The need for a property owning democracy

BobQ

CLAPTON wrote: »

There are always unwise people whatever the circumstances; these few oddballs have little relevance to the current housing situation.

As Churchill said "Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

You may have faith that most people will behave sensibly, and I hope you are right, but I think there is a danger that the pent up aspiration to buy, a potential boom/bubble, a generation that think nothing of having high debt levels and the attitude that a house is mainly an investment could lead to a lot of misery when the economy stalls or interest rates rise, or unemployment escalates.

CLAPTON

BobQ wrote: »

As Churchill said "Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

You may have faith that most people will behave sensibly, and I hope you are right, but I think there is a danger that the pent up aspiration to buy, a potential boom/bubble, a generation that think nothing of having high debt levels and the attitude that a house is mainly an investment could lead to a lot of misery when the economy stalls or interest rates rise, or unemployment escalates.

and what have you learnt that will prevent this lot of misery?

BobQ

CLAPTON wrote: »

and what have you learnt that will prevent this lot of misery?

I have answered that!

System

BobQ wrote: »

As Churchill said "Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it."
.

He may have said it but he didn't coin it.
That was George Santayana.

CLAPTON

BobQ wrote: »

I have answered that!

No, you have expressed 'concern' (like Vince) but offered no actual proposals to increase the housing supply, reduce borrowing, insulate us from interest rate rises or from foolish people or ensuring it doesn't rain on Sundays or my birthday

Generali

chucky wrote: »

Not a chance of anything changing.

People need to adapt to the system or get left behind.

If the planning laws were to change tomorrow so that current builders went bust then I still don't see a problem.

Builders still have the same skills. Land and bricks still exist.

Open up planning or make the UK less and less pleasant to live in until people start leaving rather than arriving, net. It seems an extreme way to change the dynamics of the housing market when, for example, more houses could simply be built.

TickersPlaysPop

So it's mainly planning holding back house building?

You think there are lots of building companies sitting on a pile of cash ready to build?!.... No they are not.... They are waiting for the banks to lend them money so they can build.

So the banks have a significant part to play in controlling house building.

CLAPTON

TickersPlaysPop wrote: »

So it's mainly planning holding back house building?

You think there are lots of building companies sitting on a pile of cash ready to build?!.... No they are not.... They are waiting for the banks to lend them money so they can build.

So the banks have a significant part to play in controlling house building.

maybe you can produce the evidence to support that building companies are short of cash to build?

TickersPlaysPop

I knew this before searching the Internet. But I've found a page quoting figures....
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/smallbusiness/article-2541808/Why-builders-starved-funding-housing-boom.html

CLAPTON

TickersPlaysPop wrote: »

I knew this before searching the Internet. But I've found a page quoting figures....
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/smallbusiness/article-2541808/Why-builders-starved-funding-housing-boom.html

basically the article suggests that small building businesses find it difficult to borrow: the large boys that produce most of our new houses are doing fine.

probably the reasons banks don't want to lend to the small boys is they know that the planning laws work against them and the lead times are too long.

a possible answer would be for small rental businesses to directly fund small builders.