- What type of investments do you offer?
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MARAC Deposits are issued by Heartland Building Society. Heartland Building Society was formed as a result of the merger between MARAC, CBS Canterbury and Southern Cross Building Society.
Everyone has different investment goals, and that’s why Heartland offers a wide range of investment options. There is something for everyone – whether you are an individual, trust or business. From call accounts – which provide competitive rates of return and the flexibility of on-call access to funds, to term deposits – which offer a fixed rate of return for a fixed term with tailored interest payments.
Click here to view the current Heartland Building Society Investment Statement.
- How secure are the investments?
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MARAC Deposits are unsecured unsubordinated senior debt obligations 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 26 27 22 and we’ll send you a copy.
- What interest rates do you pay?
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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?
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None at all.
- What is the minimum amount I can invest?
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$1,000. However a higher minimum may be required in order to be eligible for higher rates or for certain products.
- What investment terms are available?
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On call or up to five years.
- How can I receive my interest?
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For all investment products
Choose the way you want to receive your interest – either:- direct credit to your bank account; or
- compounded.
Then you choose your interest frequency, which can be either:- monthly;
- quarterly;
- annually; or
- deferred to maturity.
- Can I change the way I receive my interest during the term of my investment?
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Yes, just call us on 0800 26 27 22 and we’ll sort it out for you.
- Is my interest taxed?
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Yes, unless you hold an exemption certificate from Inland Revenue.
The current New Zealand tax laws require Heartland Building Society 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% and 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% (30% 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 approved issuer levy instead, which is only 2%.
- How do I know how much interest I’ve received?
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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?
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We will send you a letter about three weeks before your investment matures to ask whether you want your investment repaid or reinvested. If you’d like to reinvest, we can take your instructions in writing, over the phone (call us on 0800 26 27 22) or by email (invest@marac.co.nz). If you want it repaid, you need to request this in writing and return your debenture certificate to us (MARAC, PO Box 9919, Newmarket, Auckland 1149) and we will credit it to your bank account.
- Can I cash in my investment early?
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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.
The interest rate may be reduced when an investment is repaid early, to match the term that the funds were actually invested for. For example, a $5,000 term deposit for two years might receive interest at 7.75%. If the investment was repaid after nine months, the rate for that period might be 7.6%, so the interest will be calculated at that rate.
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 within five working days.
- Can I sell my investment?
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You may sell your investment privately in minimum amounts of $1,000. Please use the standard form for share transfers, available from us or any sharebroker.
- What is our Credit Rating?
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MARAC operates as a division of Heartland Building Society. Heartland Building Society has a credit rating of BBB- (Outlook Stable) from Standard & Poor’s. See Heartland Building Society’s Investment Statement or MARAC’s website for more details about our credit rating.