A retirement planning checklist for New Zealanders in their 40s and 50s

Your 40s and 50s are the decade — or two — when retirement shifts from a vague future concept to something with a visible timeline. Income is typically at or near its peak, children may be becoming more financially independent, and the decisions made now have enough time to make a meaningful difference to how retirement actually looks.

This checklist won't cover everything — every person's situation is different, and some items will be more relevant than others. But working through it honestly will give you a clearer picture of where you stand and what, if anything, still needs attention.

1. Know your retirement number

Do you know, with reasonable accuracy, how much you will need to retire on your terms? Not a rough guess based on what you've read somewhere, but a figure calculated from your own expected spending, your chosen retirement age, and your specific circumstances?

If not, this is the most important item on the list. Everything else is easier once you know what you're working toward. ThatDay is the most direct way to find your number — free, built for New Zealanders, and designed to give you a clear, personalised picture rather than a generic estimate.

Action: Create your free ThatDay account at thatday.co.nz and find your number.

2. Check your KiwiSaver fund type

Are you in the right fund for your age and timeline? Many New Zealanders set up KiwiSaver years ago and haven't revisited the fund type since. Someone in their 40s in a conservative fund may be leaving significant long-term returns on the table. Someone in their late 50s in an aggressive growth fund may be carrying more risk than is comfortable as retirement approaches.

Action: Log into your KiwiSaver provider's website and check which fund you're in. If you're unsure whether it suits your timeline, most providers offer guidance, or a financial adviser can help. For a fuller picture of what fund choice means for your retirement, see the KiwiSaver decisions that matter most.

3. Review your contribution rate

Are you contributing the minimum 3.5%, or more? For most people in their 40s and 50s, the default rate is unlikely to produce a retirement balance sufficient to fund the lifestyle they want — particularly if they plan to retire before 65. Increasing to 6%, 8%, or more at this stage, when income is often at its highest, can make a meaningful difference.

Action: Use ThatDay to see instantly what increasing your contribution rate does to your projected retirement balance — and see Is KiwiSaver enough to retire on? for the broader picture. Then contact your employer or payroll to adjust.

4. Understand your KiwiSaver balance — and your partner's

Do you know your current KiwiSaver balance? Does your partner know theirs? Many couples have a rough sense of their combined position without either partner knowing the specific figures. Knowing the actual numbers — for both — is the foundation of accurate retirement planning.

Action: Log into your KiwiSaver account and note your current balance. If planning as a couple, do this together and enter both figures into ThatDay for a combined picture.

5. Make a plan for any remaining mortgage

If you still have a mortgage, what is the realistic payoff timeline? Will it be cleared before retirement — and if not, how will the ongoing payments affect the income you'll need? Owning your home debt-free by retirement significantly reduces the income needed to live comfortably.

Action: Check your mortgage balance and current repayment schedule. Should you pay off your mortgage or save for retirement? covers this question in depth. Consider whether making additional payments now — while income is at its peak — would bring the payoff date forward meaningfully.

6. Examine your spending honestly

This is the item most people skip, and the one that often has the largest impact. Do you have a clear sense of what you actually spend each month — and more importantly, how much of that spending is genuinely adding to your life versus how much is habitual, unconsidered, or driven by social comparison?

A household that reduces its monthly spending by even a modest amount, redirected toward savings, changes its retirement picture in two ways at once: more saved now, and less income needed later. ThatDay's savings advice section is a useful starting point for anyone who wants to examine this honestly.

Action: Review your last three months of bank and credit card statements. Identify spending that, on reflection, you wouldn't miss. Consider what redirecting even a portion of it toward savings would do to your retirement timeline.

7. Check your insurance coverage

Reaching retirement in good financial shape requires not just saving well but protecting what you've built. Income protection insurance, life insurance, and health insurance all play a role in ensuring that an unexpected event doesn't derail a retirement plan that has taken decades to build. Coverage needs change as circumstances change, and it's worth reviewing periodically.

Action: Review your current insurance coverage and consider whether it remains appropriate for your situation. A financial adviser can help assess whether any gaps exist.

8. Have the retirement conversation with your partner

If you have a partner, have you genuinely aligned on what retirement looks like — when, where, how, and on what budget? Many couples discover, when they finally have this conversation explicitly, that their assumptions have diverged more than they realised.

Action: Set aside time to work through ThatDay together as a couple. How to talk to your partner about retirement planning has a framework for making that conversation productive. Start with what you each want retirement to look like — then look at the numbers.

9. Consider getting professional advice

For those whose situation involves complexity — business assets, significant investment portfolios, questions about the right time to retire, or retirement timelines that feel tight — professional financial advice is worth seeking. A good financial adviser will look at the full picture and help prioritise the decisions that matter most.

Action: If your situation warrants it, connect with one of ThatDay's financial services partners — advisers experienced in retirement planning for New Zealanders.

The most important thing

No checklist is a substitute for actually doing the work — but most people who go through a checklist like this honestly find that their situation is either better than they feared or more improvable than they expected. Either outcome is useful.

The goal isn't a perfect retirement plan. It's a clear picture of where you stand, and a set of deliberate choices about what to do from here.

Start with your retirement number — create your free ThatDay account at thatday.co.nz

Further reading: Is KiwiSaver enough to retire on?