Elderly Ex Pat Thinks He Can Buy A Property For £70K

[Daft Boy]

An elderly gent aged 81 thinks he can return to the UK from Thailand with £70K and buy a property in the south. He seems to have dementia and can only remember house prices of some 20 years ago. Thats what 20 years of sex with young Thai girls does for you. Round these parts £70 would not be enough for a mobile home.

http://www.bbc.co.uk...pshire-15400417

Edited October 22, 2011 by Daft Boy

[scrappycocco]

State pension must go a long way in thailand, I wonder why he came back.

[LiveAndLetBuy]

A quick look on Rightmove shows 62 properties in Eastbourne and 90 properties in Hastings for under 80k

[juvenal]

An elderly gent aged 81 thinks he can return to the UK from Thailand with £70K and buy a property in the south. http://www.bbc.co.uk...pshire-15400417

Perhaps he was lured over by the promise of those long term mortgages Shapps thinks we need...

[@contradevian]

Why the South? He could do it with cash to spare in the North, provided he picks a part of the North not kept pumped up by high rolling, Council, Primary Care Trust and education employee's.

[scrappycocco]

It's cash (not stolen by a bank). He could use it to place a deposit on a rental in a nice area then claim housing benefit, using some of the cash to make up the shortfall in housing benefit.

Edited October 22, 2011 by scrappycocco

[Habeas Domus]

He wont be able to claim any housing benefit as his saving are above £16K

[BreakingWaves]

If you are travelling to or from a country outside the European Union you must declare any cash of over 10,000 euros or more (or the equivalent in other currencies) to HM Revenue & Customs. Find out what you need to do to declare cash when entering or leaving the UK.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Foreigntravel/BringinggoodsorcashintotheUK/DG_173289

[Democorruptcy]

State pension must go a long way in thailand, I wonder why he came back.

He's probably coming back because in Thailand you don't get UK state pension increases and sterling has dropped 30% against the Baht since 2008. Also they are increasing the minimum wage by 40% from next April which must be inflationary.

These are the countries where you do get pension rises for inflation.

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/international/social-security-agreements/list-of-countries/

[jaynewcastle]

I'm just pleased he's got his money back.

[BlinkTooFast]

A quick look on Rightmove shows 62 properties in Eastbourne and 90 properties in Hastings for under 80k

So what?

There's a Anti-Nowhere League / Metallica song about going to Eastbourne and Hastings.

Edited October 22, 2011 by BlinkTooFast

[Democorruptcy]

Let's hope he doesn't do anything really silly with his £70k

A hapless pensioner lost his entire life savings of £80,000 – when he left the cash on the roof of his car.

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/848301-pensioner-loses-80-000-by-leaving-it-on-roof-of-car

[scrappycocco]

But it's all in cash isn't it, as long as he doesn't put it in a bank and the bbc don't disclose his name how are the social going to know he's got savings.

[BreakingWaves]

But it's all in cash isn't it, as long as he doesn't put it in a bank and the bbc don't disclose his name how are the social going to know he's got savings.

HMRC and DWP computers are meant to be able to talk to each other.

[Snugglybear]

State pension must go a long way in thailand, I wonder why he came back.

He's getting on, his health may not be so good any more, I wonder what good health care for the old costs in Thailand.

Cynical, moi?

[Guest tbatst2000]

If you are travelling to or from a country outside the European Union you must declare any cash of over 10,000 euros or more (or the equivalent in other currencies) to HM Revenue & Customs. Find out what you need to do to declare cash when entering or leaving the UK.

http://www.direct.go...theUK/DG_173289

I don't see anything in the article that suggests he didn't declare it.

[Kurt Barlow]

An elderly gent aged 81 thinks he can return to the UK from Thailand with £70K and buy a property in the south. He seems to have dementia and can only remember house prices of some 20 years ago. Thats what 20 years of sex with young Thai girls does for you. Round these parts £70 would not be enough for a mobile home.

http://www.bbc.co.uk...pshire-15400417

Whose this - Mike Parry's Grandpa?

[campervanman]

He's getting on, his health may not be so good any more, I wonder what good health care for the old costs in Thailand.

Cynical, moi?

If he wants good healthcare the last place to go would be the UK.

[Snugglybear]

If he wants good healthcare the last place to go would be the UK.

Snippets below from advice on healthcare in Thailand for expats.

As the bloke in question is 81, his premiums would be considerably higher than those quoted below. If he has pre-existing conditions, he would have to pay much higher premiums or even be unable to get cover and have to pay for all treatment arising from those conditions from his own pocket.

I'm not saying he might not have been better off staying in Thailand and spending the £70,000, if necessary, on healthcare. However, I do wonder whether the idea of using the money to buy bricks and mortar and using NHS services without charge might have been a consideration. You know what people are like.

"Healthcare is handicapped by a shortage of general practitioners. Most doctors are specialists. This can be a problem because they tend to diagnose and treat within the parameters of their speciality. The clichéd view of a surgeon whisking patients into theatre in disregard of other treatments has an element of truth.

Also, the patient may be suffering from other medical conditions, which may or may not be associated with the primary health problems. Again, these would be better if they were assessed by a general physician.

On a broader level, the shortage of good primary care is bad economics. It forces people into having treatment at expensive hospitals – a burden on the individual patient and the taxpayer.

Some hospitals still have general physicians or family doctors. It is worth seeking them out. Consult within the expat community, or contact nearby hospitals.

If insured, contact your medical insurer. Good providers will have a 24-hour helpline and may be able to suggest a hospital specialising in the relevant area. In any case, policyholders are nearly always required to pre-notify their insurer before arranging an appointment, except in emergencies."

"Medical insurer Allianz goes so far as to recommend that visitors who think they may need medical attention should base themselves near a hospital of appropriate standard.

Allianz also recommends keeping cash handy. "Have your medical insurance documents with you – either that or another from of payment.

"In the case of hospital admission you will be required to pay upfront for the treatments. It appears that money plays an even greater part than normal," says the company.

"In most European countries, problems are normally avoided because the patients have mandatory medical insurance and hospitals can be confident about getting paid." "

"Better-off patients are likely to use one of 450 private hospitals. In Bangkok, there are several hospitals with high reputations where most expats go.

These include Bangkok General Group – Bumrungrad, Bangkok International and Bangkok Nursing Home.

Observers say the group has developed a reputation for top-end treatment, with a pricing structure to match. The concentration of foreign patients in these hospitals is very high.

Overall, the private sector has four times the number of beds per patient than the state sector, and much shorter waiting times."

"The Foreign & Commonwealth Office endorses the view that many hospitals in Bangkok are up to western standards, but gives warning that they can be expensive.

It says: "Ordinary hospitals and clinics in Thailand are not always up to UK standards. This applies particularly to the coastal islands and many mainland districts outside Bangkok, where hospitals and clinics are not equipped to deal with major trauma. Many hospitals require guarantee of payment for the hospital bills before they will begin treatment.""

"Some 35 companies are licensed to sell medical cover to expatriates and the local population. The current market leader is Bupa International with 33 per cent of market share, down from 36 per cent in 2008. Cigna is another major player, along with local providers Bangkok Insurance, Dhipaya Insurance and Thai Health Insurance.

AxaPPP is relatively new in the market, launching in Thailand less than 10 years ago. It is expanding rapidly with double-digit growth last year and 70 per cent growth in the first quarter of this year. "

"For a couple aged 61 and 59, AxaPPP emerges cheapest at £4,600 Comprehensive (£4,001 budget). The next cheapest is William Russell at £5,723 on its Global Health Silver plan. Its budget option is cheaper than the Axa equivalent, at £3,815. "

[rantnrave]

If he wants good healthcare the last place to go would be the UK.

I'd probably say Somalia would be the worst choice.

[Guest tbatst2000]

I'd probably say Somalia would be the worst choice.

Indeed. No doubt the NHS could be improved, but the idea that it provides materially substandard care vs. other socialized medical systems doesn't stack up. Unless you're very seriously loaded, in which case the US or Switzerland are probably the places to go, I'd say the UK is as good as any place else most of the time.

[northwestsmith2]

An elderly gent aged 81 thinks he can return to the UK from Thailand with £70K and buy a property in the south.

Just the UK, not the south, who would want to live there anyway?

[longtomsilver]

HMRC and DWP computers are meant to be able to talk to each other.

+1

and that they do very well indeed! I used to work in benefit fraud (DWP) and even if he earned only 15p on his £**,****s in a bank account paying 0.0001% (now before all you savers on here start jumping on me asking where you can get such a good rate) - you can't it's made up) the capital sum will pull through automatically on any application for housing benefit. that + credit searches.

[juvenal]

+1

and that they do very well indeed! I used to work in benefit fraud (DWP) and even if he earned only 15p on his £**,****s in a bank account paying 0.0001% (now before all you savers on here start jumping on me asking where you can get such a good rate) - you can't it's made up) the capital sum will pull through automatically on any application for housing benefit. that + credit searches.

I don't get the impression this old boy would use banks. That holdall of dough would go under the bed.

[@contradevian]

+1

and that they do very well indeed! I used to work in benefit fraud (DWP) and even if he earned only 15p on his £**,****s in a bank account paying 0.0001% (now before all you savers on here start jumping on me asking where you can get such a good rate) - you can't it's made up) the capital sum will pull through automatically on any application for housing benefit. that + credit searches.

Would it? The DWP is constantly monitoring benefit recipients bank accounts, looking for the smallest amount of additional payments which are not benefits?

Also would an interest payment on savings show up on a credit search? I think not.

Shame the HMRC computer can't do the same for everyone elses bank account. We might not have such a deficit/national debt!

I don't doubt the benefit agencies won't have sophisticated systems however.

Edited October 23, 2011 by John Steed