Cruch to last at LEAST another 18 mnths

mr_magoo_5

Like it or not but when the chancellor of this country admits he hasn’t seen anything like this for 60 years, which would almost take us back to the great Depression, those without huge savings should be very worried, It should be a warning to all to tighten your belts, cut out the slack, forget the new car, plasma etc, look at what you need rather than want and prepare for the long haul. I’m no expert but apart from what we already know, absolutely huge sums of debt are being passed around right now in exotically named schemes, these have to land on someone’s doorstep eventually.
If you think this is going to be over quickly, fine, but those of you who can understand what we face right now should use this site to get ideas on how to save money, after all that’s what it is, isn’t it?
Treat it as personal as its going to be, draw your lines in the sand and be prepared to go there, you may actually like it. If the system is going to force you to change your lifestyle,
then why don’t you beat them to it?
There are loads of sub forums right here with very helpful and knowledgeable posters who can answer your questions. Also it’s not like the Wild West, as this sub forum tends to be!

fiodyl

Dithering_Dad wrote: »

lol, lovely sentiments B, but hardly likely on the Housing 'ghetto' sub-board. I did a similar appeal just now asking that if the so-called 'doom mongers' insist on pasting in every scrap of negative financial data, they could at least add in their own 'recession survival gudelines'.

There are so many posters that are rubbing their hands together with glee at the thought of a recession that it makes one wonder why they're going to immune from the effects. If they have a secret stretegy for survival, then I for one want to share in it!!!!

My personal strategy for survival

If my partner loses his job then our income will be £730 a month. We need £800 a month to survive on so we can either

• find ways to reduce outgoings or increase income by £70 a month- plenty of threads on this forum show how to do this
• or use £70 from savings each month- currently savings earn approx £150 interest a month, so capital would remain untouched

In the event that both my partner and myself cannot get any kind of job and all state benefits and tax credits (including child benefit) are abolished,i.e we have an income of £0 and have to rely solely on savings, we have enough to last us for about 4 years.

Although this scenario if fairly inprobable, it is IMO slighty more likely at the moment, which is why I am choosing to keep my assets liquid and not use them for buying a house.

geoffky

Dithering_Dad wrote: »

I'm a rock guitarist for a major band and I live in a mansion amongst my gold bullion and jewels.

good for you ...you might think of selling the flat you have to live in midweek...no i wont buy it..:rotfl:

lostinrates

Dithering_Dad wrote: »

Those on higher income will obviously be able to obtain higher loans but still within a prudent 3x salary or (3x main & 1x second salary) structure. If they want to get a larger property then they could just SAVE UP a larger deposit. Does anyone remember that concept any more?

Yep, I'm a saver!

I was always a multipe salary favourer (plus deposit) until someone on here answered a question I made about affordablity versus multiples, with figures by PM. It became clear to be from that that they could afford their huge multiple salary monthly repayments!

If people have smaller mortgages due to cheaper house prices, they will have more disposible income to either save or spend as they will - profiting the wider economy. Having people spending 50/60/70% of their income on mortgages or rents does not make for a healthy economy.

On average I agree with you, really I do. I think though it depends what the 50/60/70% is OF. I think this really would effect a small percantage of both the housing stock and buyers, but nonetheless, I've come to accept that there could safely be some flexibility in very much larger tha can imaginen average alary earners. (larger than would ever be relevent to me or DH!)

There is a difference between discussing a recession, it's implications, impacts and strategies to ride it out. It's quite enough to be foaming at the mouth with glee at every bit of economic bad news, or to believe that we have to have a recession to correct house prices as at leats one poster has stated.

If you fall into the latter of these two (and I don't think you do - at least I'm not aware of it) then yes, I'm accusing you and perhaps you should look at yourself a little.

I personally have to admit, that I feel relief and pleasure with news that is for me good, but for others bad. The pleasure is not untinged with sadness for those who will suffer and a frustration at the system, but I can't help that . I DO like seeing the links here, and discussing the implications. I've learned a lot based on the discusions here, valuable contributions from all points of view. I have often been the first person to jump on posts saying things like 'Arent you glad those homeowners are going down' - I think they are very sad relfections on their OPs, but I also feel that some of the frustration vented against the foolish is somewhat justified and much is will fully interpretd as being gleeful about 'children sleeping on the streets' when its more about the OPs relief their children won't be. So I guess I don't know if I fall in to your second catagory.

I've not said anywhere that I thought it was only those who don't own a home who are gleeful for a recession. To be honest, not many people in here own their own homes - they either rent them off a landlord or off a bank. It's too easy for people to try and pidgeonhole other posters into HPC or HPI camps. I'm in neither, I just want to protect my family from recession and just want to help to try and keep this forum a little balancedbetween the two extremes.

DD, as I said, it was not soley you I was accusing. In fact, in our brief pms you were thoroughly decent, and when 'posted to directly' such as this I find you to be reasonable and well thought out in your response. I apprieciate that. Sadly, its not always the case. I also agree with you that balance is disirable, for everyone's families...I'm just not sure how acheivable it is.

I quite enjoy the rough and tumble of the Housing Board but feel it's getting a little out of control when one can't express a different opinion from the 'gang' without having 4 or five people attack them.

Attacks come from both sides. Personally I agree, I like the 'debate' and appreciate differing opinions. The more vantages I can see from the better I feel I can appreciate or challenge my own.

ultra10

Generali wrote: »

In his 1997 budget speech, Gordon Brown said, "I will not allow house prices to get out of control and put at risk the sustainability of the recovery." That's pretty direct IMO.

A bubble in house prices was then encouraged by the UK government (indirectly by their reaction to Equitable Life and their changes to pension law as well as directly by not allowing enough building in the South East).

Agreed.. The bottom line is that Labour encouraged this massive credit bubble & stayed in power on the back of the relentless property boom, all u.k plc was doing was flogging houses to each other at ever more stupid levels ... Now its over & so are labour ..for at least two & quite possibly 3 terms of governemnt ..

Jennifer_Jane

logie28 wrote: »

quite pathetic if you ask me,, did you copy this from the student union board???

most points invalid, tax rises pay for the running of the country, sorry i almost forgot we didn't have any of these under the Torie( poll tax, resulting in anarchy and riots) things where much better then,,,


remember this is as democratic society with a government voted in by the people, A great nation with a proud history and a bright future.

If you dont like it, new Zealand are looking for immigrants..

BTW i have lived and worked in third world countries with REAL problem, Albania in the 1990 s being one.

As a 28 year old English man i take heed of an old proverb, "you dont know your born"
look at the bigger picture, the world is bigger than your little bubble!!

So, everyone disagreeing with the Government of the day should emigrate? I also have lived (for 26 years) in a '3rd-world' country with problems, but I still think Britain - the one place where I have a vote - is in trouble. For lots of reasons, but one strength we have is the ability to change things.

And no, I disagree with you that the world is bigger than my little bubble - to me it is not. It's only when 'the world' impacts on my little bubble that it becomes important. Anything else is just interesting.

Jen

PS - general comment, but I always thought that the name of a language used a capital letter: so I speak French, German, etc.

Dithering_Dad

geoffky wrote: »

good for you ...you might think of selling the flat you have to live in midweek...no i wont buy it..:rotfl:

I rent that one. So I really do see both sides of the Home ownership and renting divide.

amcluesent

>those without huge savings should be very worried<

Anyone with anything should be very worried. The controlled media (led by the BBC) will be instructed to demonise 'hoarders' as 'unpatriotic' when we must all pull together at this time of National Crisis. Under the sham of 'democratic will', their assets will be stolen by the state for the 'common good' and given away to the millions of !!!!less.

Right now, there's never been a better time to have bullion gold secured where only you know it's location.

dopester

Dithering_Dad wrote: »

I'm in neither, I just want to protect my family from recession and just want to help to try and keep this forum a little balancedbetween the two extremes.

There are no real extreme views here, although we could use our imagination for some Bildenburg type master plan.

Phase 1: Foreign war.

Phase 2:

a) The secret war on the domestic population begins in full. Fatten and soften them up with vast sums of cheap easy credit, abandoning all historic precedents for lending, enjoying the win-win-win of continuous HPI, and letting them gorge away with consuming, whilst the city-boys siphon big chunks of wealth in pay and bonuses... until reaching the crunch.

b) Enter depression. Society begins to decay and turn on itself. Financial meltdown ensues. Political instability. Power cuts and food shortages leading to rationing. Rioting and violence. Situation deteriorates further. Society breaks down. Death numbers sharply rise.

c) Those communities remaining scavenge for food in the daytime, and then hole up at night, hoping to remain undetected from the many packs of feral chav gangs who were deliberately alienated by policy in the boom years, and who now roam the streets at night, tiny minds full of blind fury, and like Charlton Heston in "Omega Man" (or Will Smith in... "I Am Legend")... wait out the long nights out until daylight.

Phase 3: The rich emerge from their deep cosy well-stockpiled bunkers. Treasures, art and gold intact. Change in to rag type clothes. Nominate a great orator to promise a new beginning with new hope to the remaining survivors. Imposes a New World Order. New cycle begins.

tomstickland

I do wonder about what will happen as tax income falls and benefit demands increase. I've spent the last 5 years getting my finances into shape, so hopefully I can weather a downturn. It would be sad if that hard work was wasted, but I've got a "whatever happens happens" attitude. Luckily, I've been very happy over these years too. Survival is a game that we have a lot of experience with.