Elederly To Blame For Housing Shortage?

[FredPuli43]

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/article3903989.ece

(Hope you get enough before the paywall limit. Couldn't find it free)

Apparently immigrants and the elderly are to blame for the housing shortage. And, adds the housing minister, the elderly are more to blame than the immigrants. That means me and AOG, for a start, and goodness knows how many other ABers.

What are we doing wrong? Is it like bed-blocking; die or be put in a secure home for us? I have four bedrooms but use only one; is that it? Do we buy second homes and leave one home empty?

What do you think?

[Hypognosis]

Morning, Fred.

I think it's probably the private homeowners' equivalent of the housing benefit claimants' spare room thing. Never mind the 40+ years you and your spouse have spent getting the house and garden just as you like it, you're expected to free up those unused bedrooms by downsizing?

sidebar:
That's a miserable implementation of paywall, isn't it? I'm still cross after the Telegraph's paywall didn't forewarn me of the 20 article limit but happily let me browse through a load of intriguing but ultimately inconsequential stories to burn up the entire supply in less than an hour.

[bunkmoreland]

you cant win fred,modern society is against anything thats gone before! Just spend it all on yourself or have it taken off you

[FredPuli43]

Morning , hypo. Wonder what I should do to help. I was going to rent the house to immigrants; I had already ordered the tent for myself; but I see that isn't the right answer.

[woofgang]

Its terrible isn't it? We want the pensions and medical care that we have contributed to and now we want to live in the houses that we have paid for! There is no doubt about it, we are nasty selfish and unprincipled people......I wonder how old the MP is?

[woofgang]

Ps I am doing my best to spend it all rather than let the gov.t get it!

[ummmm]

Isn't it just a shortage of council houses?

[sandyRoe]

We (people of a certain age, I mean) should do the right thing. A one way Ryanair ticket to Geneva and an appointment at Dignitas would leave the next generation a bit of breathing space..

[Svejk]

Why would silly old fools want to rattle around in a big house, doubtless, grumbling about their heating bills.

[emmie]

easy targets, not true either, the elderly more likely had bought their homes, perhaps the husband/wife passed away so they may be in a bigger property, if it's theirs why should it matter. As to social housing why is that allocated to the recently arrived, it has been our councils policy for a long while to accommodate families, and those mostly have been from far and wide, if you are single looking for social housing it is unlikely you will get it.

[ummmm]

The average 3 bedroom house is not that big especially if they have their grand children stay.

[boxtops]

Golly, that's shocking, fred - and we keep eating, and using scarce electricity up, too.

[emmie]

the capital is awash with property developers only they are building private homes, so very little social housing will get the nod, sometime the developers have to pay a sum towards the council coffers to get the nod, one such development of residences is going up, no social housing at all, however they did have to pay a sort of retainer, in other words form of bribe. there are homes available, that need some renovations, however the council seems hell bent on selling them, not right to buy either, to supposedly raise revenue to support other social housing refurbs, can't see that working, seeing as how many estates are left in poor conditions, including many in our borough. some of those estates across the capital should be pulled down to be replaced with safe, affordable homes. However the capital is a prime spot for overseas investors, who can afford to pay top dollar for whole blocks of new builds, this fact was pointed out on one programme recently, so if you want to buy here expect to pay lots of money, or rent at often extortionate rates
elderly have more likely to have paid into the social system pot, rent, tax and so forth, so why should they be made scapegoats, yet again.

[sandyRoe]

I've been thinking about my earlier post. Flights to Geneva and the fees for the Dignitas Clinic would cost a lot of money which would be much better lining the pockets of the deserving young.
Better, by far, that we wait for the next freezing night, life the bogroll and a tattered copy of the Mail, turn to our heirs and say: 'I'm just going outside. I may be some time.'.

[sandyRoe]

^ Then go and sit in the outside bog 'til nature and the cold takes its course.

[emmie]

one interesting point was made by someone in the news, that if Jeremy Hunt expresses his dismay at the fact the elderly are left alone, lonely and consigned to care homes, they should be homed with their adult children,
fine in so far, however two things stand out, the elderly may not want to be housed with their children, grandchildren, and if those adult children are asked to downsize their properties, when their children flee the nest for uni or their own homes, where is gran or granddad going to stay?

[fbg40]

Sandy
Your last post was brilliant !! We didn't have the luxury of a "loo roll" when I was a mere youngster, my Grandad used to cut up the newspaper into squares and hang it on a piece of string ! Wonderful days.
FBG40

[emmie]

or the dreaded Izal,

[pixie373]

It's ridiculous to blame it on the elderly. They have probably more right to be here than anyone. I do know a few people in Social Housing in their 80s,90s, who only use one bedroom or are unable to go upstairs, but surely that's the fault of the Council or Housing Association. People get assessed once and can move up to the highest house they'll ever need for their family and then keep it forever. They are never assessed and given a smaller place when their children move out. It can't be sustainable to award houses like that.
Private houses are different- you buy it, it's your choice. The main problem is the affordability, i think. Let people only buy one house each and the prices will decrease.

[jno]

I have heard it suggested that the problem is too many people with second homes. These tend to be highly paid city folk, who thus price the locals out of accommodation; and there's not enough social housing to cater for them. (Someone at some stage must have told councils to sell off all their homes to the tenants but made no arrangements for replacing them.)

[factor-fiction]

I know Fred has his tongue in his cheek but there is a point behind it I think.

I think the paper has twisted the story with the use of the word 'blame' and Fred has played along with this. I can't read the full article but from what I can see the minister was just stating the fact that "...an ageing population was putting more pressure on housing supply than immigration. This seems to be true. There is no doubt we are all living longer and this, together with immigration, is increasing the demand for housing.

I hope later in the article though the minister follows this up by saying something along the lines of "But even though these trends regarding longevity and immigration has been apparent for some time and successive governments- Tory, Labour, Coalition- have failed to do enough about it "