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Dunks

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Everything posted by Dunks

  1. I tend to agree that where people can get away with sending jobs abroad to reduce overhead, they will. It's unfortunate, but unless people are willing to pay a premium for a British product, then away they'll go. As previously stated (don't know which thread), if all the jobs for the goods and services go abroad, how will the UK market be able to buy them?
  2. She sure didn't sound like a "property expert" to me.... A mortgage adviser, yes. A financial consultant, yes. Neither of these require any proper qualifications. She is not an economist. She is not a surveyor. She is a snake-oil sales(wo)man. I can actually think of a long list of things I would like to call her. But I'd rather not get myself that annoyed about it. :angry:
  3. And (unless I missed it) no one saying how the programme was correct and that FTB's should get off their bums and get a house by any means possible. So, are they going to apologise for this horrendously one-sided piece of VI propoganda?
  4. No, myself and the SO both said it. But I didn't put that in the complaint. Bugger.
  5. Just posted a complaint: I was hoping for a balanced view of the housing market, viewed from a first time buyer's perspective, what I saw was a half hour of a "Property Expert" telling people that they need to get onto the property ladder at any cost. I feel this type of programming is just fueling the huge property increases we has seen occuring throughout the UK in the last few years. Especially the recommendation about asking people's parent to be guarantee the mortgage payments. If the house prices were to fall, this could mean that due to the financial advice given as part of the programme, his parents could also lose their house.
  6. Anything for sale is only worth what people are willing to pay for it. If someone has a house for sale at 150k, but noone is interested in buying it, then the house is not worth 150k. With smaller items, from places like a supermarket or department store, etc, then you could try and haggle, but the checkout people aren't the one who set the prices in the first place; so you're wasting everyone's time. I have haggled with a manager in an electronics store over the price of a TV and got a >30% reduction and free delivery. (Mind you, it just shows how overpriced it was to start with, I suppose.)
  7. I've been toying with the idea of living on a houseboat, but again, they're overpriced. Also, it would be damn-near impossible to fit my sofa in one
  8. Well, I hate shopping anyway. Too many crowds. Too many young girls with prams. Too many people stopping in front of me for no reason. Not the clothes I'm after, or they only do some weird fit that stretches across my stomach, as if emphasising that I've not got a six-pack. Too many people conducting surveys. No parking. Etc, etc. Sometimes you get some helpful people in the stores, but it's often not the case. And they're normally the older staff. As for music, I tend to listen to a wide range, but manufactured pap is not my cup of tea....
  9. I test drove one myself, but couldn't get on with the driving position. Apart from that, it's a Ford; so cheap(ish) parts and a fair number of people who can work on it. Actually, until recently, I'd noticed the large number of people who'd been buying new cars, pushing the price of second-hand bangers through the floor. Maybe a falling housing market (less people to MEW and buy new cars) will force them up again?
  10. Well, a replacement gearbox was £1200 inc fitting. Couldn't have done it myself due to lack of space/workshop. The headlining was falling down. I'd stapled it up, but it needed replacing (saloon car; so about £500 again). Needed a new exhaust (£200 inc fitting). The mileage was getting to be truly awful without a major engine overhaul. And my SO couldn't park it. Really comfortable ride, though. The new one: a hatchback. Deisel. 2 years old (ish). Electric everything. And she can park it.
  11. Every point except 1. Mind you, that was only because the gearbox went on my old car and we had to get another. The new one is much more efficient though, averaging around 50(ish)mpg, rather than 24-ish. [Edit] And it was two years old, having lost 50% of its initial cost, but still had some waranty from the manufacturer.
  12. Erm, isn't this against the Forum rules (i.e. advertising of any kind)? Can we get his account banned? Maybe we ought to introduce a 24hr cool-off period between joining up and posting?
  13. Well, he didn't say you had to buy it this year. You'll just find the house you will buy (at some point). I tried "Are house prices over-inflated?", to which the response was "That's bad juju". So I tried "Will I be a famous rock star". I got the response "don't bet on it". So I tried again "Will I ever earn more money than I know what to do with?" And his response "Egads, no!" Dammit. However, when I asked "Am I ever going to shag Kylie minogue?" He replied "But of course." Mind you, the missus didn't seem too happy.
  14. It should have read: "And you could have just as much to show for it at the end (i.e. nothing)." Hey, I was tired.
  15. But where have they moved to? My road, I think.
  16. In the case of an IO motgage, with no saving/investment plan to pay the actual loan, then you are only renting from the bank. And you have just as much to show for it at the end (i.e. nothing). In fact, if the house price has decreased over that time (which it may have), you may end up owing more than you would make by selling it at that point.
  17. There's an old college building that's been reduced to rubble near me that, as far as I remember, was going to be used to build several new houses and some low-cost housing (aka flats). I've just seen a notice posted on the lamp posts outside that they now want to turn it into a car park (temporarily).
  18. There's a difference between "under offer"/"sale agreed" and actually exchanging contracts. Unless they've signed on the dotted line, then there's no sale and the whole deal can fall through (broken chain, buyers pulling out at the last minutes, etc.). And asking prices are not necessarily what the agreed price ends up at. Also, how many people are gazundering at the last moment? Mind you, Easter is traditionally the busiest time of year for house sales; so we'll have to see how the prices fare after the long weekend....
  19. No, I don't own my own property. I feel that a one-bedroomed flat in the town I live (all I could afford atm) is way too expensive considering I rent a family-sized home for the same money an IO mortguage would cost. Negative equity is a worry for me. Another reason for not buying in the present climate. I don't know if everyone is having a laugh. I'm here to read discussions regarding the property market and try and obtain support from other people in a similar predicament (unable to buy a reasonable home for a reasonable amount of money, that won't bankrupt me in the event of either myself or my partner losing our jobs or if interest rates climb through the roof). I currently don't fit in with some people's version of "society". This doesn't mean I'm a social outcast - I have numerous friends who have similar views as myself and family is very important to me. I work and pay taxes. I don't go out drinking every weekend till I end up in the gutter. I don't wear Burr-berri (sic). I don't drive a stupidly over-spec'd car that can do three times the national speed limit. I get annoyed with politicians who promise the world and then ignore those promises. I suppose I could be called mildly paranoid, but in today's world, and with the recent decisions made by people in charge of this country, I feel I'm justified in that. I also have no children. I cannot afford them and do not feel that other people should have to pay for my offspring. Some people would argue that this is a bad thing, as the population of the country is aging. But, while house prices (and therefore cost of living) is high, I don't feel that I can justify losing an income for a prolonged period of time (either myself or my partners). I don't have a problem with investment. However, when a home becomes nothing but an investment to the owners, does this increase their integration into society? I don't beleive so, especially with people owning houses in a country and living in another - the income from the property goes abroad. Okay, tax may be paid on it, but the rest of the money is lost to thecountry. This is also true for UK residents who own property abroad. So before you start accusing people of being anarchic, I would suggest that you consider what society means to people. In certain sectors of the country, hunting foxes with dogs is acceptable. In others, people have no problem with their peers racing up and down the road in a kitted-out 1.3L shopping trolley. In yet others, it's acceptable to pick up different members of their prefered sexual partners for a night of ecstacy any day of the week. Society is difference. Anyone who tells you different is lying.
  20. <monty python> We dream of livin' in a shoebox. We live in a disused cesspit on the council dump. </monty python>
  21. I don't think this is the case. My SO and myself have no outstanding debts, we rent and are currently saving an increasing amount for a house when they come back down to reasonable levels (yes, wannabe FTB's). I know quite a few others in a similar situation, both friends and relations. Whereas several people who own property have MEWed and either bought expensive consumer items such as large televisions, or gone on expensive holidays. In fact, an ex-collegue of mine owned two properties and permanently lived on his overdraught and credit cards (taking money out on one to pay off the others). He also drove around in a very expensive german car. Prudent? I *don't* think so.
  22. <various snips> How about: Local sandwich shops/mini markets/newsagents? Cleaning contractors? IT contractors? (Although other sectors are now expanding) Local pubs and restaurants?
  23. Well, they have to replace the money they've stopped charging in Stamp Duty, eh?
  24. So, putting my "too stupid to think" hat on, does this mean that I could then sue them if I took out a huge loan and couldn't afford to repay it? Are these people on crack, or what?
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