Article: There is no housing crisis, only a population crisis

[flamingreen]

I predict that whatever government gets into power, immigration levels will be kept high to ensure the economy appears to be strong. Can you imagine what would happen if we stopped all immigration, people realised that their house prices were massively overpriced and half the popullation went into negative equity.

Quite so. Immigartion feeds hosuing demand which keeps the bubble economy bumping along. I bet Brown will let in the Romanians and bulgarians too if he wins. Cameron will try to pick up the economy a bit first then claim that we need them to fill jobs.

[flamingreen]

Most of the immigrants are not in the market to buy houses.

They have amassive impact on buy to let though.

[Red Rackham]

I agree there is no housing crisis, just a population crisis that has affected every facet of our lives over the past decade. People moan about the NHS and Schools, about the gridlock on our roads and the lack of housing but all those things, our roads, hospitals, schools work perfectly well for the number of people they were designed for. The problem is definately over population and not the lack of services or infrastructure. But as long as we have a two party system where both parties are committed to our masters in Brussels (against the wishes of the vast majority) nothing will change.

[brian pearson]

What housing crisis? I don't see thousands of homeless people wandering our streets. The Housing market needs to crash. Fifty percent reductions at least.

Any amount of 'social housing' can be filled. You could build a million units a year and the non productive would breed and fill them! As long as the incentives are there people will take advantage of them. Whether they are immigrants or welfare junkies.

There is indeed a population crisis.....no housing crisis.

[BNP happy]

The ethnic British population is in decline, but the total population is rising. No guesses for the reason: eleven letter word starting with 'i'. So why show a crowded street full of British people? or would a street showing the overspill from the third world in London be deemed 'racist'?

Racist? The biggest boo-word to cow a people ever devised.

[ChrisV]

What housing crisis? I don't see thousands of homeless people wandering our streets. The Housing market needs to crash. Fifty percent reductions at least.

Any amount of 'social housing' can be filled. You could build a million units a year and the non productive would breed and fill them! As long as the incentives are there people will take advantage of them. Whether they are immigrants or welfare junkies.

There is indeed a population crisis.....no housing crisis.

I agree with everything but your first paragraph. There are many people who aren't homeless, but at the still time they don't have a home of their own. Myself and many like me are forced to live with parents.

Yes I could rent but that would be a waste of money and if I were to buy a place it would be dependant on both me and my girlfriend working full time to pay for it. Not great if you want kids one day. I would rather my children saw their parents.

[brian pearson]

I agree with everything but your first paragraph. There are many people who aren't homeless, but at the still time they don't have a home of their own. Myself and many like me are forced to live with parents.

Yes I could rent but that would be a waste of money and if I were to buy a place it would be dependant on both me and my girlfriend working full time to pay for it. Not great if you want kids one day. I would rather my children saw their parents.

Chris. You are not homeless, you are just priced out of the market due to the last decades crazy ramping of house prices, encouraged by the government (they based the economy on it). Until the market is allowed to prevail prices will remain at stupid levels and first time buyers like yourself will end up paying most of your salary on mortgage payments for a cardboard walled rabbit hutch!

I personally would advocate a social housing building programme but would not prioritise 'the usual suspects'. Hang tight...property prices will collapse sooner or later.

The greedy 'amateur property developer/landlord' generation have a lot to answer for.

[lorraine]

Why is it, when there is talk of immigration, we are compared to the USA, the country is huge, we are just a small island, it just does not make sense, it's like comparing us to Russia or China.
In England and Wales there maybe 700,000 empty homes, they have been going up like rabbit hutches, I bet you will find that the magority of these homes are new builds, which I assume have been built for the immigrants.
Last year rates where paid on all unoccupied industrial properties, a lot of people started to demolish the properties rather than be faced with the heafty rate bills, without the ability of making profit, this was highlighted on many programmes, that's why a lot of building work was stopped, because as soon as the roof was put on, the rates then became due on the properties, which halted a lot of building work.
The reason that out of town retail parks are thriving, is due to the rateable value of these properties, a lot of them are classed as warehouses, which means less rates and of course free parking facilities unlike towns.
The rateable value of shops in town are over priced, and with internet shopping it's even more difficult for town shops to compete. Problems should stimulate the human mind, but in which way.

Means testing on your lifestyle, even though you paid into the system, you may not be entitled to medical care.

More fines imposed on parking, seperating your rubbish, deadlines for payments, fines for filling in forms wrong.

Grants made available for anyone that can conclude that CO2 emissions, cause global warming.

We can't afford the rates on a car showroom, so we will turn the forecourt into a hand car wash business, that's forward thinking.

Will the time come, when we have all these empty properties and stalls on the forecourts selling our wares, that's quite an interesting prospect, it's definitely forward thinking, that we will make more money going backwards.

[Bill Baker]

Repossession will take a whole new meaning when the civil unrest starts and gets to a point where the intelligent Immigrants will leave before it gets out of hand. Yugoslavia was a warning and a picnic compared to the UK if it does get to the point of Civil war.

[ChrisV]

[QUOTE=brian pearson;839439]Chris. You are not homeless, you are just priced out of the market due to the last decades crazy ramping of house prices, encouraged by the government (they based the economy on it). Until the market is allowed to prevail prices will remain at stupid levels and first time buyers like yourself will end up paying most of your salary on mortgage payments for a cardboard walled rabbit hutch!
[QUOTE]

Yes you are correct about that. I do have a home and I'm not homeless. I think people here are blurring the lines between homeless and unable to afford a home. The only difference between me and a homeless person, is my parents.