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You're right about that. Living in Europe it WAS easier to find goods made in EU nations than it is to find goods made in the USA here; I think British manufacturing isn't quite as dead as American manufacturing but it is well on its way. In the time I lived in the UK there was a news story about a major factory shutting down pretty regularly. In the time I lived in York, several factories were shut down and the work farmed out to China or to cheaper nations in eastern Europe. In the last year alone there were two factory shutdowns (British Sugar and Terry's) and hundreds of redundancies at the Rowntrees/Nestle factory. Then there was the catastrophic Rover collapse...!
At the last count only 112 thousand were still employed in manufacturing here in the UK, the rest is service and selling imports and houses. We are really in trouble with the Northern Rock bank fiasco theres talk of nationalising that if private money from daft investors can't be found.
We import everything, food being a real problem our farming industry has never during the last 100 years been able to support our recently rising population.
Yet only recently our government was saying we were the fourth richest economy in the world, of course at that time they wanted to blow some money and it was thought we needed the feel good factor.
When we employ leaders with little in the grey matter department we get what we deserve.
Early next year our own sub prime borrowers start to feel the pinch, ok for the lenders when they thought they could repossess and sell on making a profit out of a loss, but the equity has evaporated, ouch.
Food supply. Now there's an issue that doesn't get much attention lately. Here in the Northeast we have continued to sell-off farms for new housing developments to construct some McMansions for a family of 2 or 3. By the way, here in Connecticut we have lagged the nation in population growth so there really is no true need for building large numbers of new homes.
I know, highest and best use of land, arguments would probably say that using the farm land is in order if profit to the landowner at the time is the measurement of the highest and best use. Housing is one of our basic needs but even before that is food.
As painful as it is the market needs to readjust and intervention by the government on ARM readjustments interfere with the efficiency of the market. There are plenty of lower-priced housing alternatives for the people who purchased homes beyond their means. There is also, at least in Connecticut, excess rentals available at attractive rates.
At the last count only 112 thousand were still employed in manufacturing here in the UK, the rest is service and selling imports and houses. We are really in trouble with the Northern Rock bank fiasco theres talk of nationalising that if private money from daft investors can't be found.
We import everything, food being a real problem our farming industry has never during the last 100 years been able to support our recently rising population.
I noticed this; it's partially due to the UK's brief growing season but also due to the fact that the land can't feed the population. Most of what I bought there was imported.
Quote:
Yet only recently our government was saying we were the fourth richest economy in the world, of course at that time they wanted to blow some money and it was thought we needed the feel good factor.
When we employ leaders with little in the grey matter department we get what we deserve.
Early next year our own sub prime borrowers start to feel the pinch, ok for the lenders when they thought they could repossess and sell on making a profit out of a loss, but the equity has evaporated, ouch.
I noticed this, but unlike the USA the ARM is a standard mortgage in the UK; it's not an exotic product like it is here. Maybe that will make a difference when a lot of mortgages adjust. My mortgage in the UK was a 25 year mortgage with an ARM with a 2-year fixed rate. My mortgage payment increased by about 200 pounds per month between 2001 and 2007. Luckily I was able to sell and get out of the UK property market earlier this year. Whew!
Luckily I was able to sell and get out of the UK property market earlier this year. Whew!
Fancy footwork at the crossroads nativeDallasite, well done. Lets hope you are right about our sub-prime borrowers, I remember how tough it was here during the last property downturn.
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food
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lincolnian
Food supply. Now there's an issue that doesn't get much attention lately. Here in the Northeast we have continued to sell-off farms for new housing developments to construct some McMansions for a family of 2 or 3. By the way, here in Connecticut we have lagged the nation in population growth so there really is no true need for building large numbers of new homes.
I know, highest and best use of land, arguments would probably say that using the farm land is in order if profit to the landowner at the time is the measurement of the highest and best use. Housing is one of our basic needs but even before that is food.
As painful as it is the market needs to readjust and intervention by the government on ARM readjustments interfere with the efficiency of the market. There are plenty of lower-priced housing alternatives for the people who purchased homes beyond their means. There is also, at least in Connecticut, excess rentals available at attractive rates.
I wouldn't sweat the food. If you look at North and South Dakota there is still plenty of land that can be farmed. If there is one thing America can still do and so well is grow food. Btw. I don't believe the North east as ever really been a farm mecca (Of course certain areas are) be cause of our rocky soil.
Fancy footwork at the crossroads nativeDallasite, well done. Lets hope you are right about our sub-prime borrowers, I remember how tough it was here during the last property downturn.
Really; I was very lucky. Some of the houses that were on the market at the beginning of 2007 on my old estate are still on the market...and the prices have gone UP, not down!
Really; I was very lucky. Some of the houses that were on the market at the beginning of 2007 on my old estate are still on the market...and the prices have gone UP, not down!
Reports the last few days are pointing to falls on average in the Uk and have been doing so for the past three months, so concerned is the bank of England they have lowered the rate by 1/4% today. Thats a quarter%
The bailout has ONE primary motive: To keep the economic wheels of this country turning. That's because we not only have a RE bubble, our whole economy is one huge, gigantic bubble in and of itself. There's no turning back at this point. The government is FORCED to make concessions to the irresponsible and stupid people who thought they could buy 700K homes on an annual salary of 35K or risk our whole economy going to hell in a handbasket.
Clearly, our country no longervalues responsibility, honesty and foresight. In fact it punishes it. Those of us who saw home prices escalate obscenely and withheld from buying will now have to foot the bill for speculators and the irresponsible who jumped right in and did buy.
Meanwhile, overseas investors are quietly witnessing all this and slowly withdrawing their US investments. Smart people worldwide are dumping their dollar assets like the plague. I have one european business partner who asked me, "Is your government crazy?", "Don't they see how they're driving their own economy into the ground?".
I had to answer 'Yes' and then 'No!' respectively.
Meanwhile, I've decided to put all my savings into euro accounts, before Uncle Sam devaluates it into toilet paper.
It is not a bailout SeanMc - there is no government money involved.
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food
