[Cherry Christmas]

Originally Posted by DemolitionRed

In 1980 the average wage was £6,000 (the equivalent of £19,000 in todays money) A little less than todays average earnings but in 1980 you got paid time and a half for extra hours and double time if you worked Sundays or holidays, so you could substantially build up that wage to average out with todays earnings.

In 1980 an average three bed house (not including London and Surrey) was £24,000. By 1990 that same house was £62,00. By 2000 it was worth £116,000. By 2010 its worth was £216,000 That house today has an approximate worth of £275,000
So if you purchased a house in 1980, without doing very much at all other than sitting on your investment, you’ve made a whopping quarter of a £million.
Now we could say that’s all subjective because if you sell your house tomorrow and purchase the one next door, its going to swallow all of your investment. You can, of course, move to a much cheaper area and live in a bigger, grander house, but you have to make compromises to do that.
What about the new buyer though? Mr Joe average is now earning slightly more than you were earning when you purchased that house but he’s not like you, looking at a mortgage of £24K, but a mortgage of £275k or a quarter of a £million more than you had to find.

The heyday of property buying for the average earner attempting to get on the property ladder is gone. Whilst the big banks make it possible for even the average earner to buy a house in the north, the property is so expensive that they will probably never pay off their mortgages and until they pay off their the mortgage, the house isn’t theirs, it’s the banks. As for saying the property is the banks, as TS said any equity is yours and your are not paying for someone elses mortgage as you do when renting with nothing to show for it, pay rent for 25 years, pay a mortgage for 25 years I know which one I would prefer to do.



When people who bought their homes in the 80s claim that they had to work equally hard to afford their homes… they must be living in Narnia.

I didn't buy in the 80's I bought in the 90s when interest rates were 15 per cent and then we had a recession and Mr C had to travel long distances to get work, anyway as I said earlier we should leave London out of the equation as prices in London are ridiculous but as has been pointed out, outside London prices are not that extortionate and seem pretty affordable in general.

With regard to the property belonging to the bank, as TS pointed out any equity isn't the banks and pay rent for a roof for 25 years when you are at the whim of a landlord and might have to move frequently and have nothing to show for it in 25 years time, or pay a mortgage and own your house, plus have the stability that unless things go seriously wrong its your home. I can think of nothing worse than a landlord rocking up with a notice to quit especially if you have a family

so have had a look at Leeds prices they seem to range from 44,000 for a one bed to 150,000 for a two bed.

https://www.payscale.com/research/UK...a-Leeds/Salary

and the average wage is 26,000

https://www.payscale.com/research/UK...a-Leeds/Salary

how is that not affordable