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> so the amount of available housing stock to cheaply rent diminished sharply And so did the number of people needing to rent. > There was a 'bedroom tax' imp

by ta1243 3y ago

> so the amount of available housing stock to cheaply rent diminished sharply And so did the number of people needing to rent. > There was a 'bedroom tax' imposed on people still living in Council housing that had empty bedrooms which didn't apply to private housing. A tax massively opposed by the left. A couple on minimum wage and 37.5 hours a week has a £3,200 a month net wage after tax. Even just 33% on a mortgage means you can get a c. 180k mortgage at 5%, enough to buy a 3 bed house in many parts of England, assuming you can find the required deposit. https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/146612411#/?channel=RES_BUY https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/146612411#/?channel=R... https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/146822492#/?channel=RES_BUY https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/146822492#/?channel=R... https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/146953640#/?channel=RES_BUY https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/146953640#/?channel=R... https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/147046655#/?channel=RES_BUY https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/147046655#/?channel=R... https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/144397493#/?channel=RES_BUY https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/144397493#/?channel=R... https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/144533690#/?channel=RES_BUY https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/144533690#/?channel=R... https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/146820380#/?channel=RES_BUY https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/146820380#/?channel=R... One problem the UK has with wages is while minimum wage has nearly doubled in real terms since 1999, median wage has increased just 27%. This means far more people earning about the same, and many jobs simply aren't worth the extra time to do it. Why spend 6 years in education and below-minimum-wage training when you can just stack shelves or roll pizzas for basically the same wage. The other problem we have with housing is the south east, but the solution to that is easy -- just move. You can live in 80% of the UK with a minimum wage job, so drop the sentimentalism and move 100 miles. Hell Americans think 100 miles is a trip to the local theatre.

OtherShrezzing 3y ago
>A couple on minimum wage and 37.5 hours a week has a £3,200 a month net wage after tax. Even just 33% on a mortgage means you can get a c. 180k mortgage at 5%, enough to buy a 3 bed house in many parts of England, assuming you can find the required deposit. That a couple on minimum wage can save for a £20k deposit within any meaningful time horizon is a pretty significant assumption.
- ricardo81 3y ago
  To be fair, you can take 25% off that with a Lifetime ISA, so 15K needed.
  - matt-p 3y ago
    4k savings gets a 1k bonus per year so; -It's 16K -They need to wait 4 years. The point stands if they are aware of the scheme when they start saving and save exactly 4k a year every year (more realistically it will be 2k year 1, 4k year two, 7k year 3..)
    - ricardo81 3y ago
      Thanks yes, your maths is better, 20% on top. Having to save for 5 years doesn't seem unrealistic for people who don't have the bank of mum and dad. Totally doable - though below average house price in any area, preferably somewhere more affordable. There are a lot of tax instruments available today that never existed a generation ago.
      - matt-p 3y ago
        I do agree but I think not enough people become aware of it when they start saving. In a sense it would probably be easier on all if the government just said we'll top up your deposit by 25% upto the value of 5k when you buy your first house.
      - ta1243 3y ago
        I'm not sure in what would someone on minimum wage would be able to afford to buy an average house You can get a 3 bed semi in dozens of towns across the UK though. Sure you won't be living in a 5 bed detached with a swimming pool on minimum wage. I don't see that as a terrible thing.
- ta1243 3y ago
  Oh sure, and that's the rent trap. You end up spending more on rent than you would for a repayment mortgage, and can never raise the deposit.
TheOtherHobbes 3y ago
"Just" 33% is £60k. Most minimum wage jobs are zero hours or part-time. So the idea that our lovely couple are going to find it easy to save £60k is... rather optimistic. As is the implication that those earnings will be stable and reliable and not subject to periods of unemployment.
- ta1243 3y ago
  Full time minimum wage for two people is over £3k a month. Yes if you work less than full time then you'll earn less than £3k a month.
jacobp100 3y ago
My impression too is the housing crisis is only really in high demand places. Not only London either - nice villages can be equally expensive. However, there’s still plenty of safe places with jobs near by where houses are more affordable prices
- ta1243 3y ago
  > nice villages Well given that "nice" here is presumably "one of the top 25% nicest places in the country", it makes sense that not everyone can live there. How would you ration it if not based on cost? Nepotism? Lottery? Sexual favours? All four are used to distribute housing in the UK, rather than simply building enough for everyone.

by ta1243 3y ago

OtherShrezzing 3y ago

>A couple on minimum wage and 37.5 hours a week has a £3,200 a month net wage after tax. Even just 33% on a mortgage means you can get a c. 180k mortgage at 5%, enough to buy a 3 bed house in many parts of England, assuming you can find the required deposit. That a couple on minimum wage can save for a £20k deposit within any meaningful time horizon is a pretty significant assumption.

ricardo81 3y ago
To be fair, you can take 25% off that with a Lifetime ISA, so 15K needed.
- matt-p 3y ago
  4k savings gets a 1k bonus per year so; -It's 16K -They need to wait 4 years. The point stands if they are aware of the scheme when they start saving and save exactly 4k a year every year (more realistically it will be 2k year 1, 4k year two, 7k year 3..)
  - ricardo81 3y ago
    Thanks yes, your maths is better, 20% on top. Having to save for 5 years doesn't seem unrealistic for people who don't have the bank of mum and dad. Totally doable - though below average house price in any area, preferably somewhere more affordable. There are a lot of tax instruments available today that never existed a generation ago.
    - matt-p 3y ago
      I do agree but I think not enough people become aware of it when they start saving. In a sense it would probably be easier on all if the government just said we'll top up your deposit by 25% upto the value of 5k when you buy your first house.
    - ta1243 3y ago
      I'm not sure in what would someone on minimum wage would be able to afford to buy an average house You can get a 3 bed semi in dozens of towns across the UK though. Sure you won't be living in a 5 bed detached with a swimming pool on minimum wage. I don't see that as a terrible thing.
ta1243 3y ago
Oh sure, and that's the rent trap. You end up spending more on rent than you would for a repayment mortgage, and can never raise the deposit.

TheOtherHobbes 3y ago

"Just" 33% is £60k. Most minimum wage jobs are zero hours or part-time. So the idea that our lovely couple are going to find it easy to save £60k is... rather optimistic. As is the implication that those earnings will be stable and reliable and not subject to periods of unemployment.

ta1243 3y ago
Full time minimum wage for two people is over £3k a month. Yes if you work less than full time then you'll earn less than £3k a month.

jacobp100 3y ago

My impression too is the housing crisis is only really in high demand places. Not only London either - nice villages can be equally expensive. However, there’s still plenty of safe places with jobs near by where houses are more affordable prices

ta1243 3y ago
> nice villages Well given that "nice" here is presumably "one of the top 25% nicest places in the country", it makes sense that not everyone can live there. How would you ration it if not based on cost? Nepotism? Lottery? Sexual favours? All four are used to distribute housing in the UK, rather than simply building enough for everyone.