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Help to Buy is nothing but an election ploy....
Comments
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Taking the view that we have been reasonably human for 10,000 years; lets say 500 generations
then any-one living in the UK today is one of the top 5 generations that have ever lived
so we are arguing whether some-one today is either
in the top 1% of everyone that has ever lived
or
in the top 0.2% of everyone that has ever lived
in addition anyone living in the UK is probably in the top 20% of all people living today
a sense of proportion about how terribly unfair life is might be in order.
enjoy life, you only live once
I haven't really got a clue what point you are trying to make.
We only experience probably 60 years of adult life life in which to exist. We exist in the UK not Venezuela or in a nomadic tribe in the ata cama.
It is the problems here and now that shape peoples fortunes not some reference to the dim and distant past."If you act like an illiterate man, your learning will never stop... Being uneducated, you have no fear of the future.".....
"big business is parasitic, like a mosquito, whereas I prefer the lighter touch, like that of a butterfly. "A butterfly can suck honey from the flower without damaging it," "Arunachalam Muruganantham0 -
Loughton_Monkey wrote: »
As recently proven, however, we seem to be down to about 24th in the civilised world for basic educational standards, which I find rather perverse given the ever increasing exam passes/grades over the years, and the shift from 5% to 50% going to 'university' [which now includes what used to be tech colleges with 15%[??] going?]. Something has well and truly broken!
Has the actual intelligence changed or just how it is graded?
Without a degree these days the doors are closed on so many occupations/careers.
I don't believe that a 50% university attendance and qualification actually makes any difference to the vast majority of roles. If anything it has simply downgraded the status.
It is a convenient box that gets ticked on the recruiters check-list.
A modern day national service that the recruit has to pay for (nominally)."If you act like an illiterate man, your learning will never stop... Being uneducated, you have no fear of the future.".....
"big business is parasitic, like a mosquito, whereas I prefer the lighter touch, like that of a butterfly. "A butterfly can suck honey from the flower without damaging it," "Arunachalam Muruganantham0 -
grizzly1911 wrote: »I haven't really got a clue what point you are trying to make.
We only experience probably 60 years of adult life life in which to exist. We exist in the UK not Venezuela or in a nomadic tribe in the ata cama.
It is the problems here and now that shape peoples fortunes not some reference to the dim and distant past.
It would seem that you know exactly the point I'm making.0 -
It would seem that you know exactly the point I'm making.
It would seem you are comparing apples, bananas and pears.
It is the pears that have got to be consumed and dealt with."If you act like an illiterate man, your learning will never stop... Being uneducated, you have no fear of the future.".....
"big business is parasitic, like a mosquito, whereas I prefer the lighter touch, like that of a butterfly. "A butterfly can suck honey from the flower without damaging it," "Arunachalam Muruganantham0 -
Loughton_Monkey wrote: »I'm really not sure on this one. If we are talking about 18 to 28 year olds, say, then maybe the jury is still out. There is little data. But as for 35 to 45 year olds, this flies in the face of the hard facts, where - as recorded - real incomes of between 52% and 77% higher have been truly squandered. Now everyone is taking a cold bath.
Every generation contains a complete spectrum of 'rich' or 'poor'. Even us boomers. Those boomers who squandered, or didn't get much anyway, are just having to 'take it'. Those of us who thought about the rainy day just have to put up our umbrellas for a while and try not to get too wet.
If there's any difference, I guess us boomers, when young, saw even poorer parents. Starting work in the 70's was [in my view] more 'tough' than even now. Mega inflation. Strikes. Recession. Try to save £10 and it was worth £9 a year later! But most of us just kept our heads down and waited for the 80's when we saw a bit more light at the end of the tunnel.
In contrast, today's school leavers are probably seeing parents as being 'mega rich' - not understanding that they were spending every penny they earned, and a bit more - and seem to get depressed that they can't appear to live the same lifestyle.
If you are saying that throwing toys out of the pram under these circumstances is a "reaction", then so be it. But, as I said, attitudes like this will become a self-fulfilling prophesy which then means they will become a cause why a lot of them will squander their whole lives.
Those youngsters who learn (perhaps like boomers did) how to live in a genuinely depressed financial climate, should reap very large benefits from the following 30 years of true prosperity [which will come]. But I think chips on shoulders might prevent a lot of them reaping any harvest when it comes, and for that, I give them no sympathy.
Yes, I'm very much thinking first and foremost about the under 30s in my posts (perhaps going a little older, but not much). For reference, I'm just coming up to 40, and have been fortunate (and I do consider it good fortune rather than any great financial acumen) to have bought my first home 12 years ago. My wife and I are still in that property, now mortgage free, with an additional £50k saved towards our next and hopefully final move where we can hopefully raise a family..
We've been able to do that primarily by giving the whole "consumer" thing a miss. We don't go without anything important, but things like TVs / stereos etc. get replaced when the old one breaks, rather than when something new and shiny comes out. Holidays are a quiet and inexpensive spot on the Greek Islands rather than anything lavish (and even that was out for a few years), and while we run 2 cars, until a couple of years ago their combined value was about £2k.
In terms of the 35-45 group, my example probably sums up exactly what you were talking about. The ability to build assets was there at that time, but you had to prioritise. We're now looking to move to a 3 bed "forever" house, with a mortgage small enough to be sustainable on 1 salary to deal with childcare etc. While our options around the kind of house we can afford are certainly more limited than would have been the case for a similar couple born 20 years earlier (we're looking at a 3 bed terrace, when a 4 bed semi in a better area would probably have been the order of the day for our salary 20 years ago), the fact is that we can probably still find something big enough to meet our needs in an area we'd feel OK about living in.
I say the above not in an "haven't I done well" sense (like I say, I've just been lucky), but to illustrate the opportunities that people in my age group very much have had decent opportunities (less than the boomers imho, but still pretty good). So for people in my age group, people cannot blame their age in itself for any misfortune they have had.
I now look at whether a 21 year old on exactly the same income trajectory as I have had would be able to build up home ownership assets in the way I have anywhere near the area I live (suburban South London, zone 3/4), and the short answer is not a prayer. They will have had to pay fees for an education that I got for free (with a small contribution to living costs to boot). They will probably have to work longer than I will, and someone 12 years younger than me looking to buy a property like mine will have to pay not far short of double what I had to pay (relative to earnings) to do so.
As I've always said, my posts on this subject that I'm passionate about are not based on a sense of personal disenfranchisement, more a sense that as a society, we've broken the "social contract" with young adults that says that if they do the right t hings, the opportunities for success will come. I really can't blame any 21 year old for taking a "sod it" attitude in the face of that reality, especially as I'm much less convinced than you that we're about to have 30 years of prosperity (I'm more in the "the real impact of the crisis is yet to really hit us" camp) coming up. Indeed, it's almost a surprise that more of them don't, and full credit to those who are trying to make their way in the toughest set of circumstances for 50 years.0 -
grizzly, may I recommend a S.A.D. lamp as pictured here below.
Your posts are a never ending gloomfest brimming with negativity and despair..
Alternatively, you could spend some time with your tribe in the Atacama to get a sense of perspective.Don't blame me, I voted Remain.0 -
........I now look at whether a 21 year old on exactly the same income trajectory as I have had would be able to build up home ownership assets in the way I have anywhere near the area I live (suburban South London, zone 3/4), and the short answer is not a prayer. They will have had to pay fees for an education that I got for free (with a small contribution to living costs to boot). They will probably have to work longer than I will, and someone 12 years younger than me looking to buy a property like mine will have to pay not far short of double what I had to pay (relative to earnings) to do so......
But how do you know? This mythical 21 year old has another 7 years to go before he's at the same age you bought your house?
Student loan repayment will not switch in until he hits a certain salary and will then be only a small proportion of salary.
But look at your own 2 cars (worth £2K) and maybe look at his little runabout costing £5K and the same again for insurance, not to mention his £45 a month Vodaphone contract.
The rate some of these age groups pour out of the expensive night clubs at the weekend, as if their whole Facebook credibility is at stake, informs us that the future is of no concern to them.
If there's any reason at all that they 'have to' work longer is little to do with the economy. It's to do with the good news that we all live a lot longer these days. Retirement age is 100% our own choice. If you plan on living to, say, 90, you can aim for 34 years work plus 34 years retirement (like I did), or 44 years work and 24 years retirement, or anything in between. It's merely a 'simple' matter of adjusting your lifestyle to match....0 -
Seems helptobuy has it's own facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/HelptoBuyEngland
Has the government ever pushed a scheme as much as this? Some of the comments resemble an estate agent....
"Good morning and Happy New Year househunters! A third of renters in the UK are planning to buy their first home in 2014 according to Rightmove. Will you be joining them? http://!!!!!!!/1hhL3nj"
"As the New Year is in sight, will you be planning your Help to Buy move for 2014? Leave renting behind with as little as 5% deposit. Find your local agent here. http://!!!!!!!/1cAxPhA"
"Good morning! With Help to Buy, you can leave renting behind and become one of many homeowners taking advantage of the scheme with as little as 5% deposit. Ready to get the ball rolling? Take a look at our interactive map to find your local Help to Buy agent. http://!!!!!!!/1cAxPhA"
"Josef & Clare are delighted with their new Help to Buy home in the heart of Holybourne, Alton. With a deposit of just over £12,000, they're looking forward to watching Daisy grow up in a spacious mid terrace property. Have a read of their full story here; http://!!!!!!!/1aRazay"
They may aswell have a punchline of "buy now, because surely your child is worth it".
Though the comments are funny.0 -
Better a good news story than a sad one.0
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Thrugelmir wrote: »Better a good news story than a sad one.
Aye, but you could class those sub prime loans in the US as "good news" as someone got a house, regardless.0
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