Give and take

Status
Not open for further replies.
gman said:
I suspect that properties will either be bought by a homeowner, thus reducing rental stock (as you say), or will be snapped up by big corp. where rents could (and probably will) be increased substantially (as you also say). They will also have a very powerful voice for lobbying the Government, unlike small private landlords.

I've come across so many posts feeding into my Facebook about families being given eviction notices from their landlords and they can't find anywhere else at all, never mind something affordable. It must be truly awful for so many people.

Some points from the new Act, if rent can only be increased once a year, then will interest rates only change once per year? If a tenant is allowed 3+ months of non-payment before legal proceedings can commence, is there any legislation allowing the landlord to not pay the mortgage for the same length of time? Many people I know who are "landlords" only have one extra property, usually inherited from the death of a family member. Almost all of them are having problems with their tenants not paying and it takes forever to go through the courts.
Click to expand...
Don’t have a problem with rent increases once a year. I mean, if someone increases rent when interest rates go up do they reduce when they drop? Most people will be on a fixed rate anyway
 
The clearly stated intention behind the public ownership of housing, was to prevent all the problems associated with privately owned rental stock.

The clearly stated intention behind the Thatcherist destruction of the council house system was to force people into private ownership, which many people are not suited to. In my opinion, it was a clear example of the same "bee in bonnet" thinking, seen in our last five Conservative governments.

As someone who was a single house landlord for three decades (by necessity and not from choice) my experience was that if you provide decent value for money, you'll get good tenants. Out of the several tenants we had in that time, only one was a problem. Most tenants we found were good people who looked after the house very well.
 
cambsno said:
Don’t have a problem with rent increases once a year. I mean, if someone increases rent when interest rates go up do they reduce when they drop? Most people will be on a fixed rate anyway
Click to expand...

That's a good point re. fixed rates, although I do wonder just how many are actually on fixed rates. A report in 2023 showed a decline in 5-year fixed from 68% to 46%, although shorter 2 year fixed have increased from 13% to 24%. That still leaves roughly a quarter on variable. One issue even fixed rates may not address is if they eventually put a rent increase cap in place like they have in Scotland.

There is the argument that if interest rates go down then should those on variable rates reduce their rent.

There's also the ongoing problem where they previously abolished being able to directly claim mortgage interest, replacing it with a 20% credit instead. Fine if you are a lower rate tax payer, but for a higher rate then it's not. Unless done through a limited company.
 
AndrewFlannigan said:
The clearly stated intention behind the public ownership of housing, was to prevent all the problems associated with privately owned rental stock.

The clearly stated intention behind the Thatcherist destruction of the council house system was to force people into private ownership, which many people are not suited to. In my opinion, it was a clear example of the same "bee in bonnet" thinking, seen in our last five Conservative governments.

As someone who was a single house landlord for three decades (by necessity and not from choice) my experience was that if you provide decent value for money, you'll get good tenants. Out of the several tenants we had in that time, only one was a problem. Most tenants we found were good people who looked after the house very well.
Click to expand...

I thought you were pro socialism? lol™
 
gman said:
I thought you were pro socialism? lol™
Click to expand...
What's with this "lol™" thing? Does it show agreement, disagreement or "duh"?

Asking for a friend :exit:
 
Starmer campaigned on "Change" - they certainly have changed the country, IMHO, not for the better

Starmer, Lammy, Reeves, Milliband, and Rayner have created so much "badwill" since coming into power that mis-trust is now worse than it was under the previous Tory Government.
 
BillN_33 said:
Starmer campaigned on "Change" - they certainly have changed the country, IMHO, not for the better

Starmer, Lammy, Reeves, Milliband, and Rayner have created so much "badwill" since coming into power that mis-trust is now worse than it was under the previous Tory Government.
Click to expand...
That is one opinion.

Other opinions are available.
 
BillN_33 said:
Looking forward to hearing those on 8th May
Click to expand...
Mid term elections generally reduce a sitting government's seats at both local and national level.

How much that happens on this occasion will be the interesting part.
 
AndrewFlannigan said:
What's with this "lol™" thing? Does it show agreement, disagreement or "duh"?

Asking for a friend :exit:
Click to expand...

I've previously explained it to your friend. So, avoiding the question?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Nod
I am looking forward to the local elections in a few days, in my town we have a tory who is a right nob end
he has been a local tory councillor for 17 years i hope he loses his spot.
 
gman said:
I've previously explained it to your friend. So, avoiding the question?
Click to expand...
Actually, it was a genuine question. I just don't understand what it's supposed to mean.
 
BillN_33 said:
The only hope is that Kemi can sort them out
Click to expand...

UK politics is in the toilet now and has been for the last few years, the local elections will be a train wreck for some councils
reform will swarm in to some and just hijack everything but achieve nothing, most councils will end up hung i think.
Starmer will probably resign and then more in fighting.......
 
AndrewFlannigan said:
Actually, it was a genuine question. I just don't understand what it's supposed to mean.
Click to expand...

Regardless, you still avoided answering the actual question.
 
Mr Bump said:
UK politics is in the toilet now and has been for the last few years, the local elections will be a train wreck for some councils
reform will swarm in to some and just hijack everything but achieve nothing, most councils will end up hung i think.
Starmer will probably resign and then more in fighting.......
Click to expand...

I am well into "retirement" - 80 this year, but I do not think that I can remember a time when the political situation has been so bad and divisive

Starmer has proved himself to be dangerously incompetent, he is not doing his Party any favours by staying in post

The Green Party leader is just a "nutcase" and will attract many similar and is as dangerous

Reform can be just "scary" with some of their prominent members dangerously unreliable

Ed is Ed but saying that his LibDems are solid and consistent when compared with the above ..... they seem to have done a good job at local level

Kemi is intelligent, likeable and so far has shown confidence

IMHO, what the local elections will bring is chaos against the current Government creating an even more unstable situation until the next General Election

My thoughts - keep Polanski out at all costs, hammer Starmer/Labour ... give Farage some rope so that Reform can be judged before the next GE .......hopefully the LibDems will hang on, at least maintaining their support and not be knocked back and finally hope that Kemi sees success and can move the Tories into a stronger position.

But the country now seems to "fail" with every passing day and the positive "Change" which Starmer promised has not been achieved
 
Last edited:
BillN_33 said:
Kemi is intelligent, likeable and so far has shown confidence
Click to expand...
Who is this paragon of which you speak?

Surely not the current leader of the Conservative Party, who, on occasion, appears to have much the same grip on reality as her "illustrious" predecessor, one Mary Elizabeth Truss, she of the 45 day tenure at 10 Downing Street.

While I'll grant that she, sometimes, shows a modicum of good sense, I can't say that I think her likeable. As to her "confidence", it has been said before (more or less) that anyone in that line of business, who doesn't appear tense, clearly lacks an understanding of the reality of their situation.
 
BillN_33 said:
I am well into "retirement" - 80 this year, but I do not think that I can remember a time when the political situation has been so bad and divisive

Starmer has proved himself to be dangerously incompetent, he is not doing his Party any favours by staying in post

The Green Party leader is just a "nutcase" and will attract many similar and is as dangerous

Reform can be just "scary" with some of their prominent members dangerously unreliable

Ed is Ed but saying that his LibDems are solid and consistent when compared with the above ..... they seem to have done a good job at local level

Kemi is intelligent, likeable and so far has shown confidence

IMHO, what the local elections will bring is chaos against the current Government creating an even more unstable situation until the next General Election

My thoughts - keep Polanski out at all costs, hammer Starmer/Labour ... give Farage some rope so that Reform can be judged before the next GE .......hopefully the LibDems will hang on, at least maintaining their support and not be knocked back and finally hope that Kemi sees success and can move the Tories into a stronger position.

But the country now seems to "fail" with every passing day and the positive "Change" which Starmer promised has not been achieved
Click to expand...
Likeable?

There are plenty in her own party that can’t stand her.

She seems a bit dim. I don’t have a feeling on her either way but definitely would not want her as prime minister, not that she has any chance.

Thankfully won’t have to worry as reform will romp it home.
 
f/1.2 said:
Likeable?

There are plenty in her own party that can’t stand her.

She seems a bit dim. I don’t have a feeling on her either way but definitely would not want her as prime minister, not that she has any chance.

Thankfully won’t have to worry as reform will romp it home.
Click to expand...

She has certainly improved as time has gone on.
 
cambsno said:
She has certainly improved as time has gone on.
Click to expand...
So does a bottle of wine.

I wouldn’t want a bottle of wine as prime minister either although who knows might do a better job than Kier.
 
Would the OP rather not being paying tax meaning his income was less than £12,570 a year?
Personally wouldn't mind being in the higher tax bracket.
 
f/1.2 said:
So does a bottle of wine.

I wouldn’t want a bottle of wine as prime minister either although who knows might do a better job than Kier.
Click to expand...
After 14 years of the cons I had hope for Keir/labour but it’s not gone too well so far, not an easy job though especially with the inheritance from the previous lot.
 
nog said:
After 14 years of the cons I had hope for Keir/labour but it’s not gone too well so far, not an easy job though especially with the inheritance from the previous lot.
Click to expand...

I was similar and I tried hard to be optimistic in the beginning, thinking that surely they can't be worse. Then it turned out that the big black hole they kept using as an excuse was reportedly not true. It just feels like lie after lie with them.

Well, a century of Conservatives and Labour... time for someone else to have a go, but who? The choices aren't great, but I'm getting to the point where I really don't care anymore, so long as it is someone else and isn't the Greens.
 
Since this thread has moved into the elections/politics sphere, it has clearly run its course so I'm locking it - any further discussion of politics can go to the politics thread or start a new one for the local elections in HT please.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top