Cretin of the day award

[DimPrawn]

goes to Call me Dave.

Council tenants to get up to £75,000 to buy their own homes, David Cameron to say - Telegraph


The Prime Minister will formally unveil a “reinvigorated” version of the 'right to buy' policy pioneered by Margaret Thatcher’s Government during the 1980s. If sucessful if could see another two million council homes sold off.


Mr Cameron will say he wants to quadruple the number of tenants who can buy back their own homes and help more “achieve their aspiration of owning their own homes”.




So that's 2 million more BTL then.

[Doggy Styles]

Another tick in the stupid column.

Is there any real pressure from anyone anywhere to chuck away this money?

I'd rather they used it to reverse that earlier tick in the stupid column, the increase in pensioners tax.

[MarillionFan]

Another tick in the stupid column.

There is no real pressure from anyone anywhere to chuck away this money.

I'd rather they used it to reverse that earlier tick in the stupid column, the increase in pensioners tax.

Can providing council houses not actually turn a profit, or at worst keep the money in the council system. By selling council properties off cheaply, you get an initial bunce, then a housing shortage, then people on benefits rent in the private sector, which is most likely a purchased council house which someone bought cheap.

Numbers. We want to see the numbers.

[vetran]

When Saint Maggie did it there was a basic calculation

(Value of house - Cost of maintaining house) - Sale price= profit.

We spend a fortune doing up council houses. You could always tell a council house that had been sold, first year it had a new door. But 5 years later all the house around had new windows and all the fronts repainted and new windows while the private one was looking tired because they had no money.

What we are failing to do is set the rental at market rates and discounting accordingly.

Social housing reform: Council rent £74 a week, private rent £280 | Mail Online

Council house tenants who sublet homes to be prosecuted - Telegraph

Personally I would also make council house a benefit in kind that kicks in at higher rate. So if you become a higher rate taxpayer you get to pay full price (on sliding scale).

Annual reapplication listing all incomes in house.

That would also stop people sub letting or make prosecuting them much easier. They would have to declare any income from subletting or become tax evaders.

[AtW]

WTF is he getting £75k per tenant who wants it, is there budget surplus perhaps Osborne did not bother telling about?!?!

He should focus on council tenants getting good jobs to move out of social housing altogether, not selling it off.

[vetran]

That's half the problem, once you have a council house its for life. So you get one in your teens and at 40 you are earning £40K and still pay £50 a week.

Or you get a 4 bedroom house thanks to breeding uncontrollably then the kids turn 21 leave home and they have to pay you to downsize.

Its a privilege not a right.