There is considerable inequality of both wealth and income in New Zealand despite our egalitarian values says 
Max Rashbrooke who has researched the subject and written a book called Too Much Money.
Max Rashbrooke who has researched the subject and written a book called Too Much Money.John Bishop reports
Introduced as a specialist in inequality, Max is an Associate of the Institute of Policy Studies at Victoria University of Wellington. He told the club this week that one percent of New Zealanders – about 40 000 people – own 22 percent of the wealth, and that the next nine percent own a further 37 percent. The poorest half of the population own just two per cent of the wealth. Half the country don’t have enough savings to maintain themselves for three months without further income, which ranks New Zealand the fourth worst in the OECD.Acknowledging that a lot of the data about income and wealth was “sketchy”, Max said inequality seems to have declined from the 1890s but increased again from the 1980s. New Zealand was slightly more unequal than the OECD average, similar to the UK but less than the USA. He offered two stories, one of Pete a man who had been abused as a child and had been homeless most of his life, and “Michael’ who had benefitted from a family trust with "millions but not tens of millions.” “Inheritance accentuates differences in opportunity,” Max said.
To redress the situation Max proposed a better housing market, fairer taxation, Kiwisaver for kids and a more collaborative ethos.