Yes, I get you mate, the banker thing was stuck in my head, it was more about the bailout , something I hadn"t mentioned, and that was new Labour I know.Its like, get a great paying stressful job, take the mahessive bonus every 12 months, if it goes tits up, let everyone else in the country bail us out, continue in job, get great bonus! A bit like the member for Medway, jacking in his plumbing/boiler inspecting business, and going gambling with his savings. He gets lucky and wins, wins again, buys a big house and new motor, he"s a success, legend in fact! Then he piles it all on a sure thing, only the horse didn"t fancy it and he lost the lot. Then he cries to the tax paying public and they give him his money back, it was his risk, why should his neighbours pay?

I've been at the bottom CP. In front of a judge who repossed my flat. Me Mrs and kid in temporary accommodation. Beans on toast for a week. No one helped me. Oh I got a £20 crisis loan after 3 visits to the council. That got paid back 11 years later to the tune of £35.
But I got off my sad arse and now I own my home so it is possible. I reckon I am qualified to make the comments I make as been it seen it done it. I can't comment on other posters and their history.
BTW I haven't any savings as such, just a pension and what I live in.
If I get from Jan 1st to December 31st in no worse a position I count that as success. Maybe if others treated life so simply we would have a much better country and attitude towards each other. Not the envy and hate that being rich brings.
I think EDN might see I am that person who wanted it and went and got it through graft and hard work.

Edited by cryrst (28 Jul 2021 7.16pm)

And living further away is not always an option or means throwing money away on travel/childcare.

OK not what you want, what you need is probably more true. Mortgages are now available over 50 years with the ability to pay a bit extra each year which reduces the term. That has compensated in some way. Most people have an equal opportunity to be the best they can and get in front of the next person. You do need a little luck as well but you can make your own. If you don't take the opportunity given then who can be blamed. You cherry picked 9 words from over a hundred. Does nothing else I wrote ring true in the slightest.

I think it always was hard to own your own home and sacrifices had to be made. Before the war only the rich could afford it.

Growing up in the sixties and seventies my parents still couldn't afford it and we had a credit squeeze. You had to make nice to the building society manager who was only allowed to make a certain number of loans per month. So even if you had the deposit you were on a waiting list.

The 80 / 90's was the time when we had easy credit so providing you hadn't lost your job it was boom time. Today we are back to the norm you need a large deposit and proof you can pay your mortgage.

In hindsight selling off council houses was a terrible idea because essentially the taxpayer was subsiding a few lucky people whilst removing the opportunity for others to rent.

We need to completely rethink the housing market. In Europe most people rent which is controlled and a long term deal. We have huge pension funds who with the right incentives could become responsible landlords. It wouldn't cost the taxpayer either.

In Austria most domestic property is owned by the bank they get a guaranteed long term income and the citizens have an affordable place to leave.

Property speculation should come with a tax to discourage, overseas investors should be banned etc.

I think if Labour wake up and propose a European style housing rental market this could be a real vote winner.

EverybodyDannsNow makes lots of undeniable good points and the current way is going to collapse harder when it inevitably does again.

New Labour and various Tory PM’s have failed badly on housing. It really started to get out of control nearly 20 years ago, just as Phil and Kirstie etc were on the tv every single night and became part of conversation and humour for some, although accumulating and letting got going several years before, and of course interest only mortgages.