How to save money when you're new to New Zealand

Semi Ratuniyauravu knows what it's like to transplant from one country to another. He first moved from Fiji to Queenstown in 2012, then he and his wife trained as Salvation Army ministers in Wellington.

Now based in Ashburton, Ratuniyauravu says the mid-Canterbury region has a "family vibe" and he guesses the number of Pasifika families living in area has risen from about 15 to 50 in the five years they have been there.

Ratuniyauravu and Pacific outreach navigator Percy Tilialo share tips on how to settle in a new country with RNZ's Thrift podcast. Tilialo works for Tangata Atumotu Trust, an organisation that offers health and social services to Pasifika families in Canterbury.

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"I guess one of the main challenges is to be warm during winter here in Ashburton," Ratuniyauravu says.

"One of the things that I've found as an Islander, to help cost with our heat pumps, set the mode into heating. Turn it down to 19 degrees and either have it on one fan or just one of those silent fans," he suggests.

"It just warms the house up. For us, that has saved us a whole lot of money."

Tilialo, originally from Samoa, is on the same page: "When I arrived here, it was so different."

Tilialo doesn't turn the heat pump off at all, "because it will take six hours for the heater every day to reheat again. And that will cost a lot of power. So I do that and it actually helps".

She also keeps a close eye on the unit price of her power. She does her laundry at night and tries to limit the time she spends in the shower.

"In the Island, we can just take an hour to shower. But here, it's hot water that we use. Here, it's more like a five-minute shower."

To keep her five children on track for shorter showers, Tilialo tells them to sing 'Happy Birthday': "if it's three times you sing it, that's enough."

"There's no such thing as savings. That wasn't part of growing up [in Fiji] because we had to live pay cheque to pay cheque," Ratuniyauravu explains.

"So then working in a place like New Zealand... getting that amount of money, sometimes your mind wanders and things are cheap."

He admits he had to reset his mind to avoid takeways and get in the rhythm of paying bills weekly rather than monthly, which is the norm in Fiji.

"Gas, hot water, even a bond to get into your new property. All of that is just kind of like something new."

Ratuniyauravu recommends using free budgeting templates available online to local Pasifika families, to help them get a visual representation of the dollars in and out.

"You'll be surprised, I guess, to see how much you've saved at the end of a month."

Moving to a new place is a big deal and a costly exercise. It's okay to get a hand.

"I guess for us as Pacific Islanders, it's hard to ask for help. And so we just try and hide it and just put a smile on our face," Ratuniyauravu says.

"I encourage them, look, we're here to help."

He has set up a food bank at the Salvation Army, where families can come in and pick their kai. They see up to 50 or 60 families a week - the most popular products are spaghetti, baked beans, toiletries and frozen meat.

It's run like a supermarket, to be mana enhancing.

"That sense of... ownership has come back to them. It's also a way for the team to connect with Pasifika families and find out what other needs they might have.

"Especially when kids are involved, we'd hate to see kids suffer because parents are embarrassed to ask for help. That has been, I guess, a major help to some of our Pasifika families."

A lot of Pasifika workers are supporting families here, but also feel a responsibility to send money home to extended family, he says.

"In our culture, it's hard to say no, especially when families are asking. So for me, I've learned to be honest and just let my family know in Fiji, look, we can't make it work this week or next week."

Planting some familiar flavours, learning about new ones and sharing knowledge all help to build community, Ratuniyauravu says.

The Ashburton Community Garden is set up to represent all different cultures.

Tilialo is hopeful the garden might inspire more Pasifika families to grow their own veges at home. She grows a lot during the summer and puts it aside for the winter.

"With tomatoes, I learned that you can boil them and then ... preserve" because there's not a lot of call for preserving in Samoa, where fruit and veggies grow all year round.

They've even planted taro in the community garden - an experiment they aren't sure will reap rewards just yet thanks to Ashburton's wet soil, but Ratuniyauravu is hoping for the best.

"You never know, you never know. Anything can happen," he says.

"I think it's just so cool to see a community garden where all the cultures are present. Just walking past and seeing a taro plant, oh sweet."