Notting Hell

Aren't standard tenancies normally asymmetric? Normally there is a break-clause to enable the tenant to serve 1 month notice after 6 months, so they have an effective minimum tenancy of 7 months. Whereas the landlord can only serve notice by the 12th month. So the asymmetry is normally Tenant minimum term = 7 month Landlord minimum term = 12 month. (The way the tenancy agreements are worded is such that a "6 month break clause" really means 7 month total tenancy as you have to give notice as described above). The tenant should ask for probably more like £45/50k to leave. Present value of future payments + moving costs + compensation for hassle.

Do you acknowledge that if you "save" money in a "savings" account, you are actually losing purchasing power? I just don't get it, these accounts do not even have the possibility of saving the purchasing power of your cash. What is the point in them? Might as well assume some market risk. S&P 500, FTSE All-world etc. I will take an expected return over guaranteed loss in a savings account any day.

The alternative plans for the mock-Tudor building were of course approved, including the privies over the street below. Backwards Britain. Last time I visited this store I was searching for a prawn sandwich in the basement.

I mean it's just completely disingenuous isn't it, or the thick journos (GCSE maths only, if that) don't understand it. Zero HPI while inflation is skyrocketing is a slump.

I am completely anti-"savings" accounts. I don't understand what they are all about. What exactly do you "save" by putting your money into one of these accounts? There has never been, in my lifetime (I am 25), an interest-bearing account that beats inflation. If you put any money into one of these accounts you LOSE money. A guaranteed loss. What am I missing? I am told by various oldies that it was at one time possible to beat inflation with these accounts. But this is simply not the case anymore. Why not stick your money into an all-world tracker, at least you have the possibility of a real return? Premium bonds are even worse. Literally a tax on stupidity.

I mean it's not really representative of anything is it. They have set up a meeting with a PhD student, who is simultaneously the most educated it is possible to be at her age (therefore understands the issues), yet the least economically established (has no wealth and a net worth of probably -£50k) and is probably renting some god-awful HMO room in London somewhere, vs Boomer landlord "musician". Hidden is probably inheritance of Boomer unmentioned (that always explains why people with non-jobs--"musician"--have a good quality of life). No mention of ZIRP, QE, or any of the actual causes of the housing market disaster in the open air museum that is the UK. Synthetic Guardian garbage. I wouldn't pay any attention to it. Sitting there quaffing Yquem. Joke newspaper...

Is that £25m before or after QE?

The Times: Duke of Northumberland’s son puts entire 9,500-acre estate up for sale https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/duke-of-northumberland-s-son-puts-entire-9-500-acre-estate-up-for-sale-rc2tg27z3 https://archive.ph/NH6Cq Knight Frank: https://www.knightfrank.co.uk/properties/residential/for-sale/the-rothbury-estate-northumberland-ne65/cho012388737 https://archive.ph/CIarz Pricing the land based on £5,000-£10,000 per acre (9,486 acres) indicates asking price of between £47.4M-94.7M. According to the brochure, there is an estimated rent roll of £283,000. There is additionally in-hand farming/woodland of approximately 3,700 acres. Let's assume this is breaking even. So for £35,000,000 you get a yield of £283,000/35,000,000 = 0.81%. Plus the hassle of managing 3,700 acres of land directly. Hmm... Not surprised "Lord" (a title recognised by the British State) Max Percy is trying to sell this at the tender age of 33 to "[sell] the land to pursue a career and build a family in the south of England".

Depends on the nature of the liquidity you require. You can always take a margin loan to realise cash and use other forms of credit (offset against investments) if necessary. I would rather pay the interest on a short-term loan, than the continual devaluation of cash savings.

It is impossible to live off interest on cash "savings" without eating into capital/maintain purchasing power. It cannot be done. You are mistaken. It is an economic impossibility. Please let me know why you think it can be done-interested to know your perspective. The tiger eats your neighbour first... then you. It's not a great analogy to be honest. I don't want the tiger to get any closer at all (maintain purchasing power).

Also interested to know how others manage foreign currency without having to pay for the services of a "private" bank. Isn't the easiest way to open an account with a domestic US bank?

The alternative is not to spend, but to find somewhere else to put your money where it generates a real return. It is impossible to live off the interest, you are always eating into capital. ??? I am just stating facts.

Any money you are "saving" in a bank account is LOSING purchasing power. If inflation is 8.7%, and your "Savings Account" is 3.7% (as an example) your money is LOSING purchasing power at the rate of 5%/year. I just do not understand why anyone thinks they are earning money in a "savings" account. "Savings Accounts" are the biggest scam after the housing Ponzi scheme. It is IMPOSSIBLE to "SAVE" money in a bank account. You are always LOSING. It is massive mis-selling to call these accounts "savings" accounts. It is a fraud to name them as such. They should be called "Guaranteed-loss in purchasing power accounts" or "interest-bearing accounts" they do not "SAVE" anything. They "LOSE" money.

Thanks for your reply and explanation. If comparing as a rental yield, isn't there some sort of rate feedback mechanism. For example, the rent paid on a house that was purchased by a landlord with a 10y fixed mortgage is set by the current interest rate, rather than the rate the landlord is paying for the mortgage. So there is the "anomalous" situation where the house was priced like a bond at the prevailing interest rate when it was purchased, but the bond itself has variable income. This is what I cannot understand. I suppose there must be some sort of floating rate bonds that might make a closer comparison? Maybe it is like an interest rate swap? Every time there is a rent review/new tenant, it is equivalent to the landlord doing a rate swap?

Quick question to any mortgage experts on here. If house prices are set with interest rates priced in, then why is it not possible to get a fixed rate mortgage for the full term. House prices are priced at the current interest rate, not the expected rate of the full term of the mortgage. The mortgage rate is in turn set by 5y bond? Yet this 5y bond doesn't reflect the term of the mortgage, which is 25y+. Therefore this leads me to the conclusion, that house prices are not fully priced on current interest rate alone, or if they are, then this pricing method is anomalous. Shouldn't therefore house prices be priced at a discount to current interest rates (in ZIRP/when IR is discounted relative to long run IR)? For example, you could buy a £1m house today at 1% rate, fixed for 2y, 100% LTV. Let's say the rate then increases overnight to 10%. The house is now worth significantly less, say £100k for fixed interest payment parity. Isn't the fact that the house was sold for £1m completely anomalous. It reflects a price at an instantaneous rate, not a rate that is realistically achievable over the full term of the mortgage. What am I missing.

Then again, looking closely at the photos:- - smoke alarms in every room - fire doors - fire door closers - fire extinguisher in kitchen - fire blanket in kitchen ... these very much look like things you would do only if you were running an HMO legally. So it would be strange to have provided these things, but to be operating unlicensed. Unless the intent is to lead the tenants to believe that it was being run properly... but then we are well into the realms of wild speculation....

Yes, I see now. It could just be the listing of course, lazy EA, loads of reasons. It's like when leasehold flats are advertised. Often they won't describe the tenure at all (I've never been able to determine why EAs don't just offer the information transparently upfront instead of wasting everyone's time), some of the time they have >100 year leases etc. (i.e. acceptable length), some of the time they have very short leases. The main takeaway is that you have to be so shrewd if you're getting involved in this stuff. If you don't DYOR and get a poor quality solicitor (whom lots of people believe will hold your hand), you could so easily get screwed. Perhaps this is why this particularly property has dropped in price (rather than HPC): it might have been operating as an unlicensed HMO and therefore its price is its value as a family home.

I don't think that's right - the licence isn't transferable. The new owner would still need to apply for a licence. Ltd structure probably gets you around this if you sell the company rather than the freehold. PP is however

Assuming it was operating as an HMO before 2012, I wouldn't assume it has lost its HMO PP status just because it is currently unoccupied? PP for HMO and licence are two different things. Its legal status is probably "HMO PP by pre-2012" but no operating licence as it is unoccupied (and not on the register). A corner shop doesn't lose planning permission just because it doesn't have anyone operating it. The main risk here is to the buyer, who might buy it assuming it was operating with HMO PP or pre-2012 status, but when the new owner applies for an HMO licence, discovers it needs planning permission, which the council then refuses. That is of course assuming that HMO licensing bothers to check HMO planning. Depends how the council determines whether it was operating as an HMO before 2012-- I guess the onus lies on the person seeking licence to show it has valid PP or has been operating before 2012. That's my understanding anyway. There could be a scam here... rough up your property (scuff the old gloss- HMOs still have masses of gloss off as they are never redecorated), install fire door closers, drop an iron on the hallway carpet. i.e. make it look like an old HMO then jack up the price 🤡

@Timm Sorry I see what you are saying. Depends on what the buyer wants to do with the property I suppose.

I dot know the exact rules - but maybe PP wasn't necessary if it was operating as an HMO before 2012? Why do they need to demonstrate anything?

105 Botley Road Oxford OX2 0HB Only planning applications are from 1958! Oldest I have seen recorded online. https://public.oxford.gov.uk/online-applications/search.do?action=simple&searchType=Application

Honestly don't know why EA don't just publish full addresses... it's so easy to find out this information. Just makes buying/selling houses more of a hassle.

It's obviously an HMO... https://www.oxford.gov.uk/info/20113/houses_in_multiple_occupation/910/register_of_hmo_licences No licence at the moment, and it is unoccupied. Address is 105 Botley Road.