Middleclass Money Management 101

[garethom]

WHAT DO THEY WANT FROM ME? I reckon there's some really disheartened call centre people wondering why we wouldn't want to borrow unlimited money from then.

#MiddleClassCred I do have an american express corporate card with no limit if shit ever really hit the fan

[Johnlenham]

WHAT DO THEY WANT FROM ME? I reckon there's some really disheartened call centre people wondering why we wouldn't want to borrow unlimited money from then.

#MiddleClassCred I do have an american express corporate card with no limit if shit ever really hit the fan

Yeah but nobody takes american express. The tiers are just to make you look more baller as you cut up your coke with it.

[garethom]

I've never done anything but that!

[Mr Hyde]

Taking this thread to new levels of boredom ,what do people reckon to the governemnt's help to buy scheme? https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... raphic.pdf

[magma]

Taking this thread to new levels of boredom ,what do people reckon to the governemnt's help to buy scheme? https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... raphic.pdf

Very interesting, especially with them only requiring 5% deposit (could get a single-bedroom place in vaguely central London with a deposit of around 15-20k), though I have a feeling it's going to be hampered by not enough new builds being available (you can only use the scheme for new builds)... the market is already short on supply and far too geared to buy-to-let making prices unrealistic for normal wannabe-homeowners; it certainly sounds like a step in the right direction, but it still strikes me as staving off the inevitable - house prices HAVE to come down eventually to the point that an average earning family can afford to buy an average family home over a period of around 25 years if the market is going to function properly long-term IMHO.

Everyone I know that's bought recently (last 5 years) has had some sort of equity share deal whether with the government (key workers) or in one relative's case, the Church!

tl;dr Sticking plasters are all well and good, but the system's broken if average people need help to have a home.




Edit: Just read the guidelines properly... looks like if you're going for an existing home rather than new build, they'll step in to "guarantee" your mortgage in order to get more people through credit checks but just not do any of the lending themselves. Meh - again, sticking plaster.

[Mr Hyde]

Taking this thread to new levels of boredom ,what do people reckon to the governemnt's help to buy scheme? https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... raphic.pdf

Very interesting, especially with them only requiring 5% deposit (could get a single-bedroom place in vaguely central London with a deposit of around 15-20k), though I have a feeling it's going to be hampered by not enough new builds being available (you can only use the scheme for new builds)... the market is already short on supply and far too geared to buy-to-let making prices unrealistic for normal wannabe-homeowners; it certainly sounds like a step in the right direction, but it still strikes me as staving off the inevitable - house prices HAVE to come down eventually to the point that an average earning family can afford to buy an average family home over a period of around 25 years if the market is going to function properly long-term IMHO.

Everyone I know that's bought recently (last 5 years) has had some sort of equity share deal whether with the government (key workers) or in one relative's case, the Church!

tl;dr Sticking plasters are all well and good, but the system's broken if average people need help to have a home.




Edit: Just read the guidelines properly... looks like if you're going for an existing home rather than new build, they'll step in to "guarantee" your mortgage in order to get more people through credit checks but just not do any of the lending themselves. Meh - again, sticking plaster.

I'm guessing that they're trying to boost sales/prices before the next election, seems like it might create an artificial bubble of people being able to buy places that are otherwise too expensive for them to afford (basically being able to get the same sort of mortgages as were around before 2008).

Looks like it could be worthwhile for buyers though if there are newbuilds available, government basically loan you up to 20% regardless of your income or the value of the place (as long as it's <£600k) for 5 years interest free- there's no bank that'd ever give that. The catch being that fees kick in after 5 years (although they are very low, basically inflation rates) and government get the same % of the property value back when you sell- still, you wouldn't really be out of pocket.

[magma]

Yeah, definitely - if you can find a new build, it looks properly tempting.

Do we really want to have to tell our Grandkids that it took a Tory government to get us on the property ladder though?

[Mr Hyde]

Yeah, definitely - if you can find a new build, it looks properly tempting.

Do we really want to have to tell our Grandkids that it took a Tory government to get us on the property ladder though?

I'd prefer if the demand for housing was reduced (by spending that governemtn ££ on home building) and the prices became become more afordable. Guess the govenemt doesn't want that though as there is the risk that all existing home owners places might reduce in value, tory voters wouldn't like that at all- so they're just pushing for everyone to be able to get more debt with bigger mortgages than banks would otherwise want to give. Added bonus is it makes for more people working forever and paying their taxes and being docile pay monthly citizens.

[Pedro Sánchez]

Yeah, definitely - if you can find a new build, it looks properly tempting.

Do we really want to have to tell our Grandkids that it took a Tory government to get us on the property ladder though?

Tory's want an end to social housing in reality, as long as there is not enough affordable social housing built, buy-to-let will continue to dictate the market, keeping private rents skyhigh, thus pushing houses prices up beyond first time buyers. Labour have promised to build more social housing, so the more opportunity low paid families get to rent affordable and be able to save, the quicker it will bring them private rents down and remove the demand for buy-to-lets. Just have to keep the net migration at a sensible level in line with new homes built.

[wub]

Anyone got any experience of investing in a foundation fund? Ideally looking for info on average rate of return, is it around the 7% mark in any cases?

[Pedro Sánchez]

Anyone got any experience of investing in a foundation fund? Ideally looking for info on average rate of return, is it around the 7% mark in any cases?

I have never trusted short-term investment schemes.

[wub]

Can I ask why?

Also, how short? I'm looking at figures for 10yrs at present.

[Pedro Sánchez]

Iv'e always been under the impression that short term investment have a higher risk-reward ratio because a lot of the investments associated with them are new either businesses or where loans can't be secured over longer periods, so banks and lenders offer such schemes because they would rather loose lots of small investments rather than a few huge ones. I also suspect that most of these newer investment schemes popping up are being used to solely buy debt.

[wub]

Would 10yrs constitute short term then?

Am looking at a pre-packaged portfolio, so aware it won't be made up of the 'best' funds. Info I've found so far gives returns of 2.8%-7.6% vs 6.5%-9.7% if I knew what was doing and could put together my own.

[Pedro Sánchez]

The only real investment I've ever made was giving a mate a few hundred quid to start a grow and had a 10% share in a club that went bust after 11 months so probably not the best person to give investment advice if I'm being honest. My ISA is earning me fuckall at the mo' though.

[wub]

My ISA is earning me fuckall at the mo' though.

Same, plus I'm not sure whether the one I have is illegal anyway seeing as I don't live in the UK anymore

[Pedro Sánchez]

My ISA is earning me fuckall at the mo' though.

Same, plus I'm not sure whether the one I have is illegal anyway seeing as I don't live in the UK anymore

Global Markets, so it's all bullshit anyway, they are never paying their share of inland taxes. Your ISA account with a US bank on UK soil is being used to invest in an arms firm, that is arming 14 year old militia in North Africa, that want to ethnically cleanse a village, so they can lay pipes for a Saudi oil firm, who has Russian and Chinese investment.

[kay]

Everyone I know that's bought recently (last 5 years) has had some sort of equity share deal whether with the government (key workers) or in one relative's case, the Church!

*ahem* I beg to differ.

[test_recordings]

Help to buy got analysed for how effective it would be for people in each local council and something like 85% said it would be useless. I'll try find it later but I think it was on opendemocracy

[Johnlenham]

Anyone fucked about switching bank accounts?

HSBC are a shower of stnuc, were totally useless when I went travelling and yeah just dont offer anything.
Keeps seeing stuff about £100 if you switch etc etc and it seems if you pay in £750, Halifax give you £100 and then £5 a month.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/bankin ... k-accounts
Never used my overdraft so that helps.

If its easy and painless, Free £160 is not bad for doing nothing.
I do have like 5 accounts with HSBC though as I divide my pay into Spending> Creditcard> Rent account> ISA> General savings because Im strange..