise the time their investment has to perform before they retire. However if you think you may need to make a first home withdrawal in the next couple of years, it may pay to look at a mix of funds that give you a more conservative investment profile to minimise the impact of any significant market movements in the short term.

It is important to be aware that if you switch funds while the markets are down, you will likely lock in any losses you’ve already seen. What does this mean in simple terms? If the market bounces back, you may not see the benefit from that bounce back to the same extent you would if you had not switched funds.

Prior to COVID-19, a lot of KiwiSaver providers had seen a sustained period of good returns. While you may have seen a drop in returns at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have since seen the market rebound strongly from the lows that were seen. History tells us that markets tend to recover, though they may undergo change and not look the same as they once did.

We recommend that you take a look at the ‘Investor Kickstater’ calculator on sorted.org.nz, which will help you better determine what fund you might want to be in. It will ask a couple of simple questions around what life stage you are in, your income, your debt and your security etc.

Remember that there is no one answer for everyone, but if you are able to understand your risk appetite better, you are more likely to be able to find the right fund to suit you.

Scenario 2: I am nearing retirement and my KiwiSaver is currently split into different funds

A different view would be given for someone who is approaching retirement compared with someone in their mid-30s; however, it’s still important to review your appetite for risk. If you are in a growth fund and you will think you will need the money within the next few years there may be insufficient time for your investment to recover from a market decline.

If you do not need access to your KiwiSaver balance immediately at age 65, and you have a higher appetite towards investment risk, you may want at least some of your money invested in more risky assets classes such as shares.

Note that you can choose to have regular payments from your KiwiSaver account paid to you after age 65 at regular intervals. This means that the money you don’t need access to immediately can continue to benefit from being invested. If this is something you would like to look into, you can contact our team for further information on how this can work for you.

There isn’t one scenario for everyone. Therefore we recommend that you take a look at the ‘Retirement Planning’ tool on sorted.org.nz to work through how much you want to aim to have to live on throughout your retirement years. This will help give you an idea of your projected balance based on your circumstances.

If you are currently approaching the age at which you wish to retire, you may want to seek advice from a financial advisor if you have access to one. Your KiwiSaver balance could be one piece of your retirement equation, and you will want to make sure that all parts align for a happy retirement.

Membership of the Christian KiwiSaver Scheme is offered only to:

• employees of organisations whose primary activities are in our opinion Christian mission or ministry. This includes employees of charitable entities associated with or operating in the Christian Church, or employees of entities which we approve as having a Christian special character; and
• persons who express a Christian faith and have a commitment to Christian community involvement when applying (and their immediate family members and dependants).

Christian KiwiSaver Scheme is managed and issued by The New Zealand Anglican Church Pension Board (trading as Anglican Financial Care). The Product Disclosure Statement and Fund Updates are available under Documents.