- Joined
- Apr 8, 2004
- Messages
- 25,219
- Points
- 3,671
Budget 2013
- Thread starter dave
- Start date
Currently reading:
Budget 2013
Lost on me too!
And me - I tend to leave all that the the wife, she's much better at getting the creases out of my clothes than I am - at least that what i always tell her.
Budget 2013.
Social housing
Landlords of tenants in social housing who earn over £60,000 a year will be allowed to charge them market rent. Tenants will also be required to declare their income.
And there was me thinking council houses (as was) were for people on low incomes etc. Wife & I struggled along on far less than that. We saved hard to make a deposit & pulled out belts right in to afford to live - we were never entitled to a council house.
Even when the mortgage rates went sky high & we had a new born - we went without to keep a roof over our heads, when we were in dire straits the council refused to help.
Even now, our joint income is nothing like £60k.
If we can pay all our bills and still put money by for holidays etc on £30k, then these people should be made to give up their council house for someone far less well off.
Social housing
Landlords of tenants in social housing who earn over £60,000 a year will be allowed to charge them market rent. Tenants will also be required to declare their income.
And there was me thinking council houses (as was) were for people on low incomes etc. Wife & I struggled along on far less than that. We saved hard to make a deposit & pulled out belts right in to afford to live - we were never entitled to a council house.
Even when the mortgage rates went sky high & we had a new born - we went without to keep a roof over our heads, when we were in dire straits the council refused to help.
Even now, our joint income is nothing like £60k.
If we can pay all our bills and still put money by for holidays etc on £30k, then these people should be made to give up their council house for someone far less well off.
We need more affordable housing. Young folks can't buy property because it is too expensive. The measures announced in the budget will most likely push up house prices. Someone please tell me how this will make housing more affordable.
We don't need more cheap debt - this will just lead to another inflationary bubble, followed by another bust.
We need a sustainable housing market. That means we need to deflate house prices, relative to wages. The measures in the budget will have the opposite effect. Prices will rise, and the only folks who will benefit will be the BTL landlords who will make windfall capital gains when they sell their flats on to young folks starting out, who will be saddled with a lifetime of debt that will become an ever-increasing burden once interest rates rise again & real wages continue to fall.
It's a political budget, pure & simple. Not good for the long term health of the country at all.
One thing is for sure. Whoever wins the next election, taxes will have to rise quickly and sharply. This is not a good time to over-extend your finances.
We don't need more cheap debt - this will just lead to another inflationary bubble, followed by another bust.
We need a sustainable housing market. That means we need to deflate house prices, relative to wages. The measures in the budget will have the opposite effect. Prices will rise, and the only folks who will benefit will be the BTL landlords who will make windfall capital gains when they sell their flats on to young folks starting out, who will be saddled with a lifetime of debt that will become an ever-increasing burden once interest rates rise again & real wages continue to fall.
It's a political budget, pure & simple. Not good for the long term health of the country at all.
One thing is for sure. Whoever wins the next election, taxes will have to rise quickly and sharply. This is not a good time to over-extend your finances.
Last edited:
There hasn't been a good time.
I know quite a few people who have lost out to negative equity.
Much of the problem is down to greed.
A few years back we went to look at a house, first impressions were not bad but on quick inspection there were loads of pitfalls.
When I checked online, the people had bought the house a couple of years earlier, it didn't look like they had done any work to it & yet the asking price was almost double - some muppet would have given them almost what they were asking.
Estate agents really have a lot to answer for. They grossly overestimate a house's value so as to increase their own profits and they are the ones who grossly overestimated the bandings for property taxes.
- Joined
- Apr 8, 2004
- Messages
- 25,219
- Points
- 3,671
They wouldn't get away with it as easily if there were more affordable housing. Then people would have a 'choice' to tell them to shove it and get a council house. The money from the sales of Council housing should have gone STRAIGHT back into building more housing and as a result maintaining a stable "growth". A plan that would work if we where to get a grip on immigration...
As there's so little council housing now people don't have a choice but to pay half their salary per year on rent.
As there's so little council housing now people don't have a choice but to pay half their salary per year on rent.
The affordable housing round here is an absolute joke! 2 bedroom tiny pokey flat via a housing scheme will easily set you back £130k+ but you can only ever buy 80% share (max) and the monthly cost is still in excess of £800 per month once you factor in service charges, you still need a hefty deposit too. Then as it's anice shiny new building council tax band is way higher than it should be.....
Unless I have a lottery win, or a hefty inheritence one day, I can't see me ever being able to make the jump from extortionate rent to extortionate mortgage in this area. Least of all for a tiny waste of space place to live!
:yeahthat:
Before anyone is allowed to buy their council house, the council needs to look at where it can build more houses & get some costings. And when deciding how much they will sell their old houses for, they need to ensure that they get back more than enough to cover ALL costs - so the new build costs us nothing.
I'd also like to see a stop on rent reductions for single occupancy. They wouldn't get it in the private sector & I can't see my bank coming to me & saying "sorry your wife has died/left, we'd like to offer you a single person discount on your mortgage repayment". I'd either have to struggle to find the money OR suck it up & find somewhere more affordable.
I was amazed (in a previous job) at the number of old folks living alone in large council houses, often having a bed downstairs as they can't manage to get upstairs!
