| It’s been a big month for KiwiSaver, which has revealed it’s been an even bigger year for KiwiSaver! The latest figures from the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) show that the average KiwiSaver balance has risen 29%, while total investment returns are up a whopping 1708%. That beats even year-on-year average median house prices, up 25.5% to August.
With such large returns on the line, it’s vital that we all make proactive choices about our funds and fund providers. However, Canstar’s latest research reveals that nearly half of KiwiSaver members (47%) don’t know the balance of their accounts. So when was the last time you reviewed your investment profile, or looked into the fees you’re paying? If it’s been a while, you could have already missed out on the past year’s KiwiSaver boon.
But when comparing KiwiSaver investments, it’s best to look further than 12-month returns. That’s why Canstar’s expert research team drills deeper when awarding our annual KiwiSaver Star Ratings and Awards.
For this year’s awards, we looked at the average five-year returns from 17 providers, 22 schemes and 133 funds. The best were then rewarded based on their scores across three main categories: performance, features and price.
The winner of our prestigious Provider of the Year Award, for the second year in a row, is Milford. Not surprisingly, Milford is also one of the winners of our Outstanding Value | KiwiSaver Awards, alongside BNZ and Fisher Funds. |