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I come from a traditionally working-class family in the north of England, but I was very lucky in that both my parents went to primary schools and pushed themselves to have good careers.
It was very unusual at the time to have a well-paid working mother, and they were both excellent role models. As they earned better wages, we moved from an industrial area to a beautiful town with the countryside on our doorstep.
Money wasn’t tight by any means, but my parents always only spent on valuables and were very careful not to throw it away. I’m sure this impressed me a lot.
I went to local comprehensive, a former modern secondary school, achieved top grades at my O and A levels and became the first person from my school to get into Cambridge University.
As was the norm at the time, my tuition fees were paid by the local government and my parents gave me the same living allowance as the full scholarship. During my summer holidays, I worked in the finance sector in London, enriching my finances and renting out a friend’s bedroom.
That’s when I realized London was a great place but extremely expensive and if you didn’t have serious money it was pretty dreary. I also realized the geofencing advantage. For example, a young PA living in Kent with his mother and father might go into the city and win a bomb. These jobs were not on offer in the North.
After university I went into investment banking at City. It involved a lot of international travel, which I loved, and I was in Europe most of the time; I was living in Spain, Italy and Portugal for quite significant periods. It was very tough work, but I made good money and bought my first three-bedroom flat in north-west London in my early twenties.
My employer offered me a cheap mortgage as a benefit that protected me from high interest rates. This would now be completely unachievable without serious help from the Bank of Mom and Dad.
I decided to get an MBA in my late twenties because I wanted to get away from the busyness of the city. I paid my own fees, and since I recently got married, my husband took on the increased cost of living during my study year.
However, we divorced a few years later; We were both traveling a lot for work, so we weren’t able to spend much time together. I jumped at the opportunity to move to New Zealand with my employer. I loved this country from previous holidays and although I was intimidated by the high cost of living, it was very easy to settle in. Absolutely everything seemed to be twice the price in Britain.
I met my now husband 20 years ago. We both understood that people with serious money inevitably became entrepreneurs and had their own businesses. So, since we had a good idea, we decided to go for it.
It was an extremely demanding and challenging job and required great efforts from both of us; including taking the terrible risk of investing most of our savings because we didn’t want to take on debt. The businesses were always profitable and we grew steadily and carefully.
Important statistics:
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Age: late 50s
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Annual income after tax: several million
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Mortgage: None
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Bills: £21,000 (house insurance, electricity, gas, water)
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School fees: £25,000
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Subscriptions: £2,000 (Sky, Netflix, Disney+, Spotify, magazines and newspapers)
1 day
I wake up at 5.30am and start the day with eggs, toast and our trusty coffee pods. It’s the beginning of a busy week for managers. Our personal accountant needs a lot of information to complete five tax returns, but it doesn’t take too long, and I delegate it all to him.
I head to the post office to send back a pack of t-shirts our friends left behind when they stayed with us for the weekend (NZ$11.50). I go to the wholesale flower market to buy a bouquet. These are a third of the price at our local luxury florist (NZ$61).
It’s then up to the local grocers to stock good quality fruit and vegetables, which costs me NZ$59. I also have to pay the annual premium for our safe, which gives us secure offsite storage options but sets me back NZ$800.53.
I go home to have egg salad for lunch and spend the rest of the day at home. I also pay for a monthly Disney+ subscription (NZ$14.99) as well as cloud storage (NZ$3.49).
Total: NZ$950.51 (£461.55)
2 days
I wake up early again so I can spend a few hours reading board reports and monthly financial statements and preparing some questions for executives.
At 8.30am I head to the supermarket to buy coffee bags, green-shelled mussels and fresh bread (NZ$143.19). Our butler comes at 9 in the morning. He is perfect; she cleans the house from top to bottom and changes the bedding every week. We pay him NZ$400 a week, which is pretty reasonable for six hours.
At 10.30, my wife and son and I set out to look at the flashy cars at the nearby dealerships. I guess they thought we were “tire people” (someone with no intention of buying), which suits me fine because I am.
Then the three of us go to lunch at a sushi restaurant (NZ$56.10). This is the last thing I spent money on today. I cook mussels with salad for dinner and then we go for a long walk as a family with the dog.
Total: NZ$599.29 (£291)
3 days
Today was a day full of housework. I leave our dog with the sitters at 8.30am and then run home to let in the landscape experts who are helping to re-arrange our yard.
I run off to the hairdresser for a lovely blow dry (NZ$80) and then return home to give my son gas money for his car (NZ$50) and pick up the dog (NZ$110).
After a lunch of soft-boiled eggs and asparagus, I go clothes shopping for the upcoming wedding. I spend NZ$899 on the dress, NZ$319 on the shoes, and buy a second pair of shoes for NZ$129. I’m very pleased because I will be wearing these pieces very often, so they are useful.
I’m buying some jewelry to treasure. This is a requirement of the insurance company. Each valuation costs NZ$120, but the jeweler waives the fees because we are pretty good customers.
I can’t be bothered to cook in the evenings because it’s so hot, so I have cheese and strawberries on toast for dinner. I take the easy walk around the block with my husband and dog because it’s so humid. The bar attracts us but dogs are not allowed inside.
Total: NZ$1,587 (£770.62)
4 days
While my husband takes his car to the car wash, our son washes mine and his own car in the garage, free of charge.
I go to the markets to buy fruit and vegetables (NZ$82.29) and visit the supermarket for essentials (NZ$145.88). I also have some lemon sorbet from the local homemade ice creams (NZ$17).
My husband goes to the wine shop to replenish our Christmas binge (NZ$365.86) and the Spotify bill arrives (NZ$34).
My son takes an Uber (NZ$20.42) to take his girlfriend to our house. Driving laws in New Zealand mean that an inexperienced young driver like himself cannot drive another inexperienced driver and he is not yet licensed to drive on his own.
Our family friend comes in the afternoon and brings a magnificent bottle of champagne; We feel spoiled. We all make a nice G&T at home before heading to the local gastropub for dinner and our friend foots the bill.
Total: 665.45 NZD (£323.13)
5 days
While our friend stays the night, my husband and I cook a full English breakfast for our guest at home and are joined by a few out-of-town friends for a nice chat at home.
In the afternoon, we head towards the city to have a late lunch at a seafood restaurant. We pay NZ$933.80. Our friends all head back to the airport and we hail a lift home in one of their Ubers.
The weather was still very hot and humid, we turned on the air conditioner continuously so that we could sleep. It’s all cooled by impressive large-scale heat pumps hidden outside, and each room can be individually controlled with a really good app. The same goes for our swimming pool.
Total: NZ$933.80 (£453.44)
6 days
I spend my morning wandering around art galleries with the dog by my side. Our dog is clean and therefore can be taken inside. I see a beautiful painting that would perfectly fill a void in our home. I say I’ll think about it. Even if I really love something, I do this with almost everything all the time; I don’t buy on impulse.
My husband joins me for a sashimi lunch at a local Japanese restaurant (NZ$30). I also spend NZ$5.50 for an hour of street parking; this includes a 50-cent fee for credit card use. The machine doesn’t take cash so you have to use a card which is annoying and arrogant from the council.
My husband gets NZ$500 in cash from the ATM. Our son just got good exam results, so most of this will be coming his way.
This afternoon I’m making reservations for our next trip to Europe. We’re going there in a few weeks. First class flights with Emirates cost NZ$35,000. Accommodation still needs to be arranged, but I have ideas. My husband is happy that I organize everything because he thinks I know what I’m doing.
Over dinner we discuss buying a house in Europe because we go quite a lot and it would make sense to have a base and stay longer each time.
Total: NZ$35,535.50 (£17,255.38)
7 days
After a breakfast of toast and some fresh apricots, I pay the view stage bill, which was NZ$1,995. I go to the hairdresser for a blow dry at 8.30am (NZ$65) and I take my dog with me so I can go straight to the beach later and meet my friend and her dog.
I’m home at 11.30am and paying the annual theater membership subscription (NZ$20). Local amateur dramas but really fun and worth the effort.
I meet another friend in the city for lunch to chat and gossip. It’s a very trendy place, but it has weird food and I’m dressed weird. NZ$88 for food and NZ$20 for valet parking.
I start some regulatory requirements work at 4pm, but quickly lose interest when I have to update a tricky spreadsheet. Instead, I browse the auction listings for the upcoming Elton John sale at Christie’s. There’s a party my husband would love and I’m wondering if I should sign up and bid.
Total: NZ$2,188 (£1,062.45)
Total for the week: NZ$42,459.55 (£20,617.57)
As told to Pieter Snepvangers.