French Target Foreign Property Owners
I’m so glad that C and I sold our house in Antibes in the South of France some fifteen years ago. I think I’d be paying a very large sum of French taxes now, if Francois Hollande gets his plans to tax foreign property owners implemented. It’s all here on the BBC.
The Italians Are Coming
According to a report in The Sunday Times, Knight Frank have said that the largest group of emigrants to the UK are rich Italians. I suppose they have to be rich to afford the houses Knight Frank sells.
I hope they bring their money with them and invest it in the City.
It’s Not All Depressing News!
Clicking through the BBC News website this morning is particularly depressing.
We have the story of the all-Labour Newham Council trying to offload some of their residents who need houses on Stoke-on-Trent. That would be an interesting commute. Governments for too long, have ignored the problem of housing in the South-East and London in particular. Only yesterday, Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London was asking for more funds to create more school places in the capital.
You can understand, why politicians on the far-right have been calling for an immigration clampdown. But being from two immigrant lines myself , I can’t complain can I?
We have an imbalance in the number of houses in the UK and the number of people we have here. The main solution is to build more houses, which the government appears to be doing. But also we should ensure that the houses we have are fully occupied. It could be said, that I’m greedy living in a three-bedroomed house by myself!
And then we have the story about how The Netherlands, which many think is one of the more stable of the Eurozone countries is in trouble.
I could find equally depressing stories, such as how Clare Squires died in the London Marathon.
But in some ways that story has a remarkably heart-warming ending as many are contributing to her cause; The Samaritans. The Reverend Chad Varah would have approved.
So perhaps the immense wealth of human spirit will win out! If you want to contribute to Claire go here.
One Rule for the Council Leader Another for 11,000 On Council Waiting List
If you read this article in the Daily Mail, you’ll understand the overwhelming sense of not playing fair, I got from seeing a report on this on the BBC London News tonight.
There’s an old phrase about justice not only having been done, but having seen to be done!
I of course don’t know the ins and outs of Liam Smith’s case, but having had housing difficulties many years ago, I can sympathise with those on the waiting list. If as the BBC says Mr. Smith earns enough to rent in the private sector, he should do the decent thing and stand aside for one of the less fortunate in his borough.
Property Prices In London
I was surprised to read this article in the Evening Standard.
Property prices may be flat elsewhere, but it seems they’re holding up in my part of London. Am I bothered?
Roof Clutter
This house is near to where I live.
Roof Clutter
There has been a lot of controversy about whether the solar panels they have installed should be allowed. You can just about see them. But surely the real eyesores are the television aerials, satellite dish and the overhead wires to bring in the phone lines!
Fuel Prices
After my stroke, I gave up driving and moved to a highly-insulated house in Dalston.
If you don’t like fuel costs, then move somewhere, where you don’t need a car and your house has affordable and efficient central heating.
I do all my shopping either on the Internet or by bus. I even go to IKEA on a bus and that is real fun!
Tax On Second Homes
There is a row brewing about the Council Tax on second homes in Devon. It’s reported here on the BBC.
I could afford to own a home in London and a cottage in the country. But for various reasons I wouldn’t. But if I did I can see no reason why I would get a Council Tax discount on my second home. After all in my view houses are to be lived in permanently, and as we have a shortage of homes in this country at all levels, by having two, you are depriving someone of a home. And that is indefensible.
If I need a break from London, I would much prefer to get on a train to say Liverpool and stay in a nice hotel. After all if your second home is worth £200,000, that money invested properly would pay for a lot of nights in good hotels, with a lot less hassle.
We Need More Duchesses!
The late Duke of Devonshire and his wife, who is now the Dowager Duchess have spent a lifetime turning Chatsworth into a commercial proposition. Some may argue that they were wrong, but surely the people who flock to the house in droves aren’t doing it because they hate it.
But I do like Matthew Parris’s tale in The Times today, where the current Duke is organising tours around the scaffolding, that clothes the House now, so that repairs can be performed.
It is a great idea, as when restorations are performed, the public should be encouraged to see the skills involved, especially, when taxpayers or lottery losers money is involved.
On a similar level, few would argue that the ViewTube at the Olympic Park has not been a success.
So let’s see more exhibitions, webcams and viewing galleries on major construction sites.
At least Network Rail put up a small exhibition at King’s Cross, but where is the information around the new CrossRail stations? It might be on the web, but many of those who might be interested probably don’t have a computer to hand.
Should High Earners Be Allowed Subsidised Housing?
I have always felt that houses should be used to provide the maximum number of individual dwellings.
For instance, I don’t believe that people should own two houses, that they keep for their personal use. But if they want to, then they should not get any reliefs on the second house. In the past I’ve owned and lived in two houses and it doesn’t have too much to recommend for itself. Some may claim it’s nice to live in London in the week and go to their cottage at the weekend, but do they ever realise that that cottage probably causes someone to not have a house. If you live in two houses, then the second house should be taxed to provide subsidised houses in the area.
Buying to let is different, as you are providing a service of housing for someone else. And if you are successful, then you pay tax on it.
But what really gets me is those, who live in Local Authority or Housing Association properties and earn enough money to either rent privately or even buy their own house. The case of the ex-Labour Minister, Frank Dobson, reported in the papers today is scandalous. He should be booted out forthwith, so that someone else, who needs it, can have the property!
All of these abuses should be tightened up and hopefully the government is doing something about it. And while they are at it, they should be tougher on those, who illegally sublet their properties.
I should also say that sometimes, I feel guilty about having a reasonably large house all to myself.
To return though to the Dobson scandal! In my year at school, Animal Farm was the set book for GCE O Level. George Orwell was so right and it is fairly obvious, what his view of NuLabor would have been!
The Anonymous Widower 