Number79

so when gold falls in value is that because its value against fiat has dropped or because it is a global commodity?

At the end of November the letting agent asked if I intended to resign my lease, which at the time I did - having acknowledged such they then informed me that the landlord (based on their recommendation) intended to raise the rent again (was £75 a month last jan and £25 this time). I never responded and within a few days the lease memorandum turned up with the new figures on - no discussion or agreement required apparently lol. So, wasnt looking but the right place came along at the right price. Was a divorce and they wanted a quick sale, got a lot of asking - paid a good price. Took 2 months from offer to completion, to the day pretty much. And about 3 weeks of that were wasted by the building society. What struck me most was how much things have changed. Solicicitor now wanted a percentage up front. Bank wanted an arrangement fee and deposit on it etc etc The building society were a royal pain in the ass. They wanted to see evidence of deposit which was substantial. Had just paid for a ski holiday to austria from the acct so it was short of the full ammount by £1500. To provide evidence I transferred cash to another acct from others and sent them statements from an acct £1500 short and one with £5k. For 2 weeks the questined me about where the money came from, how it had been saved, where the evidence was etc etc. Bearing in mind that this was a fraction of the chunk sat in our deposit acct it shocked me but was clear that things are still tight. Anyways, took 2 months - mostly because of incompetance. Why? I live in Berkshire and inspite of what others may be seeing prices have only moved one way here since early 2009. Interest rates are not going anywhere for years. The goobermint will do everything possible to protect home owners. The landlord is led by greedy agents and it was the straw that broke the camels back when something good landed at my feet. My only regret, having to unload £15k of scrap gold and silver to cover stamp duty

ah, another septic that doesnt know his **** from his elbow lol

yes, for a long time it was the pound. The reason for invading Iraq was to protect the petro dollar as Sadam was about to trade oil for euro's. cant wait for the global reserve to be rmb - at least the chinese know that there is more to the planet than the state that they live in

The gold "should be..." crowd are on the thin ice of not quite understanding things. Asheron is right to a point, just the same as the gold "should be.." crowd but..... just like houses and everything else, gold is worth what will be paid for it, nothing more and nothing less. "should be" is horsesh1t, the price is what it is because gold is a commodity - a currency to some, a global safe haven to many - but a commodity that gets traded daily.

Go on then, I am dying to hear this explanation

no one is stoopid enough to be 100% cash. Expect the pound to fall much further. There is a reason that westminster are not worried about us losing our AAA rating......they want us to. Only a falling pound will help exports and only exports will help us.

If you are going to get you knickers in a bunch about immigrant then I wouldnt worry so much about those with the cash to buy a home in spain and exploit what may look like a small back door. I would worry, seriously, about what happens in a year's time when romania and bulgaria join the eu. Every gypo and bagsnatcher has already worked out what benefits they can claim and what streets they will work - they cant wait

I thought that this thread would have attracted more Thatcher haters tbh, I wonder why not. Scargill deserves to be in a cardboard box if not a pine one, fking parasite!

It goes against the hpc matra and I wont be popular for saying such but the fact is that it very much depends on where you live, how desirable the specific area is and many other bits. Prices dipped here late 2008/early 2009 and have only climbed since. Anything worth looking at sells quickly. I watched a rebate come on for £300k last year that went to sealed bids and sold for £380. Yes, I am close to London. London prices have continued in one direction and money travelling out of the city within the home counties has kept prices travelling in the same direction. I dont believe this will be uncommon in major cities despite major corrections in the north and other places. It all very much depends....unfortunately..... FWIW, I just offered and had it accepted.....rates arent going anywhere, the goobermint will do anything possible to support prices and owners, my area is not falling, mortgages will become harder to get, my str fund is earning nothing, etc etc etc Asking was £340, accepted £315 - place in the road the same size but better condition sold in oct for £335 so am at 2012 prices here

I like nadeem, he doesnt get everything right but he does well. I also like armstrong, he tells it like it is much to the irritation of many permabulls

I expect to see that too....about the time that I retire. I have holdings that will be for then or seed money for children so, for the coinage, what happens in between is pointless. But, for anyone else that isnt holding to retirement $5k is a long way off and moves up and down are all but irrelevant

hmm, deeper correction imminent?

Your second quote... Lastly, a sobering end: Despite the recent selloff, gold is still up 5% in 2012 through Thursday, set to lock in annual gains for a 12th consecutive year. Still, the rise is well short of what many analysts expected would be a year of record-high prices as high as $2,000 a troy ounce. "Finishing the year with zero-to-four percent gains is not what many had in mind when 2012 began," said Jon Nadler, an analyst with Kitco Metals, in a note.

Yep, trading some of mine in for 135 sqm of bricks and a garden that will need sheep or a ride on mower

Nadler is tool. Wasnt what many expected for the year and some will have done better than the simple buy and hold crowd but gold has still done better than any savings acct cash could have gone into so not the worst thing ever.

Glad I let the shorts go at $1642, target was $1645-35, only added a very small long since.

yes, the week between xmas and new year, not a time to be anywhere but the sidelines imo

was that the wrong currency sign? It can go further, could break $1600, chances of it breaking $1550 are slim at best imo. The rest of this month is not for the feint of heart though, that's for sure

I have been shorting since last month at around £1080. Added another this morning a few minutes after my post once I had looked at everything again. Am closing them now though and taking profit, this shake out was needed and I will be looking to go long soon for this next larger leg up. This fiscal cliff business is giving me a head ache though

hmmm, guess not. Glad I didnt cut my shorts

Finally, someone with a set of balls big enough to say what everyone is thinking. He gets my vote.

Holy crap, I bet those long winter nights just fly by at your pad Can you add a section of the average number of times that you consider diving out of the window?

Then I pity those fools It will cost me a tenner to drive into town and park for a couple of hours so that I can wonder around looking at the same shops and general tat found in any high street. Add to that the crowds, weirdo's with bibles, romanians flogging the big issue and grotty students waving buckets of change at me - and it doesnt hold much appeal. Conversely, that tenner will get me something from feebay/amazon that is going to cost me £40 retail in said high street.

Whats the short version? You thinking the bottom is in here or just a tad early to tell?