Retirement Life
7 October 2026
Making memories – not debt
At 80, Waikato resident Violet* considers herself fortunate. She owns her home outright, lives fairly comfortably on New Zealand Superannuation (NZ Super) and has a little money left over each fortnight.
But like many retirees, she’s worried about what the future might hold – and the fact there isn’t a lot of room to move in her budget.
"My rates have gone up another $40 a month," she says. "At the moment I cover all of that quite well, and I bank a little extra each fortnight for unexpected emergencies. So I'm doing okay, but I'm thinking everything keeps going up..."
While her modern brick home requires relatively little maintenance, Violet is concerned about how she’ll cover the maintenance costs that will inevitably crop up.
"I just thought it'd be nice for things to be a little bit easier," she says.
She had bigger dreams too.
"What I want to do is go overseas. I want to go to the family in England and see everybody there because we're all getting older. I want to go down memory lane a little bit from some of the trips that I did with my husband. I've got great-great nieces and nephews, and they're all growing up. I've got to get over and see these kids. And I want to see the family in Ireland.”
She also has a long New Zealand bucket list.
"I've never been to the Catlins. Larnach Castle's been on my bucket list for years, and I've never got there. I want to go just everywhere – New Zealand is so beautiful.
“I’ve got a lot of second cousins, so they're even older than me and you know, we're all dropping off slowly. I just want to get around to see my other cousins while I still can.”
Like many homeowners, Violet had heard stories about reverse mortgages – particularly in Australia - and was initially cautious about any product involving home equity. But she understood that Lifetime Home involved selling a share of a property outright in return for fortnightly payments to top up NZ Super. With no mortgage involved, there is no debt or interest to build up. Plus the product had transparent fixed fees that clients know from the start.
"What I liked was the certainty of knowing exactly how much will come out of my estate when I pop my clogs,” she says.
Leaving something behind for her children matters to Violet, even though they have encouraged her to enjoy what she's worked hard for.
"What I liked was the certainty of knowing exactly how much will come out of my estate when I pop my clogs."
—Violet* (Lifetime Home Customer)
"My son says: 'Make some memories, Mum.'"
Violet says she spent a long time weighing up the decision to use Lifetime Home – with one of her biggest concerns being giving up ownership of a portion (typically 35%) of her home.
"That was a biggie for me. Because I thought, when it's all mine, I can do whatever I like."
But after talking through the details, researching her options and discussing it with her family, she felt more comfortable moving forward.
"I mentioned it to the kids, and they were quite open about it. My son and daughter both said, 'Yeah, do it, Mum'."
She says the process itself was straightforward.
"After Sue (Lifetime relationship manager) had come out to visit, I said to my daughter-in-law, 'What do you think?' and she gave me the nod. 'Yeah, I think it sounds great.'”
Now Violet has the additional income she was looking for and the confidence to start planning the experiences she's been dreaming about – and she doesn’t need to “crank up the credit card” to cover it.
What’s more, she believes her decision to go with Lifetime Home aligns with the way she and her late husband always approached life.
"We were asset-rich and money-poor because we spent our money making memories," she says.
Now she’ll be making some more.
*All names in this case study have been changed to protect privacy.
The advice given here is general and does not constitute specific advice to any person.
Violet’s comments reflect her personal experience and circumstances. Lifetime Home may not be suitable for everyone. The amount and frequency of any payments, the costs of the arrangement, and its effect on future home-sale proceeds or an estate will depend on the individual customer and property. Customers should carefully consider the full terms and obtain independent legal and financial advice before deciding whether to proceed.
Written by:
Sonia Speedy
Sonia Speedy has been a journalist for over 20 years, working in newspapers, magazines and radio. She also runs an online platform for parents at familytimes.co.nz. She lives on the Kāpiti Coast with her young family and loves writing stories that help make people's lives easier.
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