Prof

Perhaps she`ll eat her cap then.

In fact, you seem to have picked the leaves and smoked them. I`m wondering if you are always so premature ?

What is the db (dead bull) figure for the signal to noise ratio ?

What a nice person. One day, these words might just come back to haunt you. I wonder what type of property you`ll buy next, a pyramid perhaps ?

Well, it appears that I may be 2.6% wealthier than I was last month. I`ve just checked my bank/savings balances, they`re just the same as they were a week or two ago. Is there 2.6% more space in my house, nope. OK, maybe my credit card balance has shrunk 2.6%. No, it`s still the same. So what`s changed ? Nothing much for me, but I bet potential buyers aren`t very happy. Or are they ? Maybe they`ll try even harder to buy now, because in a few months time they`ll have made a "profit". I`ll say this. Although I thought the "boom" was a bad thing, I did notice that all of us tradesmen were very busy. Shops were doing well and people in the car industry had plenty to do. These things were to be welcomed, to a degree. Problem now is that easy credit is no longer available, myself and a lot of other self employed people have noticed a large drop in demand for our services. I`d like to think that a return to HPI will mean a return to the good old days of being very busy. I don`t think this will happen. In fact, I think that if HPI returns, it will just make people poorer, and be inclined to spend less on other things. MEWing was the name of the game, but I think most people have got wise to the perils of that particular game.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DYA1raD-YY

True. Those engines had been "thrashed" and were quite badly damaged. Along come the central banks/governments and pour some STP into the oil, and everything seems OK, for a while.

Thanks. While I don`t say that HPI is a bad thing full stop. I believe that prices are still too high, mainly caused by previous loose lending (see Eric Pebble posts, B&B`s previous actions, the rise and fall of N Rock) combined with a massive "push" by the media. Had the main culprits, B&B + NR not supplied large sums of money for property purchase, prices would not have reached the level they did, and the taxpayer would not be waiting to get their bailout money back. I acknowledge the shortage of property in the UK will always have a tendency to keep prices "high", but tighter control over the lending practices of the like of B&B etc will have a big effect on lowering the cost of property to less risky levels (for both the lenders and the purchasers). Are the bulls right ? Will prices start to rise ? I`d like to think not, but I don`t rule out the possibility that further falls in prices might be very limited. IF prices now stabilise and start to rise, I feel that the wrongs of the past few years will not have been righted. I also think that it won`t really be an advantage to the majority of the population in the longer term. We`ll be back to where we we 2 or 3 years ago, not a good place to be. My 2p.

Similar situation here. There`s a lot to be said for not earning much, but not NEEDING to earn much. I think this is a product of having LIVED WITHIN YOUR MEANS.

I doubt that all of the houses in Grimsby are for sale. You last idea isn`t a bad one. Instead of skirting around the issue, the government need to grow a pair, and DO something.

No need, I`ll undercut the Indians ! £100 will do for me (for starters).

£300-£400 a day ! Right, must get cracking with the Java programming I`m trying to learn. What else do I need to learn ?

I think it`s a little more "complex" than that. High house prices were not just a by-product, the more prices went up, the more lenders like B&B could lend per mortgage. With B&B in particular, the BTL market expanded rapidly as people witnessed the "never ending" rise in property prices. It was a vicious circle, more lending = higher property prices = more lending........... ........100%+ mortgage anyone ?......................... CRASH ! I found B&B`s advertising particularly annoying "get someone else to pay your mortgage", "aren`t dreams fragile". That woman with the bowler hat was quite patronising in her manner. "Get someone else to pay you mortgage" ? more like "Get someone else to bail you out". :angry:

Great minds........ see post 17.

Or....... "The gun was made in America".

He "gets" it. A new member who has witnessed some of the rubbish that the bulls talk. Welcome Mr/Mrs Fingers, enjoy your stay.

H A Z E L B L E A R S H A S R E S I G N E D !!!!! < Where have the spaces gone ? No more rent-a-grin ! Happy days ! < That`s me, not Blears.

One would like to think that B&B wouldn`t have got themselves into such a mess in the first place. One would also like to think that a few other lenders would have also "behaved" themselves. Mind you, if they had, where would house prices be now, eh ? Nah, much better to lend it like there`s no tomorrow and don`t worry about the consequences, high house prices are much too important.

Blimey, look who`s gone all "doom and gloom" now ! Who says that the 5% are going to get repossessed ? You never know, the sun is shining, mortgage lending is improving and there is a shortage of property in the UK, so those landlords that are over 3 months in arrears might suddenly find a tenant who`s willing to pay enough to cover the mortgage. They might even decide to cut their losses and sell up, afterall, sales are improving ! Maybe.

Well some debates on this forum do seem to develop into battles. I do realise that people have opposing views, and it is enjoyable to debate our opinions and ideas. I think that your comments on the news about B&B`s 5% loan arrears was little shallow, if you don`t mind me saying. I would say that this is quite a big deal for a lender such as B&B (and therefore for the UK yaxpayer). They required a bailout by the government, and now their loanbook is deteriorating. Reporting this isn`t exacly "picking at straws". It might not be the end of the world, but this is housepricecrash.co.uk, so it is hardly suprising that this news article is going to recieve some attention here. "Oh, our gas tank is leaking, we`ve lost 5% of our petrol". "Don`t worry dear, everything is fine, we`ve still got 95% left".

Good riddence. Nose in the trough, Perma-grin (no wonder with all those expenses). I wasn`t her greatest fan.

Oh dear. How shallow. This news is hardly "picking at straws". It might be "only" 5% of borrowers in arrears, but it`s higher than the industry average, and its getting worse. (Did you actually bother top read the article ?) "It's now above 5% and it will continue to deteriorate for the remainder of the year,' he said. The figure has more than doubled in a year and is far higher than the 2.39% industry average." You`re "new" here, aren`t you ? Well be a good chap and try a bit harder. I`ve noticed that you`ve "battled" with one or two longer term members on this forum, and you haven`t made a very good first impression. Many people here, including myself, predicted the demise of Bradford and Bingley, well before the media and the public were aware of it`s precarious situation. I`d say that gives us some authority to comment on this type of story. Bears picking at straws ? Look at the joyous celebrations that take place amongst the bulls when we have one or two months of house price rises.

Not me. I welcome cheap lending. Not for myself, but for my customers - they`ll have more money to spend on me ! Sorry, I was being a bit selfish there. I`ll leave the greed to the bulls. Right, I`m going to "crash" now. Sleep well Hamish, and don`t worry about FTBers, there`ll be loads of cheap credit for them soon.

He`s not bothered about peasants such as youself. Anyway, go bag yourself one of these new, cheap mortgages he`s shouting about, it`ll help to boost the equity he so richly deserves.

Up, up and awaaaaaaaay ! How many are you going to buy, Hamish ?