On a personal level, has the recession effected you?

1984ReturnsForReal_2

nembot wrote: »

What people don't understand is it's not the recession that get's you, it's the recovery.

Payback hasnt even started yet.........

PasturesNew

wageslave wrote: »

You do understand money in though I imagine.

£45k per annum was hardly poverty levels honey

It wasn't really £45k I could see. That was money I expected and didn't get.

I expected £15k from savings, never happened (based on what interest rates were - and the reports at the time that rates were going higher), then compound interest kicking in.
I expected £15k from working, never happened, it did for the first 6 months then work dried up.
I expected £15k from my online stuff: it swung between £20 and £8k over the past 3 years.

So I said I'd "lost" that from the recession because of the above, I didn't "lose" £30k I was getting, but what was in my income projection when I looked at things in 2006 and decided to sell up.

PasturesNew

Davesnave wrote: »

Errr...MIL had one. When I saw it in operation, I thought, 'Well, there is justice, after all."
Unlike me, MIL also has the Daily Heil + The Times and all their supplements. I just get 'The Yokel' every fortnight.

If you'd wanted to pursue it though, you could have begged neighbours kept their old papers, or nicked them before the recycling van came round. Or just stuck your arm in the big recycling tubs at supermarkets and robbed them.

Spirit_2

• Bought a flat at peak 2007. Not a BTL just to support a relative. It is for sale now, has dropped, and we have to wait & see how long it takes.
• Bought and imported a dream vehicle, did not get on with it:o and sold it gaining 50%! Could not do it again if we tried, just very lucky.
• Lower interest rate on home (repayment) and flat (IO). Reduced mortgage term by 5 years on home.
• Paid off all debts (massive - see sig) . Living more frugally but in keeping with the times.
• Pay now frozen, OH has increased bonus.
• Job prospects for graduates reduced so encouraged DD to take another Gap year post degree, and to do a Masters next year. It seems miserable to commence a proper working life in a slump/depression
• DD part-ime job not allowed to recruit so she has more work hours offered to her, which she takes up when it suits.
• Built up an emergency fund.
• Have had some maintenance done to house at a fair price, by a good local contractor - keen for our work where we might not have afforded it a couple of years ago.
• PETROL COSTS up considerably, so being more careful.
• Got rid of 4x4 to improve MPG - ebay'd the vehicle and got a good price for it.
• MSE site has taught me to be money savvy and since 2007 we definitely feel better off.
• Expect the continuing downturn to make things tighter but now in a better place to weather it.
• More exchanging of goods with neighbours informal but definitley on increase - we give eggs, (occassional) trout, pheasant, - we get veg, plants, tomatoes, pies, fruit.
• Expect to 'help out' more a relative who is not well enough to work and who may see reduced benefits. They really are on a minimal income now and I would rather share with them (if their pride will let them) than see their 'careful' way of life diminished further - it will just make them sicker and hasten their decline.
• Work shy SiL has had benefits reduced and has got a job!

So swings and roundabouts so far, no tin hat, but not expecting an upturn anyime soon. MSE has definitly been our recession support.

Prudent

Davesnave wrote: »

I don't, but I figure that if we have more ability to feed ourselves, generate some electricity and make use of free wood fuel, then that's the basics covered to a greater degree than before.

Frankly, the idea of retiring to a little suburban place, where we'd be reliant on external systems for everything, put the willies up me.

I'll get me tin foil hat...:o

I still feel vunerable living in a suburban house. I lived for many years on a smallholding and have often thought about the benefits of the independence it brings. Not a choice for me just now as I teach full time and have health problems.

I wish you all the best with this and am sure its a great way to 'retire'.

Davesnave

Prudent wrote: »

I still feel vunerable living in a suburban house. I lived for many years on a smallholding and have often thought about the benefits of the independence it brings. Not a choice for me just now as I teach full time and have health problems.

I wish you all the best with this and am sure its a great way to 'retire'.

Thank you. We tried to do this earlier, but I had a caring role at that time and, as a result, our complicated attempts to sell up and move came to nothing.

I don't believe it's necessary to bear the heavy costs involved in buying and maintaining larger amounts of land. I have friends who do a lot with less than an acre, and there's the sharing/bartering that someone else has mentioned.

Even in a suburban environment, creating a local network with like-minded friends can work equally well. In the city where we lived, there is a group who took over some redundant allotments, garden them organically, sell their surplus and maintain them as an educational/inspirational resource.

http://www.bathorganicgroup.org.uk/

dwsjarcmcd

It has impacted us massively, some for the better, some for the worse.

Got made redundant after nearly 20 years but cushioned with a very healthy payout
After 3 months, found a job contracting but it was 130 miles away from home, so hotel living for a while
They offered me a f/t role which I accepted and decided to buy a flat for during the week. Someone lost a bomb on it and I paid for it with some of my redundancy pay out.

Financially we have never been better off but tempered by being away from home 3/4 days a week. Our plan is to continue this for another 5 years and stock up on cash to future proof us.

Cleaver

PasturesNew wrote: »

I don't know anything about savings, investments, equities, etc etc. I am from simple folk .... who've never done such things.

I can understand: "money in the bank" and that's just about it.

Indeed, and I've heard you say that before. Although... we all know that you're not simple and are obviously an intelligent person. You do all that Google web-based stuff and, from what I can tell, do it very well. That's not for simple people. If you can work out how to do that then you really have no excuse for not working out simple investing, as it's a lot easier to get.

People think investing is complicated, but in this modern world with the internet at your fingertips it's easy. Put aside a few hours to do some reading (books, internet articles and the very knowledable people on the savings and investment boards here) and you'll be pretty up to scratch with what you need to know.

There's a book called 'Smarter Investing' by Tim Hale which is really good and sets out in simple terms how everything works. Although it's quite comprehensive the main ethos of the book is straightforward: have some of your money very safe, have some invested in something that's a bit risky and have a bit invested in something that's really risky. Just change the percentage in each area based on your age / risk profile.

If you're interested in having a read PM me and I'll happily send you my copy for a bit of bedtime reading.

SingleSue

Personally, food has become more expensive so I rely on the reduced almost out of date foods an awful lot more than I used to...it's now become a game for me and the boys to see who can find the best deal of the day when we go shopping.

Diesel is so much more expensive, so no lazy drives out into the country on a rainy day to keep the boys occupied, now we only do essential car trips.

Heating is more expensive so is more rationed than it used to be, throws and quilts downstairs make up the difference as do extra jumpers.

Eldest found it difficult to find a part time job, the jobs which in the old days that would be done by students/youngsters, were being taken by adults who may have lost a job or was looking for extra income to supplement a pay freeze/drop. He has now found a part time job though and is perfectly happy - the job may not be everyones cup of tea and it is not really suitable for his disability (it is manual work which will have the long term impact of deteriorating his condition) but he doesn't care, he is just relieved to have work and mumsy here can not tell him otherwise!

Not that I could be told at that age either! Probably why I have to use a stick now......

Brother is finding things very tough, he is a self employed taxi driver (but through a company) and the people wanting taxis are becoming fewer all the time. He was barely earning minimum wage after expenses (Tax, NI, fuel etc) a year ago, now he is not even earning minimum wage before expenses now...he is now looking around for a different job.

My parents have seen their house value go from 210k+ to around 170k on a good day and their pension/savings not performing well.

My sister and brother in law have seen wage freezes and increasing bills elsewhere, making money tighter.

None of us have a mortgage so we have not benefited from the lower interest rates.

So personally, not really a huge amount but for my brother, horrendously impacted.

SteveV2

I too am in the construction industry. Bricklayer in fact. Wages are about 30% down from peak but we have put in more hours to make the money to where it should be

The mortgage is where we have done best. Gone from 6.50% to 1.25%. That's £330 month interest to £30. Kept the payments the same and it wiped off alot of the term. Back in July 08 we had 17.4 years to go. We now have 9.11 years. Official years anyhow.

Not got a clue what the house we live in is worth. We bought it, extended it and renovated it but never got it valued once finsihed.

My only concern atm is the work is drying up! The only houses we have built are the HA ones. Only about 10 or so private houses in 2 years. The TW site we work on have just put prices up too so the site will probably close within the next 12 months. Shame, it's only 6 miles from home. Can see me travelling alot further to find work so the fuel bill will get much bigger.