Any1 in the UK feeling the credit crunch?

Oh man! Ad-blocking software has been detected! :'(

This website is run by the community, for the community... and it needs advertisements in order to keep running. Blocking our ads means your killing our stats!
Please disable your ad-block, or become a premium member to hide all advertisements and this notice.

Estate (car) = Station Wagon

Slang for 'very small'.

Harry.

 

Oh man! Ad-blocking software has been detected! :'(

This website is run by the community, for the community... and it needs advertisements in order to keep running. Blocking our ads means your killing our stats!
Please disable your ad-block, or become a premium member to hide all advertisements and this notice.

Credit crunch has naff all to do with fuel prices, the problem with fuel is to do with supply and demand, speculation and excise on top.

As for the Credit Crunch all it means is that there is no-more easy money. The so called boom that we have witnessed over the past 10 years was built on easy credit. We have now reached the stage that there is no-more easy money. IMHO interest rates have been far to low for too long and this has encouraged a debt ridden non-saving generation, now that the bad times are here people do not have the liquidity to ride the storm.

Mortgage applications are now back to how they should be i.e. 3.5 x your salary and 15-20% deposit - that is what it should be. Not 100% mortgages for all - including those who couldn't pay it back. The banks etc have been caught out and are now paying the price by passing it on to us. All those comments such as "it's different this time" and "house prices will never fall" have now been proven wrong. The tories used to preside over short boom-bust cycles but these goons in power have encouraged a huge boom that is gonna take a long time to fully bust! Things can only get better eh?

Did people really think this was sustainable? And the winners of this will be those that refused to be pressured by the "I must get on the housing ladder at any cost" myth. Time to start saving your deposits guys; you'll get a better return as interest rates go up - with inflation in real terms at 9% the only way is up for the Bank of England Muppet commitee!

Hopefully we'll soon see the end of:

Gordon Brown
NuLabour
the Estate Agent and their chuffing Minis
Crap new builds on former petrol station sites - half of which are "Social" housing.
Shared Ownership from the John Prescott Association
Buy to Let
Location, Location, Location
Krusty Allsop, Beany and the other property price rampers

“I will not allow house prices to get out of control and put at risk the sustainability of the future.” Gordon Brown 1997

"No more boom and bust" Gordon Brown 1997

C'mon guys, who fell for it?

 

No, i did this out of interest i searched based on salary rage 50K-100K in IT and looked at the descriptions.

I was surprised how many there were in my area

Andi

 

The Credit Crunch is actually inflation, e.g. the cost of borrowing or saving either short term or long term. Let me explain, from a family/individual point of view.

Average Joe has a mortgage which has come to the end of a Fixed Term and was paying 4.5% for his mortgage of £100K and is now paying 6.5% for the same meaning that Average Joe needs to find an extra £120ish per month to pay for mortgage.

Average Joe buys his shopping on a weekly basis from Supermarket B, that shopping was £60 per week, now is £75 per week for the same goods. Average Joe needs to find an extra £65 per month for this.

Average Joe used to send £100 per month on all of his Utility Bills (Gas, Water & Electricity), now they are over £150 per month. Average Joe needs to find an extra £50.00 per month.

Average Joe used to spend £100 per month on his Petrol, now it costs him £170 per month. Again Average Joe needs to find £70.00 per month.

So Average Joe needs to find an extra £305 per month.

Therefore Average Joe has less money to spend on luxury items for himself and his family. Which inturn effects Retailers who have less money to spend on Staff and on there Suppliers, which in turn effects there Staff and Supplier and it goes on and on.

Link this to the fact that consumers often have Loans for items such as cars, it just all adds together.

From a company prospective, the Credit Crunch effects us just as equally if not more. Take a minute to think, Banks, Building Socities, Financial Institutions are reluctant to lend to each other and the LIBOR rate (London Inter Bank Offer Rate) has been way off line for a long time.

Banks, Building Socities & Financial Institutions are desperate to keep hold onto and actract new monie. They see this as a way to reassure investors they have the financial stability to ride the wave of the Sub Prime market. Hence we see crazy rates of 10% for regualr savings (someones in trouble and needs over 16 Billion in total for there balance sheet!)

This means that Companies who used to raise captial/funds cheaply to expand/purchase equipment now have higher costs which are passed on to other businesses and eventually the consumer.

The Companies could raise funds by Share Offers, but with the UK market in a state of 'flux' and with two major banks issuing rights issues which have virtually ended up being the same price as the standard shares, this is not currently an avenue.

So the Credit Crunch is inflation and the costs are being passed down in everything that we purhcase as either a service or goods including petrol/gas.

 

interesting post craigie!

 

Good post. Completely agree.
The banks are being punished for their stupid lending. The only problem is, the taxpayer is footing the bill.

 

Cheers mate.

My worry is that the taxpayer is not quite footing the bill. I suspect that the govt is borrowing from other sources in order to cover this sham. This govt has increased the national debt massivly and it is now higher then it ever was under the tories. I'm certain the national debt stands at over £400 billion. Now if the international money situation is as bad as people say then where is our govt going to borrow more money from? Our gold reserves have been sold - cheers Gordon - and some of our taxes are used to pay interest on the debt. Another problem with increased govt borrowing is that they crowd out the private sector - the effects being low economic growth and unemployment. The situation is not good.

Also I'd like to point out the Gordon Brown was - in reality - a crap chancellor. He inherited a good economy from the tories and that is fact! He stuck to Ken Clarke's spending plans for 2 years! He then pissed the remaining 7 years up the wall with reckless spending and half-arsed initiatives! He allowed the market a free hand in something we ALL hold dear: a roof over our heads! And now that the "fund managers" have quietly moved from mortgages to oil HE is left to pick the pieces - trouble is that his hands are tied and he cannot stop the market from turning on the vulnerable who really believed that "things are different this time", "house prices can only go up" and "the govt won't let it happen". Interest Rate cuts will do diddly squat as building societies and banks will continue raising their rates!

People say that house prices went up because of supply and demand - well if you offer 100% mortgages and easy credit to every tom, dick and harry then of course demand will outstrip supply! No amount of house building will cover the shortfall! The natural mechanism to keep prices in check - 3.5 x your salary plus a large deposit that DEMONSTRATES your commitment and financial stability - was replaced with "if you can afford the payments then what the heck; prices will never fall eh?" or "fake a payslip and self-cert; you'll be fine". Thus was born the amateur "investor" aka the Buy To Let or the Lie to Buy brigade! A minority that crowded out the most important foundation of any Housing Market: the First Time Buyer. Well now the tables have turned on the BTL and the BTL sheeple are in mass exodus to get rid of their "portfolios".

A house is a home - not an investment!

 

Well... doom and gloom sells. It makes people watch/listen. People won't listen if there's no doom. Thus, they tend to say the sky is falling when it really isn't.

When the price of fuel goes up, EVERYTHING goes up due to the cost of getting the products to the consumers. And, to be honest, the farmers aren't getting any richer - they're paying for fuel for normal stuff just like you are... and that cost gets passed on to you.

In the US, there's a big push for the mandatory additon of Ethanol to gasoline. Ethanol is made from corn, which drives up the price of corn... which causes wheat and rice farmers to switch crops to corn (to take advantage of the high corn prices), which causes less wheat and rice to be produced, which drives up the price of wheat and rice! So, all of a sudden, food costs more... and add that to the increased costs due to the higher price of fuel to get the goods to market (previous paragraph)... and food prices rise even higher.

Thank God I just refinanced at 5.5%.

One of the benefits of being a veteran of the US armed forces is that we can get a house with little-to-no money down. I can imagine that it would be difficult to save up 10% of the cost of a home.

 

Which means the taxpayer IS footing the bill... they just haven't paid it yet. And they'll pay it... with interest. The shell game of borrowing from Peter to pay Paul can only go on so long.

Same thing here in the States. Government can't seem to stop spending on things that the public believes they're entitled to.

 

The credit crunch is a credit crunch... inflation is inflation. People shouldn't be buying a buncha crap on credit. If they do, they get the results of their poor planning.

An increase in fuel prices makes everything ELSE go up... not the other way around. If gas was a luxury commodity, I'd say you're right... but it's not... it's a necessity.

 

I agree if fuel goes up then prices of everything else goes up but some people will have to barrow money to get by at this time but if you have to then you can get by by cutting your cloth to fit your quota.

I myself wont borrow again and have just bought myself a car that does 31mpg unless I am in town where it gets low 20s.

People who live in towns can use public transport but I live in an area where there isn't any so I need fuel as I need to be able to work.

The prices are going up because how the economy has been managed over the last few years it wasn't going to last forever and imo its all a load of crap like the whole climate change thing.

 

GBL, I know that feeling too well! My company car does about 65mpg whereas my personal car does 30mpg at 70mph but about 19mpg round the town - oh and about 15mpg when my foot is a bit too heavy! As you can imagine I don't drive it too often these days!

You're probably wondering why I'm keeping it? Well one of these days I'm going to need my own motor as I don't want to stay where I am just for the sake of a company car! My dad has a 5 series Beemer 6 cylinder job and he's kept that going for over 10 years now - and it only does about 25mpg! But as he says, he hasn't got any monthly payments to worry about - just tax, insurance and MOT...oh and fuel!

 

mines a beemer 323, with the 19" badboy wheels if I get heavy on the peddal mine will get f**** all, but you only live once I say

 

Just watched a segment on top gear were they had a new BMW M3 and a toyota prius being driven at the same speed for 10 laps around the track.

The toyota prius is a 1.3litre engine with about 65PHP

The M3 is a 4litre V8 418BHP

The M3 did more miles to the gallon the the prius 19mpg and 17.1mpg respectivly.

So they have just proved that is how you drive and not what you drive in being economical.

 

Well mine has a 3.0 Litre V6 Engine so is a bit of guzzler - mind you I do have the pleasure of bashing BMW cars up to that 335 thingy...nothing like viewing the face of 330Ci owner when he sees the words Ford and Mondeo...the fact that it's an estate adds further insult to injury. Of course this only happens on the Track Days that I used to visit - not public roads. I value my license you see.

I'd love to get shot of the mundano to trade up to BMW to be honest - an M5 is my dream, but a 335 would be nice...but not in this lifetime. So I have to stick with the Ford...for the moment of course!

Do you visit the track days? I've stopped now as my tyres get eaten - but there is nothing like having a blast iwithout fear of the law and/or risking others.

 

I have only done one track day before where I hired an M3 which was cool. I have never done it in my own car before.

My mate has a VX220 he does track days all the time.

I'd love an M3 but as you say not in this life time.

 

Your kinda on the right track, but remember that the Credit Crunch effects businesses and goverments more than individuals and hence it causes inflation! More expensive money, means higher costs for businesses and governments which is passed down the line. Also, alot of businesses borrow than use capital as it can often be more tax effective!

Your kinda on the right track, but remember that the Credit Crunch effects businesses and goverments more than individuals and hence it causes inflation! More expensive money, means higher costs for businesses and governments which is passed down the line. Also, alot of businesses borrow than use capital as it can often be more tax effective!

Again your on the right track but you have to remember that just as fuel prices increases the cost of manufacturing and shipping. The Credit Crunch again increases the price of everything as Banking and Financial Instiutions are just as heavily relied upon.

Ultimatley, all major commodities are increasingly interlinked as they are used for derivatives to stable the financial markets.

 

He couldn't find one

Its probably cheaper to get the VX220 serviced than a real Lotus

 

That's what I said, mate. ;)