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The Housing crisis
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
With first time buyers being priced out of the market in many areas of Britain, the Government is under increasing pressure to come up with a solution.
The problem is not everybodys happy with the solutions e.g
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3589823.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3524552.stm
New houses vs loss of greenfield areas? or is there another way?
My solution would be to change the way we build housing. One of the biggest social increases is the amount of people who wish to live on their own but yet most housing seems to be built with 2 or 3 bedrooms, the one bedroom places I've seen in Bristol tend to be luxury dockside apartments which cost more than the family homes.
Shouldn't we think about encouraging builders to construct more affordable one bedroom places or flats using a higher density than we do, after all not everybody wants a garden.
Also why not put compulsory purchase orders on derelict properties in cities which would improve the look of an area and provide housing.
Your thoughts?
The problem is not everybodys happy with the solutions e.g
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3589823.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3524552.stm
New houses vs loss of greenfield areas? or is there another way?
My solution would be to change the way we build housing. One of the biggest social increases is the amount of people who wish to live on their own but yet most housing seems to be built with 2 or 3 bedrooms, the one bedroom places I've seen in Bristol tend to be luxury dockside apartments which cost more than the family homes.
Shouldn't we think about encouraging builders to construct more affordable one bedroom places or flats using a higher density than we do, after all not everybody wants a garden.
Also why not put compulsory purchase orders on derelict properties in cities which would improve the look of an area and provide housing.
Your thoughts?
0
Comments
I think it would be better than these ugly "cuckoo clock" houses that seem to be built for the sake of building.
Seriously, I had a flat in Toxteth when I was a student, and I was surrounded by empty, derelict houses. If these were demolished and new more high quality homes (with off-street parking!!!) were built, it would help stop urban sprawl.
We all know estates like this. They lie empty while there is supposedly a housing shortage. This must stop!
My house when bought was 41.500 and todays market id say it should be going on at around the 95.000. But how the hell can people afford mortgages of that size ?
I dont have a solution, unfortunately
The trouble is not the number of houses, it is where they are targeted. They are either in areas that no bugger would ever be daft enough to live in, or, like with most new-build houses, they are built for the "executive" market and are priced accordingly. Green-field developments wouldn't bring affordable housing, it would bring more anonymous executive Barratt's sprawl.
The history of squatting is really interesting, it goes back 100's of years. And in recent history, squatters have been responsible for saving various parts of London from being redeveloped into horrible concrete nightmares. Bonnington Square in Vauxhall being a famous example.
St Agnes Place in Kennington also has an interesting history, currently being threatened with eviction.
http://www.stagnesplace.org/
the councils in north wales are having to rent from the private market to then rent them out to council tennants. the average they are paying is hundred quid a week but they then rent them out for half that price. wheres the sense in that? wheres the inteligence?
surely it would make economic sense to build some fucking council houses.
"Squatters who have been living in south London for nearly 30 years are fighting to keep their homes. Up to 150 people live in properties on St Agnes Place, Kennington, which includes the headquarters of the Rastafarian community. But Lambeth Council now wants to reclaim the properties to turn them into social housing."
The last sentence is truly priceless, I take it Lambeth can find no other empty or derelict buildings worth reclaiming then.