Matt Seabrook Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 I dont think houses will fall significantly enough to make the difference to most people. I brought my first house back in 1994 just as they started to go up, it cost me £45,000. I was chatting to a friend that thought he new better about 18 months later about buying a house and he said "No I am going to hang on until they come back down again. They will always come back down." Last year I sold that house for £160,000 he is still living in a council house. House prices do go up and down but I fear its a little too late now for them to get to a sensible level again. Quote
juansolo Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 Yeah I f**ked up on the whole house buying thing also and am in the same position as Scruffy. On the upside, because I didn't buy a house all that time ago, I did buy a Westfield and went on a lot of trackdays. So despite being the target of much ridicule, I still don't regret it. Quote
Norman Verona Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 I had someone we know round yesterday to look at our house (which is for sale). She's had hers for sale for a year now. I asked if anyone had been to see it and the response was "Oh lots of people have been to see it, but they all offer less than we want" She also said that the agents are telling her to drop the price. "But It's priced at what we want for it, that's what it's worth" I told her it's worth what someone will pay for it and if no one will pay what she wants them then she wants too much. "But that's what I want for it because that's what it's worth" I won't be waiting for her to buy my place OUR HOUSE IS ON THE MARKET FOR 20,000€ LESS THAN THE HIGHEST VALUATION SO IT SHOULD GO FAIRLY QUICKLY. (I'm told the Brit's swarm over looking for property when the kids break up from school) Quote
Paul Hurdsfield - Joint Manchester AO Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 When we bought our first house back in 74' the Building Trade was classed as casual work, Building Society's wouldnt touch you unless you had at least 10% deposit, maybe thats the answer, all this borrow 5 times your income is like skating on VERY thin ice. Fortunately for us we have no mortgage anymore, all 3 cars are paid for and we have no other debts, so we have no credit to get crunched the downside to this is to get in that position you either have to be getting on a bit or a lottery winner Anyway, yes the Media are to blame, you name it, if it's gonna make a good story for a while then lets big it up and everyone will believe it's gonna happen Quote
Blatman Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 The problem with "the media" is everyone believes what they are told as if it's gospel. Journalists are like everyone here, they give their opinions. Just because it's given to us through a magic lantern doesn't mean we should believe it. Instead, listen to the opinions, look at your wallet, and make your own minds up... As I see it, there are 2 issues. 1. Inter bank lending rate. There is almost *nothing* we can do about that. All we can do is deal with the effects. 2. Fuel prices. Again, little we can do about the price of crude, so deal with the effects. The problems come because these 2 issues affect almost every part of our daily lives, with fuel prices affecting just about everything we buy. Some of us will have to reign in our spending, some won't. Those in denial will be the ones in trouble because they'll spend out regardless of the consequences. I place anyone with a 100%+ mortgage in the "spend regardless" category, along with anyone else who is unable to make their own decisions about what to buy and when. The problem is, this society is being taught that everything is someone elses fault, and whilst this may be true of the *cause* of the current situation, the the way the effects are felt and dealt with is entirely down to us. The result is that for a time, some of us will spend less, the economy will slow down and we'll be in the doldrums for a bit. That's life, but it really isn't the end of the world. For 40 somethings like me, this is the third or fourth time it's happened in our lifetimes, yet here we all are Quote
Bananaman Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 We work as a Landscape Consultants for the housing industry and over the last couple of months things have come to a shuddering halt Speaking to clients nearly all of them are shedding staff at an alarming rate!!! loosing between 30-50% of staff. Most of them are putting sites on ice until things pick up and that seems to be based on the banking system, apparently there are buyers out there but banks are not willing to lend!!! The consensus seems to be that the banks are mainly to blame for lose lending policies based on perceived house prices and not on ability to pay........Where as now they have gone back the other way. I don't think the press help matters either, don't they just love BAD news I think were (people in the housing industry) are in for 12-18 months on hard times..... Quote
Norman Verona Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 Truths: The recession will be deeper and longer than predicted House prices will fall lower and for longer than predicted Interest rates will rise and stay higher for longer then predicted The unions will strike for more pay many people will be poorer for longer than expected Many people will get richer, quicker As Blatman says, some of us old 'uns have seen it all before. If it's so easy to predict why do we make the same mistakes over and over again...... GREED, simple as that Quote
Muttleys V8 Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 IMHO, the person that started this all off is!!!!!!!! George W Bush. He let the US banks give credit to poor Amercian families, and he has helped the Texan Oil companies that helped him win the US election in 2000 more profit by letting them take control of the oil in the far east. This in turn has bumped up the cost of fuel. Quote
Blatman Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 IIRC, many of the US oil companies capped their US based oil wells when it became clear that they would have some say in the middle eastern oil deposits. The thinking was that if it went bad, they would still have their own reserves to fall back on. Seems like the increasing price and profit has been a happy side effect for them Quote
Man On The Clapham Omnibus Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 At least you can get a real return on savings today - albeit a tiny one. The inflation rate - the real one, not the Noo Labia tall story version - is still keeping pace with investment interest levels even after tax. In the sixties, under Harold Wilson's mob, inflation was 15% and interest rates way below that so your savings were rotting away before your very eyes. Kruger Rands were the only way to buy gold, if I recall, and the expression 'hedge against inflation' was used a lot. Quote
Man On The Clapham Omnibus Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 Wasn't there talk of oil being present under Windsor Great Park a few years ago... Quote
Man On The Clapham Omnibus Posted June 20, 2008 Posted June 20, 2008 On the other hand... Canuk Explorations clicky Quote
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