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House Price Inflation The Only Good Inflation ?

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mikey4444 | 13:36 Fri 06th Sep 2013 | News
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23983828

Once again, we are led to believe that a rise above inflation is good for houses but bad for petrol, gas, electric, food, etc. Never understood this and still don't.
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neither do I. I would be quite happy if my house was worth 5p provided that the house i want to buy was only worth 10p.....I suspect however that its not that simple.
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To right its not that simple ! Banks, Building Societies, Solicitors and Estate Agents are only too happy for house prices to soar out of control for ever and ever. They are the only ones making any money out of the scandal.
Perhaps that is because Sir rents a house but buys petrol ?


PP
mikey...neither do I, but for the last 50 years it has been one way of providing for your retirement. You buy a house for £X live in it for 30yrs or keep selling and buying, until it is retirement time and then you DOWNSIZE. The difference between what you sell your house for and what your downsized house is worth is a boost to your pension. Unfortunately, this method has gone "t1ts up" since the financial crash.
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I would be quite happy to rent PP but in Britain there isn't really a viable alternative to spending nearly £500 a month on a mortgage I can't really afford.

The privately rented sector is awash with rogue landlords and the social sector is not what it was. I was born in a council house in 1953, like most people in Britain. It was nice place to live, where everybody looked after their gardens, and people from all walks of lived along side you.

If I went back to that council estate in North London now, I would find it blighted by litter, graffiti and drug addiction. Not a place where anyone would aspire to live any more.
Who's said it's good? I read the link and saw no opinions at all.
// Who's said it's good ? //

A rise in house prices is always reported as good news. A sign that the economy's in good shape. I've never really understood it either.
It's only really good news if you own multiple properties or are planning to sell the one you own and live in a tent in someone elses garden.
//To right its not that simple ! Banks, Building Societies, Solicitors and Estate Agents are only too happy for house prices to soar out of control for ever and ever. They are the only ones making any money out of the scandal. //

I dont see how Banks or Buildo's make out of it. If houses cost less they would give loans to more people, probably have less defaulters and charge a fee so no difference for them. Much as I hate lawyers most do conveyancing for a fixed price so not much gain there. Estate agents are another kettle of fish there, it is def in their interest to hike up.

But you should always remember a house is only worth what someone is willing to pay.

New labour opened the flood gates and created a housing shortage. Socila housing has been shown time and time again to go to foreigners in preference to uk residents.

I'm not sure it is a scandal though.

The reason it is usually trumpeted is that if house prices rise then there must be money available to buy it. This implies that things are getting better and confidence is returning.
I guess for many people the house is the pension so if the value goes up its good.
You don't understand it?

I take it then that you are not in the position of living in a house worth less than the oustanding mortgage (negative equity)

Many people are and find themselves unable to move due to it.

For them house inflation is very good news
Fair point jake. I'll revise my original statement.

It's only really good news if you own multiple properties or are planning to sell the one you own and live in a tent in someone elses garden, or are currently in a negative equity situation.
jake

negative equity is there any ? DO you have figures

Lots of people- SAY they are in negative equity when it turns out they just havent made as mich money as they thought they would
which is not really the same thing
Well it's nothing like as bad as it was in '95

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/borrowing/mortgages/9954218/Negative-equity-2013-not-as-bad-as-1995.html

But it's really bad in Northern Ireland

Overall we're alking a few percent of the cases but that is still hundreds of thousands of people
I guess because you keep the house but eat the food; so one is an asset. But it's only actually of value if you want to sell it, in which case you may want to buy another one whose value has increased equally steeply.
Blooming typical. I sell my property THEN the price of houses goes up! Knew I'd sell at the wrong time.
If they want to fix the housing market they should forcibly drop prices by 50% and reduce all mortgages by the same. Then more people could buy and no homeowner would be out of pocket, seeing as none of this money actually exists anyway.
THEN people might want to buy houses and be able to afford to do so, rents would have to fall in accordance and we might get back to something sensible.
Because you can trade down your house to help your finances when struggling on a pension, but your gas and food will have been consumed and is simply an expense.

That said ideally one should be able to cope well in older age without having to invest heavily whether it is the stock market, your house, or those gold bars under your bed.
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The main problem with house prices here in Britain is that so many people view their house as an investment, rather than as a place to live. If I was a young man starting out, I am not sure I could afford to buy a house now, where in 1980 I could, albeit with a struggle. It would take me a long time time to save up the £40,000 needed to buy an average house.

Its not so bad here in South Wales, as there are plenty of areas where housing is still affordable but inside the M25 ?

mikey, young people starting out often get help from the Bank of Mum and Dad. Given that their wealth has shot up because the value of their own house has, this seems reasonable.
Mojo, youre commie idea has one big flaw

There are not enough houses to go round!

Too many immigrants.

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