Should property maintenance man return to Britain?

htrj

Im currently living in the Canary Islands which is lovely but there just aint enough work here for everyone.

Can anyone give me an indication of what the work situation is like for property maintenance and handy persons in Britain at the moment?

dmg24

Have you seen any of the British newspapers/ news channels recently?

htrj

dmg24 wrote: »

Have you seen any of the British newspapers/ news channels recently?

Yes I have and it sounds truly awful. My problem is that hearing only what I do on the news I get a very negative view.

I wonder that as unemployment in Britain has not yet hit 5% and although confidence is lost have people really stopped maintaining their homes? Gutters still get blocked, fences still blow down and lawns keep growing. I'd like to hear how people are getting on over there as we don't have lawns gutters or fences here and we've got a lot more job hunters per job.

jacklink

its not good here at the moment, i know the building sector is suffering very badly, personally i would rather have no work in a lovely climate than no work in cold Britain at the moment, but most of all id just like a job.

htrj

jacklink wrote: »

its not good here at the moment, i know the building sector is suffering very badly, personally i would rather have no work in a lovely climate than no work in cold Britain at the moment, but most of all id just like a job.

What sort of work are you looking for?

dmg24

htrj wrote: »

Yes I have and it sounds truly awful. My problem is that hearing only what I do on the news I get a very negative view.

I wonder that as unemployment in Britain has not yet hit 5% and although confidence is lost have people really stopped maintaining their homes? Gutters still get blocked, fences still blow down and lawns keep growing. I'd like to hear how people are getting on over there as we don't have lawns gutters or fences here and we've got a lot more job hunters per job.

If someone can't afford to heat their house then they certainly can't afford to repair their fence! Sorry, but things like that will be the last thing that people will prioritise at the moment.

htrj

dmg24 wrote: »

If someone can't afford to heat their house then they certainly can't afford to repair their fence! Sorry, but things like that will be the last thing that people will prioritise at the moment.

Thats a good point well made but I wonder if the 95% still in employment can afford to heat the house and therefore repair the fence if required. If everyone was truly cutting back everywhere nobody would be replying to my post as they would have cancelled the internet subscription and gone to bed with a bowl of porridge for supper before it got dark so as not to turn on the lights. Or are you relying on the warmth of your processor fan and the light from your monitor?

dmg24

htrj wrote: »

Thats a good point well made but I wonder if the 95% still in employment can afford to heat the house and therefore repair the fence if required. If everyone was truly cutting back everywhere nobody would be replying to my post as they would have cancelled the internet subscription and gone to bed with a bowl of porridge for supper before it got dark so as not to turn on the lights. Or are you relying on the warmth of your processor fan and the light from your monitor?

The impression I get is that people class internet connection as more important than general house maintenance. If you look around on MSE you will see that even those in secure employment are making big cutbacks, if not for now, in order to save for the future (it seems clear that things are going to get worse before they get better). Many are also seeing their hours cut, so they may earn too much to claim benefits, but a lot less than required to maintain their current lifestyle.

I don't want to come across as negative, but I don't think that anybody is in any doubt as to the state of the economy.

PasturesNew

Which area of the country would you return to?
What are your top 5 skills/services that you offer?

Just to give people a bit of a clue so they can answer in a more precise way.

Unstoppable_2

htrj wrote: »

I wonder that as unemployment in Britain has not yet hit 5%

That was last month. This month, it's just short of 8% in the North East. In my town in East Yorkshire, it's 33%

Not only that, even though there's people wanting fences put up and gutters cleaned, there's 10,000's of unemployed builders to do it.

htrj

Its not negative as long as its justified but without being there I can't make a true assessment of peoples attitude to thier expenditure. Also Ive seen too many big bills handed to clients who neglected their homes. Tightening your purse strings is one thing but neglecting your assets is a fast road to financial catastrophe.