Over Privileged Boomers are not 'Sacred Cows': Wilby

ash28

mcfisco wrote: »

I'm a boomer [just] and own my house outright now - this is our 2nd house

We bought our 1st one in 82, it was very cheap because it was basically uninhabitable.
We'd spent every penny we had on it and had no choice but to move in with nothing more than a bag of clothes each, a coffee table, a mattress and 2 deck chairs
No curtains, carpet or anything like that was going to make their way into it for some time to come.
We used to buy second hand stuff each week from the auction as we went along.
Anyway, enough of the "aye, we had it tough" - because we didn't, it was fun.
If people now were prepared to put up with those sort of conditions now, I reckon there'd be an awful lot more people able to get their own house - people seem to need perfection and a big wad of money just to move in now.
So what if there's no carpets and concrete floors? Put up with it until you can afford some. Any old bits of material will do for bedroom curtains until you get round to making some [yes, making]
£10K kitchen? central heating?- in your dreams.

And - as I said above - it was fun, so get on with it.
You don't need to add £30K to the mortgage or get a big loan to do the place up - do it up as you go along and funds are available.

Don't blame the boomers, lower you're expectations

Well we weren't that bad because we rented for about 7 or 8 years so we had the furniture - just not the carpets. We bought our first house in 1982. We bought new - the cheapest we could find purely because you needed a smaller deposit on a new house at the time.

My sister's first house had part of the mortgage retained because it needed work doing to it - substantial work - like the roof. The money was released when the work was done. They also had nothing - just a bed and 2 chairs donated by her mother in law. They became expert decorators and diy-ers.

When my daughter and her partner bought their first house about 5 years ago - they decorated it top to bottom, had new carpets right through and brand new furniture (they were moving in together) - the only thing second hand was a freezer for the garage, a washing machine and the furniture in their spare room was out of her room in our house. I wouldn't mind but it was quite expensive and came from Cargo. It was no wonder she wanted it.

They had a beautiful home - it took us over 10 years to achieve the same thing!

That's partly because "stuff" is generally cheaper now.

They have since split up and she has moved into a flat and how times have changed - sofa came from Ebay and an absolute bargain, bed donated by a friend (though it is Beadle and Crome), TV and stand donated by a friend - arm chair donated by a friend. All she has bought new is a mattress and kitchen bits and some soft furnishings. Her flat is as lovely as the house and it's cost her next to nothing to get it that way.

I'm sure plenty of other young people do exactly the same and don't spend a fortune on stuff - she couldn't afford to and has learnt that you don't need a to spend a lot to have a nice place.

System

chewmylegoff wrote: »

4) share prices fell FTSE fell well below 4,000 in 2008, and then fell below 5,000 again last year.

5) so although asset prices did fall, and people did have the opportunity to "snap up" cheap assets, this time it is different.

Greed. People saw the falls and all we got when they started picking up again was "dead cat bounce", "Wait til IRs rise", "Wait til the tories get in", blablabla yawn.

StevieJ

mcfisco wrote: »

I'm a boomer [just] and own my house outright now - this is our 2nd house

We bought our 1st one in 82, it was very cheap because it was basically uninhabitable.
We'd spent every penny we had on it and had no choice but to move in with nothing more than a bag of clothes each, a coffee table, a mattress and 2 deck chairs

Two deckchairs you were one of the fortunate ones.

thorsoak

ruggedtoast wrote: »

The majority of housing is owned by boomers. Most young people cant buy because boomers won't sell to them at an affordable rate.

Housing policy is determined by banks, governments, and corporations run by boomers.

We will have to work and pay tax to bankroll pensions, benefits and public services for retiring boomers we will never receive ourselves.

What do you want,a medal?

Dear Rugged Toast

Would you please tell me where I am to buy a property in which to live, when I sell my 2-bed bungalow to you for £50,000 instead of the £200,000 value it has? This is still about 9% less than we paid for it (without a mortgage) in early 2008.

Of course, at the same time, I will be accused of deprivation of capital by DWP, because I will not have sold at market value, therefore I will not be entitled to any other benefits.

Please advise!

Wookster

Graham_Devon wrote: »

At least we have Iphones. That's all I'll say.

I hate Apple.

macaque_2

2010 wrote: »

The envious ones who look green-eyed at people who worked hard all their lives, paid all their dues, saved hard and didn`t wrap a millstone of debt around their necks. Maybe the green-eyed should try to emulate them.

If the baby boomers (of which I am one) had worked hard all their lives, we would not be handing on such a diabolical mess for the current generation.

ukcarper

macaque wrote: »

If the baby boomers (of which I am one) had worked hard all their lives, we would not be handing on such a diabolical mess for the current generation.

I agree things seem to be in a mess but I'm not sure it would have made much difference how hard boomers worked perhaps you could explain how it would have.

Wookster

ukcarper wrote: »

I agree things seem to be in a mess but I'm not sure it would have made much difference how hard boomers worked perhaps you could explain how it would have.

I'd say the baby boomers did work hard generally (unlike today's youth) but they got much more than they paid for (by way of pension entitlements & benefit from the house price bubble). Correction of this anomaly will be borne but the under 40's today (in the main).

tescobabe69

I'm a boomer, we bought our first house in 1977 for £10k, improved it, sold it for £12k in '81. We then paid £31k for our current property now worth c. £175k, this property will be inherited by our children.
Not sure how I have benefitted from HPI ?

ash28

ruggedtoast wrote: »

The majority of housing is owned by boomers. Most young people cant buy because boomers won't sell to them at an affordable rate.

Housing policy is determined by banks, governments, and corporations run by boomers.

We will have to work and pay tax to bankroll pensions, benefits and public services for retiring boomers we will never receive ourselves.

What do you want,a medal?

Is it though? I can't really argue as you present no facts or stats.

It's more difficult for the under 30s than it was when I got married - there could be some reasons for that.

Not living at home until they are ready to settle down and saving a decent part of their earnings so they have a deposit for somewhere, is one reason - though it's a big reason. People seem to move in together at the earliest opportunity and wonder why it can be difficult to save when you have rent and household bills to pay. Most of my friends left school at between 15 & 16 and saved from starting work for between 5 & 8 years - which made them early to mid 20s.

The friends of my children (late 20s to early 30s) who have bought houses (not flats) in the south east are the ones who lived at home and their partners lived at home until they were in their mid to lateish 20s - the one's who have struggled are the ones who moved out and rented in an area where rents are high.

In an earlier post I mentioned my daughter and her partner, they both lived at home until they had the money together to put down a decent deposit - it wasn't too onerous. It meant they delayed moving in together for a few years - not the end of the world surely.

My neice even went home after university for about 3 years and she has her own place now.

It's what people used to do. It's what the majority of young people don't do now.