Liz Jones is Credit Crunched in the end.....

fc123

lostinrates wrote: »

I think the quote about a nice car/nice house suggests she doesn't understand how much this frustrate those of us for whom she's bought an acrage that would be subsitance entry level to agriculture. If that.

For those of us who actually want to farm, most have been priced out of the actual farm houses for a long time. Then, you find land, and noone wants new farm houses to be buiult because it spoils the nice quite/ beautiful landscape. But of course, chickens DO get sick in the midle of the night: how do we know if we are not there to do a late check?

e.g.: a plot of lan has come up in ne of my favourite ever valleys: perfect amount for me, and the land i wihing affordability and sensible prospect of profit: but when you add in housing nearish by...without my DH's income it would be a no chance.

Farm diversification has been hugely encouraged: B and B is a popular one the government were tyingto push, echoing the agroturismo of Italy and France: but of course our younger farmers can't usually fford the type of house that allows this aspect of diversification!

Hobby farms....play schemes for the wealthy London types to spend the weekends at. I can understand the anger of locals a bit more now.
Before, I would have seen it as 'helping' the area but it doesn't really.

I guess the planing laws won't change quick enough for you LIR? Are you still considering the caravan idea?

GeneHunt_2

last Tuesday, I didn’t have £8 for the Congestion Charge, and so I now owe Transport for London £60.

!!!!!! if she couldn't afford the congestion charge why didn't she get the tube?

baileysbattlebus

lostinrates wrote: »

I think the quote about a nice car/nice house suggests she doesn't understand how much this frustrate those of us for whom she's bought an acrage that would be subsitance entry level to agriculture. If that.

For those of us who actually want to farm, most have been priced out of the actual farm houses for a long time. Then, you find land, and noone wants new farm houses to be buiult because it spoils the nice quite/ beautiful landscape. But of course, chickens DO get sick in the midle of the night: how do we know if we are not there to do a late check?

e.g.: a plot of lan has come up in ne of my favourite ever valleys: perfect amount for me, and the land i wihing affordability and sensible prospect of profit: but when you add in housing nearish by...without my DH's income it would be a no chance.

Farm diversification has been hugely encouraged: B and B is a popular one the government were tyingto push, echoing the agroturismo of Italy and France: but of course our younger farmers can't usually fford the type of house that allows this aspect of diversification!

I once had a brilliant plan (one of a number of brilliant plans), where we would buy a farm, do naff all and rake in the farming subsidies.......

I was working for part of Defra at the time.......... my boss nearly fell of his chair laughing........

Then there was the one about the abbatoirs...... I got to know a lot about cattle brain stems and tallow by listening to someone's phone conversations.......

Then there was the one about the hides........ and selling them on ebay.......

lostinrates

fc123 wrote: »

Hobby farms....play schemes for the wealthy London types to spend the weekends at. I can understand the anger of locals a bit more now.
Before, I would have seen it as 'helping' the area but it doesn't really.

I guess the planing laws won't change quick enough for you LIR? Are you still considering the caravan idea?

actually: I don't have an issue with hobby farms that are tennanted (rather than sitting totallly used or being somewhere to drive an ATV about self congratulatorily): it is after all the heritage of British farming, and if it provides people with an income and keeps land in use (land suffers with prolongued lack of use, and with over use) its not a bad option IMO.

They also tend to have less intense stocking rates, and when tenanted, the hobbyist wants happy animals about: so often to ''ethical farming''. A lot of my chums would lynch me for my views on hobby farms, but its my opinion!

{Important addition: the caveat to the above is that what seems to happen in practise ATM is a rich farmer sells his farm with complete house, buys/retains another house and keeps farming his land, with a few million in the bank: tennent farms would provide good first rung or lower profit level farming land: for people who could never afford the trappings of rich farming. Tescopoly does exist in farming}

Yes, caravaning and self build would be our prefered option if the planning laws were softened. But even that is limited: the size of Tied dwelling you can build is retrisced to being reflecting of the profit you make, generally over a three year period of start up. Most businesses take a while to get going. My ''profit'' arm will not be in profit at all with in three years! This smacks to me, of keeping the peasantry in its place: if we had inherited a farm we'd be allowed, with normal buidling constrainsts and planning, to add what ever we wanted in the way of doestic trivialities and pleasure. IMO some of this type of restriction is what uglifies the coutryside anyway, so self defeating.

We're ''lucky'' because at the acrages we are looking prices have continued to fall. We're also lucky that my background brings other areas of profit making: some still fairly unique to the market...others less so, but I think I can do as well...or better . I'm ace at upmarket B and B, I cover for my neighbours sometimes A lot of hobbyists and playing at rural enterprises have relaised its not money for old rope and our days really do start at 5 and go on till.....sunset or later, when things go to plan! (of course there is seasonal variation, and pay offs for that, but you can't cll in sick if you need to milk)

At the moment other personal stuff is happening which means we might be looking at a different approach though. We've also been credit crunched on lending: although it did get through to us quite late: but even then...things might not be what they seem I guess our situation is much the same: we'll jump if its right, if not we wait and see what next March brings us.

Edit: Bloody hell, even I can't read that, if I remember I'll edit it tomorrow (ETA: I have now edited some, )

fc123

GeneHunt wrote: »

!!!!!! if she couldn't afford the congestion charge why didn't she get the tube?

because it doesn't run from Exmoor? Only kidding...she seems to always drive to cenral London so that confirms she has a screw loose

fc123

I was just thinking. If Boris got 250k for one column.....this writing lark sounds pretty good.

I wouldn't put Boris in the same league as Liz though as she just writes chat really whereas Boris writes amazingly (not talking about content but style) esp his kids book that he also illustrated.

OK...How does one get a job that pays that well just to write chit chat?

fc123

baileysbattlebus wrote: »

I once had a brilliant plan (one of a number of brilliant plans), where we would buy a farm, do naff all and rake in the farming subsidies.......

I was working for part of Defra at the time.......... my boss nearly fell of his chair laughing........

Then there was the one about the abbatoirs...... I got to know a lot about cattle brain stems and tallow by listening to someone's phone conversations.......

Then there was the one about the hides........ and selling them on ebay.......

What did you do instead BBB?

michaels

Can you get them to put family dates (birthdays. anniversaries etc) in to the calendar - my parents do this themselves and it is invaluable (although there is the drawback of having a calendar with their pictures on display each month....

fc123 wrote: »

Anyway, I am going to log off now (I know it's bad manners when I posted the thread ) as I have found a fab Xmas present solution and it's 40% OFF if ordered before Nov 4th.
This is the site

I am going to make books of pics (and calendars)for family who visited over the summer and don't know I've got some great photos.
I'm not techy at all....but learnt how to do it really easily. and for £12 each person, seems a good deal to me.

Just got to select and crop the pics I want to use for each one.

lostinrates

baileysbattlebus wrote: »

I once had a brilliant plan (one of a number of brilliant plans), where we would buy a farm, do naff all and rake in the farming subsidies.......

I was working for part of Defra at the time.......... my boss nearly fell of his chair laughing........
Be niceif it worked. There are ways to make a little: but not sit back little. Subsidies are (sometimes) a way to kill good farming. Sometimes they are the only way to save good farming.
Then there was the one about the abbatoirs...... I got to know a lot about cattle brain stems and tallow by listening to someone's phone conversations.......I've spent a lot of time in abbatoirs. Its funny but you don't go for while, you get soft: I get a funny feeling at the thought now. I'd actually, in a nother life, like to run a good abbatoir. A proper, ethical, good abbatoir. Meat would cost more in my world, but we'd eat a lot less of it...meaning less dense graxing patterns....its a cycle of madness that shouldn't be mad, but is in today's context.

Then there was the one about the hides........ and selling them on ebay.......

There was a hide shop at one of the shopping villages, wonder what happened to it?

There are LOTs of ways to diversify, but like most businesses, you need to spend a little to mke a little: if you are on the breadline in the primary industry there is nothing, money nor man hours, let alone education and experience to diversify with. IMO it comes bck to the same circle that FC123 faces in here work: but what we do with our soil, our ground is so very crucial because its going to outlive all of us, I hope. Getting it right/wrong today can mean the difference tomorow: only we look so closely at the next few years that ..(lir sighs, stops typing mid rant and relaises no one cares, while meat stays low in price so people can afford the othe r''essential'' costs of living and the understanding of longterm is to short...:o:rolleyes:)

lostinrates

fc123 wrote: »

because it doesn't run from Exmoor? Only kidding...she seems to always drive to cenral London so that confirms she has a screw loose

N'ah, its because the frequency of the train service coming back out can be pants. and believe it or not, off peak, at least the distance I do, not sure if that would continue all the way, is sometimes quicker, and often cheaper than by rail. I kid you not, its cheaper for me to py CC and park sometimes, than get the train.