New Homes Going Up

[jetson]

Johnny Watterson's Lane and a few others.

 

So, this recently publicised trenche will be the end to all our housing problems? The panacea?

 

Well no, of course not. This is just the start of it all. The thin end of the wedge.

 

For whatever reasons we need more housing and people want to relocate to here (and that is a whole new topic) a few hundred houses ain't going to stem the demand.

 

Who is gaining, benefitting, by the influx of people to the Island? Again, a whole new topic.

 

But whatever it is we are offering - it's going far too cheap.

 

The law of Supply and Demand is a very simple one to understand.

[FCMR]

Read Dominic Delaneys story in this weeks Indy, the problem starts in about ten years when all the low paid workers that have been shiped in will be wanting public houses and the will be entitled to them and in some cases ahead of local families.

[Dontlookbehindyou]

There gonna have to be really cheap for me to afford one.

[Celt]

This seems to prove what I've said in many posts is that they won't start building "Affordable Housing" untill they can't sell the expensive and over priced one's.

 

If you look in the local rags and estate agents, you'll see that loads of the expensive houces and apartments remain unsold.

[Gladys]

And why? Because estate agents seemed to overvalue houses by a huge amount. When I was looking to buy a couple of years' ago, every house seemed to have a large margin of negotiability which will inflate the market; you could negotiate hard if you are brave enough and get a "bargain", or you could get a pup. Having inflated the market the people that are now selling houses have a higher expectation (or mortgage) and are locked into selling at an unrealistic price.

 

This is exactly what happened during the housing boom in the mid to late 80's in England. After that estate agents would only give a negotiation leeway of a couple of thousand. I know, I bought during the boom, sold (at less than the original purchase price, ow!) and bought again during the slump. The only way we could buy what we needed was something pretty well dilapidated and bring it up to scratch.

 

Not nice when you feel the pinch of negative equity, believe me!

[FCMR]

I was talking to two of Dandaras Polish workers on a job today and they are on £6.75ph and work excesive hours, they are only here for about a year so they can save £15000, That will allow them to have a new house built back home for £10000 and live of the other £5000 for about 2 years.

[TheTool]

FCMR i know there is a few polish guys over here at the moment cheap labour they are just intrested in sending it back home and like you say making a nice nest egg.

 

Its a shame over here the prices are so high if the government made schemes like in jersey where there is two property markets one for locals and one for the rich we might have a chance of living in your own little nest.

 

but i feel like its too little too late for most of us

[glug]

There was some competition or other (Scotland?) where an authority put up a budget for first time buyers homes and all building companies were invited to create designs within that budget for the public to vote on.

 

It sounded interesting but I can't remember where I saw the details.

[FCMR]

FCMR i know there is a few polish guys over here at the moment cheap labour they are just intrested in sending it back home and like you say making a nice nest egg.

 

Its a shame over here the prices are so high if the government made schemes like in jersey where there is two property markets one for locals and one for the rich we might have a chance of living in your own little nest.

 

but i feel like its too little too late for most of us

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

The construction trade here is xxxxed, and those employed (local lads) at the lower end ie labourers will soon find it hard to find a job. The new prison has now started and a Manx firm thats on site has brought in cheap labour from an Irish agency ( Polish<Ugrains ect). They are not the only firm to do this all or most of the big boys are employing labour from the eastern block countries. I to could go through the same agency and cut my labour costs by half, but I wont Id rather pack it in first.

Downie and his mob are doing xxxx all to protect Manx jobs why, even IOM Breweries are employing a firm from overseas, whos men are reported to be earning £5.80ph and not even tradesmen. Take a look at the Rosemount pub, finished 10 weeks ago and the paint is falling off the outside the same can be said of the Whitestone pub. If Manx workers have to compete with these Polish workers to get jobs at £6.75ph what chance have they got in buying a house and at the same time when the overseas workers can get on the lists for Corpy houses they will get them ahead of the Manx because they are working

[Gladys]

Sorry to be controversial, but have you ever tried to get a tradesman to do any work? Some are absolute gems, but some are a nightmare - get them to turn up to give you a price, then return to do the work and then come back to put it right! There are some, I have to say, who are great, but to do any building/maintenance work it is a bit of a gamble.

 

No! I've thought about this one and I think, actually, of all the tradesmen I have had to do bit and pieces here, the Manx guys have been fine and helpful, but the others are probably higher percentage cowboys.

[Mission]

I don't think the trade is that bad at present, I'm waiting for work to be done and I personally know all the guys that are going to do the work and all are busy for the next 2-3 months.

[ButterflyMaiden]

Sorry to be controversial, but have you ever tried to get a tradesman to do any work?  Some are absolute gems, but some are a nightmare - get them to turn up to give you a price, then return to do the work and then come back to put it right!  There are some, I have to say, who are great, but to do any building/maintenance work it is a bit of a gamble.

 

No! I've thought about this one and I think, actually, of all the tradesmen I have had to do bit and pieces here,  the Manx guys have been fine and helpful, but the others are probably higher percentage cowboys.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

We had some work recently done to make a granny flat and it all went very smoothly and very quickly .... it would have been a nightmare in London just finding someone.

[Lonan3]

"A vastly reduced government capital spending programme will have a negative effect on some sectors of the economy such as construction according to the latest quarterly economic report.

 

Government capital spending between April and June this year was just over £7.3m against a quarterly estimate of £20.1m. This represents 36.5 per cent of the year to date spending estimate and only 6 per cent of the full year revised estimate of £114.8m....."

 

http://www.iomonline.co.im/ViewArticle2.as...ticleID=1138257

 

The immediate future, at least, doesn't look so great for builders.