Circumstances change quickly in the current financial environment and you may be unaware that the recent mortgage interest rate changes announced on 9 September have widened the gap between short and long term fixed interest rates.  This reflects the changing cost of offshore funds which banks rely on to supplement the funds their local depositors place with them. There has been an easing in the cost of shorter term offshore funding but there is also significant competition in the New Zealand deposit market, which continues to push the rates higher than they would otherwise be.

 The result is regular reviews of your mortgage have become more important than ever.  Not just to ensure ongoing affordability, but more importantly, to ensure that the structure is appropriate to your current and future needs and goals.

While having some of your mortgage on a floating rate offers flexibility, it is a facility more suited to those who are in a position to place bulk sums into it to reduce their overall lending to obtain the resulting interest savings, even if only for short periods of time.

Unless you are in a position to clear the majority of your floating rate loan in the short term, it may be more appropriate to change some to a fixed interest rate to provide some certainty going into the future.  I do not have a crystal ball but the NZ Treasury predict that short term rates will remain low for the next year and Bank’s have been speculating floating rates will rise back to the 8% level over the next two years.

 Now is also good time to check that you are financially protected and prepared for life’s events – planned or unexpected and ultimately I want to help to keep your home in your hands. The last thing you want to see is your home slipping out of your hands, should you be unable to meet your loan repayments. If you died, would you leave behind enough resources to pay off your home loan and safeguard your dependants’ future?

 I am available to discuss your investment, insurance, mortgage and KiwiSaver needs in what is a difficult time for many of us at the moment so please feel free to contact me anytime if you have any questions. My personal email is denis@thorner.co.nz or ph 04 528 8088.

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Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

Tags: Hawkes Bay Life Insurance, Home Loans, Interest rate changes, Kiwi, KiwiBank Home Lending, Mortgage Interest Rates, Wellington mortgages

It is really important when somebody else completes an insurance application for you that you check to see the answers are correct and that no information has been left out.

The insurer can avoid the policy and decline to consider the claim if all the information wasn’t written on the application form.

Even when your broker writes the answers on the application on your behalf, you are still expected to read all the answers and sign a statement declaring all the information is correct.

At Thorners we always provide you with a copy of everything completed during a Life Insurance interview to give you time to reconsider your answers.

Call Thorners if you are considering any form of insurance to get the best advice in New Zealand.

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

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Currently the NZ law does not make a distinction between deliberate or innocent non disclosure.  Effectively if you just left information out of an insurance application unintentionally or by accident, the insurer can still decline your claim, avoid your policy or make changes to your policy.

Contact Thorners if you need insurance advice and we will work with you to ensure that you understand the proposal form and disclose the relevent information.

Thorners service clients New zealand wide and are an award winning insurance agency offering personalised service.

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

Tags: Hastings Direct Insurance, Hastings insurance broker, Hawkes bay insurance, Hawkes Bay Life Insurance, Home Owner, House and contents insurance, insurance wellington, LAQC, Living Assurance, Medical Insurance, sovereign life insurance, Vehicle Insurance

The number of people with health insurance policies rose slightly in the June 2009 quarter, the Health Funds Association of New Zealand says.

The health insurance market grew by 700, or less than 0.1 percent, in the latest quarter, after dipping 0.2 percent in the March quarter.

For the year to June the number of people with health insurance rose 4500, or 0.3 percent. The total was 1.39 million or 32.3 percent of New Zealanders.

A trend away from comprehensive health insurance towards elective surgical and specialist cover continued, the association said.

Elective surgical and specialist cover now accounted for 910,700, or 65.3 percent, of those covered by health insurance.

Health insurance earned premiums rose 5 percent in the June year, from the previous year, to $846m.

The $725m in health insurance claims paid in the year was up $69m, or 10.5 percent, on the year before. In the June quarter $194m in claims were paid.

The rise in claims paid was due to increases in the number of claims and in the costs of treatment.

You can quote and apply online for health insurance from our website or contact us for more information now.  We service clients NZ wide and offer personal appointments from Wellington through to Napier.

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

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The Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT), The Premier Association of Financial Professionals, is an international, independent association of more than 31,000 members, or less than 1%, of the worlds life insurance and financial services professionals in more than 84 nations and territories.

MDRT members demonstrate exceptional professional knowledge, strict ethical conduct and outstanding client service.  MDRT membership is recognised internationally as the standard of sales excellence in the life insurance and financial services business.

Denis Thorner of Thorner Financial Services Ltd is proud to be a Life Qualifying member of MDRT.

Call Denis if you require any insurance cover. Denis services clients New Zealand wide and welcomes your call.

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

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Tags: Denis Thorner, Hastings Direct Insurance, Hastings Life Insurance, Hawkes Bay Life Insurance, Insurance broker, insurance wellington, kiwisaver advice, MDRT New Zealand membership, Million Dollar Round Table New Zealand, Napier Life Insurance, Need Life insurance, Sentinel LifeTime Loan advisor, Service Excellence, Sovereign Insurance, Upper Hutt Business Awards, Wairarapa Life insurance, Wellington Life Insurance

Thorners offer an online life and health insurance quote option where you can obtain quotations instantly online.

Whilst Thorners like to personalise your cover to your situation, many New Zealanders know what cover they want and want to get a price for it now.

Thorners take this a step further as you can also complete an application for Life and Health Insurance online.  This should take no longer than 10 minutes to answer the questions and if need be, you can save your application and come back to it at a later stage.  The process ensures your information remains confidential to Thorners and the Insurance company.

If you are contemplating taking out a new Life or Health Insurance policy, try our automated service today.

Thorners are only a call or click away if you require assistance or require further information. www.thorner.co.nz also contains informative blogs and information on other topical insurance, mortgage and financial items of interest.

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

Click here to view our disclosure statement.

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Could you financially survive a medical trauma?

·         Could you require funds to replace or supplement income if you were seriously ill?

·         Could you require funds to cover replacement staff?

·         Could you require funds to meet HP’s and the ongoing mortgage payments?

·         Could you require funds to make alterations to the house or to change vehicles?

·         Could you require funds to retrain for new employment?

·         Could you require funds to assist with household chores that may no longer be possible?

·         Could you require funds to pay for a dialysis machine at home?

These are a few of the reasons to have funds available to help give you ongoing quality of life and some financial resilience to the pressures you may incur in your time of need.

Every year about 7,000 people in NZ have strokes and whilst many survive, they often have an impaired level of conciousness and mobility. Thats nearly 20 people per day so the odds are not great and thats only one medical condition.

We need to talk if you don’t have a large nest egg available to meet unexpected expenses if you were to suffer a medical trauma. 

Click here to email Thorners or Call Us on (04) 528 8088

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