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London, like most major cities, has significant wealth disparity: central London is filled with high-earning transplants living side by side with impoverished l

London, like most major cities, has significant wealth disparity: central London is filled with high-earning transplants living side by side with impoverished locals. Southwark is the London borough containing The Shard, Tate Modern, Borough Market, Tower Bridge yet almost 30% of children in Southwark live in poverty. Poverty touches every part of London. Even the City of London has housing estates.

literallycancer 2y ago
Living in an apartment rather than a house is a strange definition of poverty.
- sabbaticaldev 2y ago
  some people don’t know poverty and equate not being rich to being poor
- rr808 2y ago
  Its common in British cities for most owners/renters to have terraced or detached housing while council houses (public housing) are in tower blocks or smaller apartment buildings.
  - torginus 2y ago
    I'm pretty sure anyone around there who owns his apartment does not fit the definition of poor - in fact most of the so-called rich would take more than a decade of saving up just so that they could own the same property. The great tragedy of Europe is that asset wealth has far outpaced the earnings potential of the population.
    - chgs 2y ago
      Thanks to right to buy starting in the 80s plenty of economically inefficient people with shit jobs bought their houses in London for a tiny amount. Those are now worth a fortune. They then rented them out and made even more money p Strivers who actually pay market rates for rent see all their money drain away, often to “poor working class” people who now complain they can’t heat their £1m houses because we aren’t given them even more free money. Meanwhile those strivers who have a pension are about to have that ransacked to give a triple locked pay rise to those poor millionaires.
- harry_ord 2y ago
  A lot of older council apartments in the UK seem to be a bit grim. There's some skepticism against apartment blocks and a lot of newer ones seem to have odd pricing. I live in a nice apartment in Austria but I'd be a lot more critical looking for one to live in the UK.
  - Chris2048 2y ago
    > a lot of newer ones seem to have odd pricing. as in, they cost as much as freeholds, despite being leaseholds, That scam has yet to become apparent, but I'm sure it will eventually. Also, the liability of having to depend on a management company, and rising fees..
    - harry_ord 2y ago
      Yeah, that and a lot seem kinda small while being a bit lower than the prices of some houses(but still too much imo). Been a long time since I dreamed of home ownership admittedly. I thought grenfell pushed the leaseholder vs freehold pricing out in the open. I've seen stuff about leaseholders effectively in negative equity because of the cost of cladding and a previous government dropped a bill or amendment changing who had to pay for such things or the existence of leasehold.
  - zimpenfish 2y ago
    > A lot of older council apartments in the UK seem to be a bit grim. Living on a 1960s council estate (in a non-council apartment) with several low-rise blocks and some high-rise, yeah, it's mildly grim.
jeffbee 2y ago
> high-earning transplants living side by side with impoverished locals. Hilarious take, honestly. Can you point me to some evidence, maps, tables, or discussions about the impoverished London-born living cheek-by-jowl with fancy Nigerians? This is the first I am hearing about the disadvantaged natives of London.
- flir 2y ago
  I'm thinking about the people I know who got booted to the kerb due to the London Olympics redevelopment. I'm also thinking about Grenfell.
  - jeffbee 2y ago
    The first time I read the comment I thought it was making an aggregate claim about newcomers being richer than natives, which struck me as obviously, spectacularly incorrect. Why else would a speaker say "high-earning transplants" specifically? If I had to point out an example of unequal wealth in London I am sure my example would be their monarch, not a vague implication of Johnny-come-lately bankers or lawyers. I am certain that in the aggregate the relationship between wealth or income and length of tenure in London is positive.
    - foldr 2y ago
      The King isn't anywhere near being the richest person living in London. It's also a strange example to choose. I mean Joe Biden is richer than the average DC native, but what does that tell you exactly? London is a very international city, and the wealthy people who own property in the central areas come from all over the place.
      - flir 2y ago
        > The King isn't anywhere near being the richest person living in London. I think he's arguing that Charlie counts in the "native Londoner" bucket. BTW, don't trust the Sunday Times Rich List estimates of the Monarch's wealth. They changed their methodology after the first list when the palace complained that the Queen came out on top.

literallycancer 2y ago

Living in an apartment rather than a house is a strange definition of poverty.

sabbaticaldev 2y ago
some people don’t know poverty and equate not being rich to being poor
rr808 2y ago
Its common in British cities for most owners/renters to have terraced or detached housing while council houses (public housing) are in tower blocks or smaller apartment buildings.
- torginus 2y ago
  I'm pretty sure anyone around there who owns his apartment does not fit the definition of poor - in fact most of the so-called rich would take more than a decade of saving up just so that they could own the same property. The great tragedy of Europe is that asset wealth has far outpaced the earnings potential of the population.
  - chgs 2y ago
    Thanks to right to buy starting in the 80s plenty of economically inefficient people with shit jobs bought their houses in London for a tiny amount. Those are now worth a fortune. They then rented them out and made even more money p Strivers who actually pay market rates for rent see all their money drain away, often to “poor working class” people who now complain they can’t heat their £1m houses because we aren’t given them even more free money. Meanwhile those strivers who have a pension are about to have that ransacked to give a triple locked pay rise to those poor millionaires.
harry_ord 2y ago
A lot of older council apartments in the UK seem to be a bit grim. There's some skepticism against apartment blocks and a lot of newer ones seem to have odd pricing. I live in a nice apartment in Austria but I'd be a lot more critical looking for one to live in the UK.
- Chris2048 2y ago
  > a lot of newer ones seem to have odd pricing. as in, they cost as much as freeholds, despite being leaseholds, That scam has yet to become apparent, but I'm sure it will eventually. Also, the liability of having to depend on a management company, and rising fees..
  - harry_ord 2y ago
    Yeah, that and a lot seem kinda small while being a bit lower than the prices of some houses(but still too much imo). Been a long time since I dreamed of home ownership admittedly. I thought grenfell pushed the leaseholder vs freehold pricing out in the open. I've seen stuff about leaseholders effectively in negative equity because of the cost of cladding and a previous government dropped a bill or amendment changing who had to pay for such things or the existence of leasehold.
- zimpenfish 2y ago
  > A lot of older council apartments in the UK seem to be a bit grim. Living on a 1960s council estate (in a non-council apartment) with several low-rise blocks and some high-rise, yeah, it's mildly grim.

jeffbee 2y ago

> high-earning transplants living side by side with impoverished locals. Hilarious take, honestly. Can you point me to some evidence, maps, tables, or discussions about the impoverished London-born living cheek-by-jowl with fancy Nigerians? This is the first I am hearing about the disadvantaged natives of London.

flir 2y ago
I'm thinking about the people I know who got booted to the kerb due to the London Olympics redevelopment. I'm also thinking about Grenfell.
- jeffbee 2y ago
  The first time I read the comment I thought it was making an aggregate claim about newcomers being richer than natives, which struck me as obviously, spectacularly incorrect. Why else would a speaker say "high-earning transplants" specifically? If I had to point out an example of unequal wealth in London I am sure my example would be their monarch, not a vague implication of Johnny-come-lately bankers or lawyers. I am certain that in the aggregate the relationship between wealth or income and length of tenure in London is positive.
  - foldr 2y ago
    The King isn't anywhere near being the richest person living in London. It's also a strange example to choose. I mean Joe Biden is richer than the average DC native, but what does that tell you exactly? London is a very international city, and the wealthy people who own property in the central areas come from all over the place.
    - flir 2y ago
      > The King isn't anywhere near being the richest person living in London. I think he's arguing that Charlie counts in the "native Londoner" bucket. BTW, don't trust the Sunday Times Rich List estimates of the Monarch's wealth. They changed their methodology after the first list when the palace complained that the Queen came out on top.