General Chat

Yes we do need more social housing for people that are really in need of it. Let's not forget that this was first introduced as a means of getting families out of slum dwellings in the 1880s.
I was born in a flat in an L.C.C property that was built in the early 1900s for housing 'the working poor' These buildings are still standing today and have been completely refurbished over the years.
The question that I would like to ask, especially for those that would like to remain in London, is where will they build any new houses given the price of land.
Brownfield sites have been used to build new housing estates in the Greater London area but have not been very successful for numerous reasons.
There has been too much office building in London by developers who have demolished or gutted original structures, only to find that they are left empty for years. Imo it would have been more commendable to have made them into flats to rent.














:-(

Gwynne. Quite right. Sorry. Henley in Arden is a bit posh though, I think. Didn't the great boxer Tommy Farr have a pub there?

If you are that local, can you tell me how to pronounce Bearley please. :-)

I call it Bear (as in beard)-ley, John. No one's ever argued with me about it.

Henley in Arden has its own fund raising regatta on a somewhat smaller scale.

Because of the new law on under occupying I think there is good reason to build more one bedroom property's, pensioners are living longer so there is one reason and once your children have all left home then whether you are a couple or a single parent there is a need to down size before you are a pensioner. Most of the social housing stock is three or four bedroom housing.

Here is what happened to a lot of ex council home's.....

The multi-millionaire son of a Tory minister who presided over the controversial “right-to -buy” scheme is a buy-to-let landlord owning scores of former council flats.

A Daily Mirror investigation found a third of ex-council homes sold in the 1980s under Margaret Thatcher were now owned by private landlords.

In one London borough almost half of ex-council properties are now sub-let to tenants.

Tycoon Charles Gow and his wife own at least 40 ex-council flats on one South London estate.

His father Ian Gow was one of Mrs Thatcher’s top aides and was Housing Minister during the peak years of right-to-buy.

Other wealthy investors own scores of ex-council properties via offshore holding firms in tax havens in the Channel Islands, the GMB union has found.

Boss Paul Kenny said: “You couldn’t make it up. The family of one of the Tory ministers who oversaw right-to-buy ends up owning swathes of ex-council homes.”

I leave you to now wonder why the Tory's really brought in the right to buy, in my opinion it wasn't for the benefit of the working class as she said it was.

I don't have a problem with right to buy as long as the money is spent on building social housing stock we now need which has changed to what we needed originally. Years ago because there wasn't family planing there were a lot more large family's, today the majority of family's are 2/3 children so not as big a need for 3/4 bedroom property's.

So yes we do need more social housing, I am newly under occupied as my children have all grown up and left home, I am in a first floor 2bed flat and would be very happy to down size to one bedroom bungalow, no way am I prepared to move to 1 bedroom high rise flat back were I first started.

I first became aware of the abuse of the right to buy your council house scheme in 1995 when I bumped into an old friend of mine from my schooldays in a restaurant in Boulogne when I was on a day trip to France.

We got talking and it transpired that he now lived in France and owned a 14 roomed chateau in it's own grounds on the outskirts of Boulogne.

When I last met him in Scotland in the 1970's, he owned a second hand car business, so I commented that he must have made a lot of money from selling old cars, he said no that was not where he made made his money from, it was from council houses.

Apparently once the 10 year restriction on selling the council house you bought was up, he went round making people making them offers to good to refuse, and he had bought over 150 council houses which he rents out.

He was born and brought up in a council house and made no shame of the fact that although he hated Margaret Thatcher he would always remember her as his fairy godmother.

As Diane showed in her post, there were many other who went down that path.

A lot of older people are on their own and need a one bedroomed house for 355 days a year. But the reason they rattle round in 3 bedroomed houses is because friends and family call very occasionally and need a room.

Just wondering if there is an easy solution to this. Build old people's (55+ :-D) complexes of one bedroomed bungalows. Say 60 bungalows with communal lanscaped gardens. Then have a communal block with a cafe, some guest bedrooms and some leisure facilities. Car park adjacent to gated entrance.

With a manager on site, the complex could be 100% secure

John, many local authorities had schemes like that, an aunt of mine lived in one such scheme, and guess what a lot of local authorities sold them of to private companies, and guess which lady had the keys to 10 Downing Street at that time :-|

That Edwina Currie has a lot to answer for :-| :-| :-| :-|

We urgently need to build a variety of social housing to provide suitable homes for a range of decent hard working or retired people who will never in their wildest dreams be able to get a mortgage in this era of part-time jobs and low earnings caused by things such as the minimum wage.

I cannot see that happening under this government, and I have yet to hear concrete proposals from any of the other political parties as to what they will do to solve the housing crisis, lots of talking the talk but no firm proposals :-(

In his autumn statement in 2010 George Osborne said something like, this is when Britain steps back from the edge of the cliff, well with every announcement he has made since he became Chancellor the working class people of this country are being pushed over it :-|

I remember as a child reading the story of Robin Hood stealing from the rich to give to the poor, well in years to come children will read about our modern day Robin Hood and that is George Osborne, trouble is he is stealing from the poor to give to the rich :-|

John I can't think of anything worse than living on a complex with a whole load of old people and I'm one of them. Much better to build estates with mixed properties to cover all ages. Aged 55 is just a spring chicken nowadays.

I live in a one bedroomed flat. Would prefer 2 bedder but couldn't afford it. Mostly young people who are very quiet and I feel quite secure.

Vera

Vera. If I have to live on my own in old age, I think I would welcome living on an estate of old folk. As long as I could escape into my bungalow or car whenever I wanted.

Having annual bills for maintenance and low energy bills is an important factor. But it is the security that is so important, I think. Constant knocks on the door, and you get less and less confident to deal with them as you get older. Plus you are hardly likely to get any heavy metal fans or clog dancers amongst the elderly. And everyone is in bed by 8 :-D

Also you could have similar estates for very young singles (under 25), kicked out or wanting to get away. Little one bedroomed places surrounding a leisure complex, laundrette and cafe would be a good first base for them.

some of the properties my wife manages are sheltered housing schemes
and the bitching and moaning that goes on is unbelievable
i suppose its lots of old people together with nothing better to do but find fault with others

she had a right spot of bother when 2 old dears had a fall out because an old fella in the complex had shifted his attentions from one to the other

Just what I was thinking of Terryj although unrequited love seems to have passed me buy in my little flat.

John I did look at one of those blocks with everything - Manager. lawns trimmed and bells about the place. The annual service change was astronomical.

I don't have anyone knocking on my door and I'm the one who is up at god knows what hour as all the others are fast asleep ready for work the next morning. I don't have clogs but do have to take my shoes of because of the laminate (couldn't afford wood either) flooring.

I'm not getting your scenario to housing the old and the young. Don't see why the young and old can't mix. Maybe that is why the elderly are so suspicious of the young
and vice versa.

I am aware that there are some elderly people who do not feel safe in certain areas and that must be miserable for them. In those circumstnes it is not always a problem just for the elderly, younger people and as we know people less able can be targetted too.

Vera

Vera. Think I am just reflecting what tends to happen.

1. With parents till 18
2. Away at College til 21 with people our own age
3. Small bachelor accomodation till 28
4. Small house for 2 adukts and 2 children till 35
5. Bigger 3 or 4 bedroomed house till 55 (so children can have own room amd attend "right" school)
6. Small house till 70 and release some capital from big family house to help with university fees and house deposits. Near a bus stop and health centre.
7. After 70, a small bungalow in a secure compound. Little contact with dogs or children.
8. After 90, residential home followed by nursing care
9. After 110, a mansion in heaven (for the lucky few)

Yes, it is great for different ages to mix and I am happy to talk to young people (my OH is only 60 and I sometimes talk to her - but not about pop music as she glazes over when I mention Nancy Whiskey and Lita Rosa :-(

Mine is stay surrounded by all ages and hopefully pass on before I'm too frail to need a residential home. However,I would be willing to come and visit you and your wife on the complex provided I can get in and I'm allowed out afterwards.

Vera

Vera. A lovely thought :-D <3 You would be very welcome. As long as you are not the modern generation who like the Hollies and Vince Eager.

You would need to be security vetted to get a pass, of course :-)