Media Release

17 March 2009

Real New Zealanders encourage others to get Sorted

A Wellington couple is the latest to feature in a Retirement Commission campaign that aims to encourage other New Zealanders to get their money matters sorted.

Jessica Lange and Carl Condliffe hope their story will inspire others to get their money matters under control, particularly given the current financial uncertainty.

Both work so it came as a shock when they used the Budget calculator on sorted.org.nz and realised that their finances were out of control.

Jessica Lange, a physiotherapist and Carl Condliffe, head of PE at Wellington High School are both extremely motivated and disciplined when it comes to lifestyle.

“We lead a healthy lifestyle and I train several times a week. Carl is a member of the New Zealand bobsleigh team and I’m a physiotherapist specialising in sport injuries so health and physical fitness is really important to us. We’ve both got great jobs yet at the same time we have been living beyond our means from pay day to pay day without any planning. We were in control of parts of our lives, but not of our money,” said Jessica.

“I had never been taught how to budget. Since doing the calculations on Sorted, I’ve had to seriously examine my spending habits. Clothes have always been a big expense for me. I didn’t think twice about buying new things. I now realise that’s money we could be saving for our wedding in October,” said Jessica.

Carl and Jessica say they are looking forward to the structure and control that setting a budget will now give them. They have also decided to set up joint accounts.

“Working as a team is going to be much easier with joint accounts. It makes much more sense. It’s going to be easier to set our goals and manage our spending,” said Carl.

Carl reckons they’ll reap the benefits of the new approach to their finances five years down the track and that they will be much better prepared for the future. Jessica predicts they’ll be enjoying the rewards as soon as six months from now.

Retirement Commissioner Diana Crossan says it’s more important than ever for people to have a plan and a budget. “People are realising they need to manage their money more carefully – this campaign shows them that it’s possible and that we have free resources that can help them.”

The campaign began in February with 42-year-old Liz Price whose main concern was that she’d made no provision for retirement. The next in the series is due to go live in May.

Jessica and Carl used the Sorted Budget calculator:

www.sorted.org.nz/calculators/budget/

Sorted’s free booklets can be ordered from the Sorted website at www.sorted.org.nz/ordering/ or by calling 0800 SORT MONEY (767 866).

ENDS

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