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Debate House Prices

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Debate House Prices & the Economy

Is buy to let still worth it?
With the changes to buy to let, mostly S24 and the changes to tax relief etc, is buy to let still worth it?
The Coming of the New Messiah
I just thought I'd float something on these boards. Bliar recently made statements about 'returning to politics' and visited Juncker. Juncker subsequently mentioned 'stepping down' around that time (though in usual form I believe he retracted this soon afterwards by saying 'I'm not going anywhere', or words to that…
UK Government Debt Stupid Question maybe?
Hi All this may be a stupid question, or it may not. If the UK interest bill on debt is roughly £43 billion a year, and equates to roughly 3% of the actual debt,, why hasn't the UK government refinanced its debt. The interest rate from the BOE is currently 0.25 %. So if the UK could invent more money to pay off its debt…
Tories announce energy price rises for those who shop around to protect big business
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-39685106 Basically the profit made on customers who are too lazy to look for the best deal will be capped. This will reduce the ability for companies to be able to cross subsidise new customers with cheaper deals so pushing up prices for those who do bother to look at how much…
Experts say Scottish Government’s property tax is ‘flawed’
Self governance isn't so easy as it appears. http://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/experts-say-scottish-government-s-property-tax-is-flawed-1-4429291
Smaller deposits on the increase
I remember last time this sort of thing was in the news - around 2007. http://https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/may/01/smaller-deposits-raise-hopes-for-uk-first-time-homebuyers
Where to buy in London this spring
http://www.homesandproperty.co.uk/property-news/buying/where-to-buy-in-london-this-spring-the-key-regeneration-hotspots-tipped-for-house-price-growth-a109601.html#gallery
The future of fuel: will today be Britain's first coal free day since the Ind Rev?
I thought this made an interesting alternative to Brexit/IndyRef: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/apr/21/britain-set-for-first-coal-free-day-since-the-industrial-revolution?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4433318/Britain-set-coal-free-day-250-YEARS.html Britain has…
There won't be a crash
I bought my property 5 years ago. I paid £127,000.00. The mortgage term is 30yrs. The initial fix cost £611 for 2 yrs. the rate was 4.99%. Today I took out a new fixed term. Never in my wildest dreams did I think or expect my payments 5 yrs later to be £436pcm. I planned for interest rate upto 10% not knowing in 2011 how…
HTB starts to sting
Didn't realise this, but it appears investors are buying up leaseholds on Help to Buy properties and then charging the owners as much as 16x the original cost to buy the freehold. BBC entitle it as "the property trap effecting thousands". I guess where there is profit to be made, people will make profit.…
How much is a man hole worth?
I have been contracted by a chartered surveyor whose client is building housing in the field opposite our house. They need to connect into the main sewage system and will have to cross our land, a field next to our house, to do so, plus they also want to put a manhole cover on our land. They have said that they are willing…
£194,400 minimum wage
A couple in 2020 working 40 hours a week 51 weeks of the year multiply their earnings by 4.5 x via a mortgage and they have a 15% deposit that gives them a budget of £194,400 in 2020 By comparison according to Land Registry these are the average prices today North East £123.7k Norther Ireland £125.5k Scotland £138.8k Wales…
The Next To Be Left Behind
commentarymagazine.com/american-society/retail-next-to-be-left-behind Apparently there is a tipping point in a retail sector when 20-25% of sales move online. Presumably in a few years Bruce Springsteen will be singing about packing bags and trolleys that won't steer well.
Peak Gillette? The $400 Juicer that is Worse at Juicing than Your Hand
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-04-19/silicon-valley-s-400-juicer-may-be-feeling-the-squeeze It's okay, don't worry. The company won't sell you the under 1/2 pint bags of juice at $8 a pop if you don't own a juicer so you can't squeeze by hand without a machine.
Migration responsible for boom in private renting, uk born renting has not increased
On another thread deserves its own 2011 census shows recent arrivals are far more likely to rent privately Private renting for UK born was 14.7% while it was 72.9% for recent arrivals (0-5 years) and 50.9% for recent arrivals (5-10 years) . See table 7…
Taxpayer makes 'pure profit' from Lloyds selloff
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-39671843 Good news but surely only half the story? The taxpayer has been on the hook for guarantees and indemnities for nearly a decade. That isn't a zero cost affair. RBS looks like a different kettle of fish and the taxpayer won't break-even on their shareholding. The state/ taxpayer…
Low rates mean its foolish to wait for a house price crash
Looking at Birmingham as a non London example. Median two bed home cost £130,000 to buy or £650 pm to rent. If someone has £130,000 in the bank and is considering buying or renting and looking forward five years Renting: Min cost £39,000 rent. Deposit interest gain £6,600 at 1% savings account difference £32,400 Waiting…
EU eyes years of Brexit payments, immigration - document
Another leaked EU document. http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu-negotiations-idUKKBN17M2I6
Libor: Bank of England implicated in secret recording
A secret recording that implicates the Bank of England in Libor rigging has been uncovered by BBC Panorama. The 2008 recording adds to evidence the central bank repeatedly pressured commercial banks during the financial crisis to push their Libor rates down. Libor is the rate that banks lend to each other and it sets a…
What happened to this place?!
I used to be a lurker (different account that I can't remember the details for) on this particular part of the forum here years ago, from 2007 through to 2011 or so and am sure this sub forum used to be a lot busier. Now, I'm seeing hardly any new threads on here..what happened?

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