PodcastsBusinessMaking Cents

Making Cents

Frances Cook
Making Cents
Latest episode

257 episodes

  • Making Cents

    HOLY SH*T WE WON

    04/06/2026 | 1 mins.
    Best Business Podcast - NZ Radio & Podcast Awards 2026
  • Making Cents

    You're On Your Own, Kid. Here's What That Means For Your Money

    04/06/2026 | 6 mins.
    With the latest Budget signalling little relief for struggling Kiwis, Frances Cook joins the TVNZ Breakfast team to talk about what you can actually do to protect yourself financially when the recovery keeps getting pushed further down the road.
    Follow me everywhere!
    Facebook / Frances Cook - Journalist
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    Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week Newsletter sign up
    Become a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest
  • Making Cents

    Are Shoebox Apartments About To Take Over NZ?

    03/06/2026 | 16 mins.
    Could the home of the future be the size of a carpark? The government is talking about scrapping minimum apartment size rules, and one Making Cents listener wants to know if that's a housing fix or a housing trap.

    Vanessa Williams from http://realestate.co.nz has fresh data to help us figure this out.

    We get into whether micro apartments could actually ease the housing shortage, what banks will and won't lend on when it comes to small apartments, and who this would most likely impact, from first home buyers, to investors, or students.

    Plus: how New Zealand's apartment market compares to the rest of the world, and whether our obsession with the quarter-acre dream is starting to shift.

    In this episode:
    Could scrapping minimum apartment sizes help first home buyers?
    What do banks actually lend on when it comes to small apartments?
    Are micro apartments a smart investment or a future problem?
    How New Zealand's property culture compares globally
    Who stands to gain, and who should be cautious

    If you have a letter you’d like us to answer, send it through to [email protected] and you might feature on our next episode!

    Follow me everywhere!
    Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZ
    Instagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknz
    TikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknz

    Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribe
    Become a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest

    #MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedom

    Production and video editing by Lana Byrne
    Audio engineering by Tash Chittock
    Filmed by Fanaticals
  • Making Cents

    A Michelin-Trained Chef's Insider Secrets To Saving Money On Your Food

    31/05/2026 | 30 mins.
    Adele Holland cooked for billionaires on private jets. Now she helps real people eat well for $50 a week, and she reckons the skills transfer better than you'd think.

    Adele is a Michelin-trained chef who spent years cooking in Swiss chalets and on superyachts before walking away from the waste and opulence of that world.

    Now, as the creator behind Dishes with Del, she's on a mission to make budget meals genuinely delicious.

    In this episode, we get into how to meal plan on a budget, the cheap pantry staples that do the heavy lifting, how to stretch expensive proteins further than you thought possible, and the small chef tricks that make a real difference to your grocery bill and your food waste. Think feta brine, coconut cream ice cubes, and frozen soup bases you can make from scraps.

    Whether you're trying to cut your supermarket spend, reduce food waste, or just get more interesting meals on the table for less, this one's for you.

    In this episode:
    How to meal plan for the week on $50
    Budget pantry staples every kitchen needs
    How to reduce food waste with simple chef tricks
    How to stretch meat and protein on a tight budget
    Why planning is the unsexy secret to saving money on groceries

    This episode of Making Cents is proudly supported by Odoo. Go to http://odoo.com/r/hpl now and try it for free, for 15 days.

    Follow me everywhere!
    Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZ
    Instagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknz
    TikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknz

    Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribe
    Become a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest

    #MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedom

    Production and video editing by Lana Byrne
    Audio engineering by Tash Chittock
    Filmed by Fanaticals
  • Making Cents

    Are Small Homes A Bad Buy?

    28/05/2026 | 13 mins.
    Apartments and townhouses are selling for less than people paid for them, and in record numbers.
    Frances Cook joins RNZ Nights to break down why smaller properties are taking a bigger hit than the rest of the property market and what it means for first home buyers, investors, and owners in negative equity.

    Follow me everywhere!
    Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZ
    Instagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknz
    TikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknz

    Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribe, or

    Audio engineering by Tash Chittock

    #MakingCents #FrancesCook #ShareMarket #MarketVolatility #Bitcoin #Gold #Silver #AI #BigTech #Investing #NZEconomy #PropertyInvesting #MarketCorrection
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About Making Cents
The podcast for people who want financial freedom, without giving up their coffee. That means it's time to make the money world make cents. Join Frances Cook, best-selling author and award-winning journalist, to talk about the proven ways to invest your way to financial independence, buy your first home, or just get your spending under control. Every Monday we have the week's feature interview, with someone who's done something interesting with their money. From paying off a mountain of debt, or investing for financial independence, or starting a new business, these are the ordinary people making the extraordinary possible. On Thursday we have Ask the Experts, where industry insiders answer your questions on the money world. From earning more in your career, to investing, or sticking to a budget, they'll help make money simple. Every now and then you'll get a bonus episode too, but the fun of those is that you never know when they're coming!
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