Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's 'Righ

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Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's 'Righ

This is a duplicate of the Blog Entry made on 19th November 2011 10:51.

Up to two million council houses could be sold to their tenants under Government plans to revive Margaret Thatcher’s landmark ‘Right to Buy’ scheme....

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[PriorityOne]

Re: Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's '

Not sure I agree with this, to be honest; the incentive to get have babies and get a home has been rife for years. Keep churning them out and the council provides a bigger home (eventually).... which can now be bought at a whopping discount.

Apologies of this offends anyone but in the area where I work, families of up to 11 kids are the norm; split to live with different realtives so that they can all qualify for Benefit and free housing.

I doubt the Gov. will ever wake up to this.... it's been going on now for the past 20-odd years....

[confused76]

Re: Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's '

I'm really surprised to hear this....it left the country short of council property so why are they doing it again?!

[Never-In-Doubt]

Re: Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's '

P1 - totally agree. The government have made a select few, what they are, as the system is too easy to beat/abuse/con.

IMO they should remove all housing options, I also took advantage of their RTB scheme and bought at £27k - 3 years later (after spending £40k renovating) sold for £125k so I abused the system - because I could.

Hey ho, they'll learn the hard way I guess!!

[PriorityOne]

Re: Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's '

P1 - totally agree. The government have made a select few, what they are, as the system is too easy to beat/abuse/con.

IMO they should remove all housing options, I also took advantage of their RTB scheme and bought at £27k - 3 years later (after spending £40k renovating) sold for £125k so I abused the system - because I could.

Hey ho, they'll learn the hard way I guess!!

I've known a few to have done similar over the years Niddy.... if the opportunity is there, people will take it and that's not always a bad thing.

My beef is about removing the incentive to find work, save and get on in life that way. People just won't. It's become really hard to get on as it is. Maybe I should just tell my daughter and her bf to get pregnant and ditch uni. Her half-sister had 2 kids very young and her and hubby are in a massive 2-bed. council house which they will now be able to buy.

While I'm happy that they're settled as a family, it's not sending the right message out to young people (IMO)....

[PlanB]

Re: Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's '

A vast amount of reposessions are from Right-To-Buy owners who were tempted into taking out subprime mortgages which they could no longer afford once the initial cheap fixed rate expired and the monthly payments shot up 2 years later. The occupants don't get re-housed because they've made themselves "intentionally homeless" by not making the payments.

I know of mortgage 'intermediaries' from GMAC, SPML, Kensington, Platform (the usual suspects) who went around council estates knocking on doors saying "sign here" with no proper explanation. Only the lowlife lenders offered mortgage products on these council properties at the time. Even when the owners realized their mistake they couldn't sell them on becuase no mainstream lenders will offer loans on ex-local authority property.

But the brokers got rich on it and the lenders quickly sold the loans on to Bradford & Bingley (Mortgage Express) which went bust as a result of buying the trash. And then the Government bought (sorry, you and I paid to "nationalise") B & B. I can't believe the Government would go down that road again. Actually I can, sadly. Plus ca change

[pompeyfaith]

Re: Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's '

I too am a RTB owner, however the reason we brought did not have kids in mind.

We brought it in 1986 at a price of £13,580 60% discount of are mothers as she at the time was a joint owner and on the deeds.

We brought it because it was not long after my wifes dad passed away and the council wanted her to give up this 4 bed for a smaller place she did not want to do this as she had lived here a longtime hence the max discount and all her memories where in this place.

So we brought it and borrowed an extra 30k to modernise it which it badly needed and have lived in it ever since because we had enough bedroom to raise our own family without needing to move.

Last valuation I had in 2008 put it at £196,500 so yes a good investment with the mortgage due to be paid up in a matter of months.

Could I have been able to get on the ladder at the time without this help no I do not think so.

Regards

[pompeyfaith]

Re: Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's '

Even when the owners realized their mistake they couldn't sell them on becuase no mainstream lenders will offer loans on ex-local authority property.

PlanB,

It all depends how the property was constructed, Mine is bricks and mortar so I had no problem what so ever in getting a mortgage from the Halifax.

There are many properties that are pre-fab and those I agree will struggle as my brother had one of those and they would not touch it until major works where carried out.

[Never-In-Doubt]

Re: Half price council home: Two million properties to be sold off as Government revive Thatcher's '

Halifax always lent to non-standard consstruction as well. Ours was the old steel and concrete slab construction (Livett Cartwright) (sp) and was hard to borrow against, however a £25k personal loan over 7 years sorted that out!

We currently use (self certified over inflated mortgage) GMAC RFC who sell their accounts to MAS # (4, for prime - 7 to subprime) and we're MAS#5...

Its just a case of moving the debt (mortgage) around, doesn't affect me who it's with all I know is that they did me proud so I stay loyal to them by remaining their customer.