Pete95

Crazy!!!! Especially considering a) The numbers going to uni are now declining (people have realised Media Studies degrees are worthless) b ) In Bristol the biggest uni is in the process of building thousands of halls of residence on their site - this will have a big impact on the rental market in Bristol. That scheme sounds like financial suicide.

If you buy at the right time in the cycle then I'd pretty much agree.

Apparently they tried to let the London house out for £4k per week, but have only been able to get £2k per week, leaving them to find an extra £6k per month to pay the mortgage - plus its interest only!!! The tenant is about to move out as well!... They were going to sell their 2 flats in Bristol (bought in 2002) to add to the down payment for that London place, but they didnt because they'd fallen in value by about £25k each (from the price they paid, not the original asking price!!) so theyve kept them! The article suggests they may end up having to sell the London house, which has gone down in value by at least £200k since they bought it in 2004, and the paper reckons they'd lose the best part of £400k total (inc fees and taxes) if they did sell!! Basically one big ****-up for the Bliars!!

Immigration is of course fuelling BTL, and has no doubt been a significant factor in getting house prices to the levels they are today. It simply amazes me that this government has allowed mass immigration to continue, when its quite clear the British public dont want these people here - they are a massive drain on our resources and health service, many have cultures which are simply not compatible with ours, yet still theyre allowed to flood in. The system is totally wrong in the way that once you get into this country (legally or illegally) you are pretty much here to stay. You have access to almost unlimited legal aid, free healthcare, free housing - all at tax payers expense :angry:

These big IT sector pay rises are the exception rather than the rule now. I graduated in 2003 after doing Computer Science, and although I had a rise of over 30% recently (when I changed jobs), many of my friends from uni have been struggling getting decent work, and arent earning much over 20k. Also London rates do seem significantly higher then the rest of the UK when it comes to highly skilled work, but then that is partially offset by much higher living costs.

The BBC really do pis$ me off. They clearly promote high house prices, and make out that rising prices are a good thing. Todays headline article even tries to shoot down Nationwides claim that prices fell :angry: I was also very annoyed to see the BBC treating Mozzem Begg (UK based Islamic terrorist who was in Guantanamo Bay) as a hero - and giving him a platform to stand on. The guy admitted going 2 terrorist training cames FFS. He should be tried for treason or deported, but no the extreme-left BBC just talk him up

Expect to see this as headline news on the BBC website anytime!! "House prices rocketing at fastest rate since 2001" or something.....

Good to hear, sounds like hes in touch with the public - is he really an MP? He mentions tightening up on silly income-muliples for mortgages, but this alone would not be enough, and may simply lead to a situation where more FTB's are forced into renting. A tightening of income multiple lending along with a tax on BTL would be a winner.

I bet Kirsty will be on it - or worse still that 'spawn of satan' women off one of the BBC propoganda programmes last year "there has NEVER been a better time to buy" etc.. Should make for interesting viewing though, and actually channel4 do tend to make some good unbiased programmes, so lets hope this is one of them. 12. Continuous inflation-busting council tax increases

You win some, you lose some. It was probably worth the gamble STR'ing as you stood to gain a lot more than you've lost. With the amount you are paying out in rent I'd say it was debatable as to whether it would be worth holding out another few years for prices to dip further - probably not IMO, especially as you have a family.

That'll be the 420bhp Audi RS4 - very nice car it is too, but then it should be at 50k! It doesnt come as much of a surprise to hear new car sales are weak. Over the last 5years or so there've beem so many 0% APR offers that for many people its become easier to buy new on finance, than to buy second hand. And of course everyone MEWing their property price increase for a new Boxster. This all comes at a very bad time for GM who are virtually bankrupt.

Local MP is Liam Fox who doesnt seem too bad for an MP IMO. Im going to write when I have some spare time to knock up a letter. I'll post my reply on here (if I get one...)

Point is they realise theres a significant number of people out there who want changes, they will act in a way to get their support..

Oddly enough Im still paying [only....] 86.9p at the pumps for regular unleaded? It was more like 93.9p when oil prices hit their previous highs of something like $70/barrel last year, but despite crude prices not being far off those highs now, the price at the pumps hasnt shot up so much this time??

Has anyone ever written to their local MP to explain the issues FTB's have? I really feel that BTL really needs to be taxed to the point where its not viable to own a string of properties. Everything seems to be stacked against this generation of FTB's, many of us dont have pensions because they cant afford them, housing is out of reach, having families is almost impossible for many because couples cant afford their own homes and are forced to live with parents or rent. This country will be well and truely screwed if things dont change. If enough people vent their frustration at the BTL issue, then it increases the chances of changes being made. Ive not writen to my local MP, but plan on doing so.

Anyone hear it on GWR FM Bristol this morning? One of the presenters said hes 30 and has decided he needs to get a house, so he said hes been to get mortgage advice, then went to look at some EA's but was SHOCKED at the prices. Basically said he couldnt really afford anything event 1/2 decent on a 3 x salary mortgage, and basically he cant buy. They continued discussing the issue, but one thing they didnt mention was the possibility that prices might fall.. The whole thing may have woken some people up on the issue however. I think some people out there dont realise exactly just how expensive houses really are, and how impossible it really is to buy for most FTB's.

I also opened an account with FirstDirect, then noticed this feature! (Its the same with HSBC's high interest accounts) As a result simply opened a B&B account which pays 4.85% (and thats not an introductory rate) and theres no penalty to withdraw money. You can also link the account to 3 other accounts, so I can put my money directly into ING should their rates beat B&B in future for example, and wont have to transfer into my current account first.

Funny how suddenly things turn around. All the news reports out yesterday were very bullish - todays release from Nationwide seems to have brought things back to reality

I'd agree, and it wont just be utility firms which have waited before passing on the increases to customers, it'll be all sorts of energy consuming firms who've so far absorbed these increases, but surely soon, will have to pass the higher costs onto customers. Al Quada seems to have caught onto the fact that by disrupting oil production, Western economies could be seriously hit. If I was them I'd be planning massive attacks on oil production facilies, pipelines. I know this is already happening to an extent (Nigeria mainly), but so far on a fairly small scale.

On of my mates was renting in Basingstoke until recently. Hes now moved back to Bristol, and moved back into his family home (doesnt want to waste money renting, but wont/cant buy at current prices) He was renting a room in a shared house (very cheap too - very nice house, and only £250/pcm inc all bills). His room has still not been taken despite the cheap rent.

Feel really sorry for my mate who has a e300k (40year!!) mortgage. Hes currently on a rate of 2.75%, but I would imagine only a small increase would start to hurt.

Excellent!! To be honest she didnt look as uncomfortable as I thought she would - interestingly she appeared to be pretty much in agreement with the presenters, in that house prices are crazy! Great stuff!! Thanks for getting that up!

Would be very interesting to know the exact percentage increases of: - gas - petrol - electricity - council tax over the last few years. Some people must really be feeling the pinch now.

Electricity up 18.4% and gas up 24.4% - ouch!!! Theres got to be people out there really struggling now, and you can only cope for so long when your outgoings start overtaking your income....

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4754642.stm Nationwide reporting price falls, so whereas when they report price rises this would make the front page on the BBC news website, but news of price falls are tucked away so fewer people will see them.... Classic spin from the beeb tho; So dont worry FTB lemmings, a 2% fall in prices in the last quarter is quite normal, dont whatever you do get worried by this