Heartland Building Society

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Investor FAQs

If you have invested in Heartland Deposits, CBS Canterbury Deposits or PGG Wrightson Finance Deposits with Heartland Building Society, the following frequently asked questions may be of interest to you.
What type of investments do you offer?

Everyone has different investment goals, and that’s why Heartland offers a wide range of debt securities (Deposits) for investors.  All Deposits (Heartland deposits, CBS Canterbury deposits and PGG Wrightson Finance deposits) are issued by Heartland Building Society.

 

Deposits offered fall into three broad classes being Term Accounts, Savings Accounts and Transactional Accounts. There is something for everyone – whether you are an individual, trust or business. From savings accounts – which provide competitive rates of return and the flexibility of on-call access to your funds, transactional accounts with an extensive range of access options including in-branch transactions, debit cards, telephone and internet banking, through to term accounts – which offer a fixed rate of return (except for Heartland Flexi Rate Term Deposit and CBS Canterbury Top Rate Term Deposit for which the interest rate may change throughout the term) for a fixed term where interest is paid to you, or added to the balance, (usually monthly, quarterly, six-monthly, annually or at maturity).

 

Details are in the current Heartland Investment Statement. Click here

How secure are the investments?
All Heartland Deposits, CBS Canterbury Deposits and PGG Wrightson Finance Deposits are direct unsecured unsubordinated debt obligations of Heartland ranking equally with all other deposits issued under Heartland Building Society's Trust Deed. For a copy of our current Investment Statement, click here or call us on 0800 85 20 20 and we’ll send you a copy.
What interest rates do you pay?
The rates vary according to the investment product, the amount invested, the term of the investment and the interest payment frequency. For our current rates, click here. Rates subject to change.
Are there any fees or charges?

Generally
No entry charges, trustee, administration or management charges, expenses or overhead charges, GST, transfer charges, alteration charges, or any other charges are payable in respect of an investment in Deposits, except:

  • Term Accounts
    No fees are payable to Heartland on Term Accounts, except for international transfers, same day cleared payments and passing on charges incurred on behalf of an investor and if the investment is withdrawn before maturity.
  • Savings Accounts
    No fees are payable to Heartland on Savings Accounts, except for withdrawals without the required notice from Heartland Savings Optimiser, CBS Canterbury Living Style Savings Account and PWF Savings Optimiser.
  • Transactional Accounts
    Fees may be payable to Heartland for transactions, services and other activity on Transactional Accounts, and those fees are subject to change from time to time.
What is the minimum amount I can invest?
You can choose the amount you wish to invest, subject only to the current minimum starting amount of $1,000 for Term Accounts. There is no minimum for Savings Accounts or Transactional Accounts apart from a $2,000 minimum investment for investments in PWF Savings Optimiser.
What investment terms are available?

Heartland Building Society generally offers a range of investment terms from On Call to 5 years, or as otherwise agreed between you and Heartland.

How can I receive my interest?

Term Accounts
Interest is paid to you, or added to the balance, on the basis set out on your application form, or as otherwise agreed between you and Heartland (usually monthly, quarterly, six-monthly, annually or at maturity).

Savings and Transactional Accounts
Interest is paid to you, or added to the account balance, on a monthly or quarterly basis (depending on your account type).

Can I change the way I receive my interest on a term deposit during the term of my investment?
You may request a change to the terms of your Deposit, such as a different interest payment option, and Heartland may agree to the requested change but is not obliged to do so.
Is my interest taxed?

Yes, unless you hold an exemption certificate from Inland Revenue.

The current New Zealand tax laws require Heartland to deduct resident withholding tax (RWT) from your interest before it is credited or paid to you.

Please ensure you show your IRD number and your tax rate (10.5%, 17.5%, 30.0% or 33.0%) on the relevant investment application form. If you don’t show your IRD number, we must deduct RWT at 33%.

If you do show your IRD number but do not indicate a RWT deduction rate, then RWT must be deducted at the rate of 33% (28% for companies).

If you are not a New Zealand tax resident, we deduct non-resident withholding tax at either 10% or 15%, depending on where you live. Alternatively, you can ask us to deduct on approved issuer levy instead, which is currently only 2%.

How do I know how much interest I’ve received?
Each year, before 20 May, we will send you a certificate showing you the amount of interest paid to you or compounded to your investment, and the tax deducted from it.
What happens at the end of the investment term?

Prior to the maturity date, Heartland will send you a notice to tell you that your investment is about to mature.  You can then elect to:

(a) withdraw your investment by cheque;
(b) withdraw your investment in cash at Heartland branches;
(c) request that Heartland transfer your investment to a bank account nominated by you; or
(d) reinvest your money with Heartland, either in the same account or in a different account.

Unless you instruct Heartland otherwise, on maturity your balance will be automatically reinvested for the same investment term. Alternatively Heartland may advise you that your matured investment will, in the absence of maturity instructions, be placed on call at the then “past maturity account rate” detailed in its then current rate card, which investors can obtain by calling 0800 85 20 20.

Can I cash in my investment early?

The interest rates we offer on investments are based on the expectation that the funds will be with us for the full term. Investors do not have a right to withdraw their investment before maturity, but we understand that people’s circumstances change. We will consider early repayment in the situation of financial hardship. We also repay investments when a sole investor passes away. If a joint investor dies we transfer the investments to the surviving investor.

If Heartland agrees to make an early repayment the interest rate payable in respect of the Deposit may be reduced by up to 3% per annum (calculated across the term of the investment).  Any tax that has already been paid on interest earned cannot be refunded back to you and tax must be claimed from the IRD directly.

In each case we need a written application giving full details of the situation and the reasons for requesting early repayment. If your request is approved we will repay the funds usually within five working days.

Can I sell my investment?

Investments in a MARAC Term Deposit, MARAC Call Deposit, PWF Term Deposit or a PWF Savings Optimiser can be sold privately in minimum amounts of $1,000 using the standard form for security transfers available from Heartland or any stockbroker. Otherwise no Deposit may be transferred or sold without the prior written consent of Heartland, except that Heartland will consider, but is not obliged to accept, written requests for transfer.

 

What is our Credit Rating?
Heartland Building Society has a credit rating of BBB- (Outlook Stable) from Standard & Poor’s. See Heartland Building Society’s Investment Statement or click here for more details about our credit rating.
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