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Frances Cook

@francescook

Caffeine-powered independent financial journalist. Like cats a bit much.

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16.10.2023
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Latest posts by Frances Cook @francescook

7 mental traps to avoid when you’re investing
7 mental traps to avoid when you’re investing YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sIz...

04.02.2026 02:20 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

People think their biggest risk with investing is making the wrong bet on a stock, and losing big time.

It’s not. It’s their own brain.

7 of the biggest mental investing traps, and how to avoid them, on the latest Making Cents podcast. Linked next post

04.02.2026 02:20 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

100% agree!

14.01.2026 06:52 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
“Rental property vs. index funds: should we switch?” Mailbag episode
“Rental property vs. index funds: should we switch?” Mailbag episode YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Ok, time to kick the hornet's nest... and debate property versus shares.

Because a Making Cents listener has written in to ask, should they trade in their rental property, and go for index funds instead?

So let's debate it... all in the latest episode
www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4eD...

07.01.2026 07:36 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Jenny-May Clarkson on leaving TVNZ, reinvention, and career pivots
Jenny-May Clarkson on leaving TVNZ, reinvention, and career pivots YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=amN9...

14.12.2025 03:56 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

How long does it take to prepare to leave a job?
For Jenny-May Clarkson, it was about two years.
She's on the Making Cents podcast to talk quiet planning, money decisions, and thinking ahead when careers feel fragile.
Linked next post.

14.12.2025 03:56 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
“Are ‘mortgage-free in five years’ hacks for real?” Mailbag episode
“Are ‘mortgage-free in five years’ hacks for real?” Mailbag episode YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode

www.youtube.com/watch?v=acXr...

10.12.2025 02:22 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

A 30 year mortgage often means paying DOUBLE your house price.
But you can cut that down... if you avoid the fake “mortgage hacks” online.
We're laying out the real mortgage freedom strategy on Making Cents. Link next.

10.12.2025 02:22 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
Tiny Home Life: Expectations vs Reality
Tiny Home Life: Expectations vs Reality YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSeL...

07.12.2025 05:35 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Why chase financial freedom? Because when life falls apart, you need space to rebuild without money making it worse.

Kasia Morrison has lived in a tiny home for 9 years, and it saved her when her marriage and business collapsed.

New Making Cents episode, linked next post.

07.12.2025 05:35 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
“How to find an affordable first home in an expensive city - maybe with a llama?” Mailbag episode
“How to find an affordable first home in an expensive city - maybe with a llama?” Mailbag episode YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq_m...

03.12.2025 02:24 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

If you're a first home buyer that needs to find a bargain... a few hours of research could be the key to saving you THOUSANDS.
How to get that done, on the latest Making Cents episode, linked next post

03.12.2025 02:24 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
Angry at credit card debt? Here’s how to fight back, with Sasha Lockley from Money Sweetspot
Angry at credit card debt? Here’s how to fight back, with Sasha Lockley from Money Sweetspot YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrhW...

30.11.2025 03:46 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

How many millions would you turn down to stay true to your vision?

Sasha Lockley wanted to take on the debt world and help people out of the credit card trap - and that meant saying no to an early investor in the company she built to do it.

New Making Cents episode, linked next post

30.11.2025 03:46 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
“Single mum at 46, how do I avoid poverty at 70?” Mailbag episode
“Single mum at 46, how do I avoid poverty at 70?” Mailbag episode YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tNz...

26.11.2025 04:37 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

“It’s time to put your big girl undies on.”
A 46-year-old solo mum wrote in terrified about poverty in retirement.
Time to hustle? Yes.
Impossible? No.
We're breaking down the options, on the new Making Cents episode.

26.11.2025 04:34 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
Mortgage Hack: How $20 Saved Me 8 Years
Mortgage Hack: How $20 Saved Me 8 Years YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZeiF...

23.11.2025 04:21 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Most people overpay their mortgage by thousands without realising it.

I cut mine by eight years… with $20.

New episode breaks down exactly how, plus the other strategies that actually work.

Linked next post.

23.11.2025 04:21 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

I genuinely don’t want to hear another fucking thing about this horrific Sanson fire. It’s awful. It’s so upsetting. There’s nothing I can do about it, and nothing to be gained from shoving it in my face with push alerts and breaking news banners. It’s grief porn. It’s awful. Stop.

17.11.2025 01:32 👍 15 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Chef Alice Taylor on budget recipes that actually work: $1.50 loaf, 20c noodles
Chef Alice Taylor on budget recipes that actually work: $1.50 loaf, 20c noodles YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4wg...

16.11.2025 05:12 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Better food, lower cost, zero shame about finding delicious food that doesn't break the budget.

Chef Alice Taylor is talking ways to beat the cost of living crisis in the pantry... but also the wider problems with food prices. On the latest Making Cents podcast, linked next post.

16.11.2025 05:12 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
KiwiSaver weapons investing is up 40% - how to invest ethically and still make money
KiwiSaver weapons investing is up 40% - how to invest ethically and still make money YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode
www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QpA...

09.11.2025 06:31 👍 4 🔁 1 💬 1 📌 0

You can boycott your coffee. Post your outrage online.
But the most powerful vote you’ve got?
It’s sitting in your KiwiSaver.

How to use your KiwiSaver to make your voice heard, on the latest Making Cents podcast. Linked next post.

09.11.2025 06:31 👍 6 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
“I can’t buy a house, is commercial property a better investment?” Mailbag episode
“I can’t buy a house, is commercial property a better investment?” Mailbag episode YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gaS...

05.11.2025 02:28 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Everyone’s obsessed with getting on the housing ladder, but what if the smarter move isn’t a house at all?

A Making Cents listener asked if commercial property could be the underrated way in.

Higher risk, higher return, and a few surprises along the way.. episode linked next post

05.11.2025 02:28 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
Overcoming the fear of failure, with Ecoya CEO Claire Barnes
Overcoming the fear of failure, with Ecoya CEO Claire Barnes YouTube video by Making Cents with Frances Cook

Here's the episode www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJqN...

02.11.2025 03:40 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

At 23, Ecoya CEO Claire Barnes lost $100k of her dad’s life-insurance money on a business that collapsed.

That fear of failure followed her for years, even as she turned Ecoya into a household name.

Now she's learned how to use that fear - and is even launching a new business.

02.11.2025 03:40 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

Not at all, understand the frustration ❤️

31.10.2025 00:26 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Side note, I'm sorry to hear about the wider issue you raised. It's really hard times out there for a lot of people.

30.10.2025 20:34 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

I never said they need sympathy? I said they have a question, so I answered it.

30.10.2025 09:22 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0