Braco

Any speed limit is a maximum – there is nothing stopping you travelling at less. Having attended over fifty crash site fatalities in a previous career I have no sympathy for speeders at all.

We have just completed our purchase in France, and apart from a few small technical details it is exactly the same as purchasing any where else. The buyer provides money and the seller hands over the house. As death and taxes are the only certainty in this life now is also the perfect time to consider future transfer implications. My advice unless you are very skilled in French law or can afford to treat the purchase as petty cash is to employ a competent lawyer who will for the sake of about £1200/£1500 protect your interests.

I can vote but will not vote for any of the cretins. I prefer to wait for the UK to catch up with France - 220 years and counting.

Ebaynut Sorry I for one do not agree. People should buy as many houses as they want and can afford. Most people work and save by doing without other luxuries to purchase. It’s a choice and provides useful employment opportunities for others. Sadly I know a few people who while already struggling with credit card debts that were seduced by an illusion of wealth from the value of their UK property and the availability of loans into plunging further into debt buying holiday homes that their earnings could never support.

Unless there are specific US laws that do not allow it I suggest that as a first point of call you try http://www.britline.com/

AnOther Their will always be a few winners and good luck to them. My comment was based on the economy as a whole. For 90%+ of the population high property prices are a curse not a blessing.

Scooby Thanks for the info. It makes perfect sense to manage this down turn. I only hope that the lessons have finely been learnt. When we purchased our first home many years ago 35% deposits were the norm. The housing bubble just created the illusion of wealth. I for one will be more than happy to see house prices fall and stay low for the benefit of the younger generations.

Scooby Just out of interest is the driver to set a floor on prices to stop them falling further or a long term property investment?

Don’t buy the property prices are on the rise in the UK nonsense just yet. The market has changed fundamentally from the previous years. A substantial deposit is now required, stringent earnings requirements are in place, and low valuations by surveyors are now the norm.   The market has shrunk (sales volume and values) and will remain so for the foreseeable future.   The next few interest rate rises will further deflate this bubble.

Jen Four questions: Are you experienced enough to judge a property? Can you afford the extra expense to cover unforeseen defects? Is the property under undervalued? Can you afford a potential loss on market value? If the answer to any two of these questions is no then I would recommend that you (and anyone else) should pay for a survey (structural) and the service of a solicitor to look after you interests.

Perpignan is like all towns - great for some, ok for some others, and terrible for the rest. The real questions you need to ask are why do I want a house, what type of house do I want, how much do I want to afford, and roughly what area am I interested in. I would answer all of these questions in detail before setting off to view a house.

Sorry I did not make myself clear - I meant that the costs of the ground works (footings, drainage, services) per M will be much the same whether you then go on to use breeze blocks or white marble hand carved by a decedent of Michelangelo.

New build every time if you can afford it. You can build exactly what you want or can afford (including character if desired). The only down side is that finance is needed up front whereas renovation costs can be staggered over many years.   You ask about building costs. The only constants in building projects are the ground works/m. After that all costs are down to what you can afford or aspire to.

What part of occupied Cyprus is your house?

If a sea view and sun are top of the list then I would head further south or east. If it is just for holidays with no long term re-settlement plans then I would save myself a whole lot of hassle by renting as required.

Only if the Kimberly diamond field is also found to stretch into Kent.

Exactly the same as the evidence against the Libyan’s - none. I have a great admiration of the skills of Mossad and its supporters. This organisation has reduced a once great country (US) to total subservience. The US and its poodle’s invade on the pretext of WMD months after vetoing a Russian call to declare the whole of the middle east a nuclear free zone. We are now reduced to the point that to be even considered as a candidate you have to bend the knee to AIPAC. How do you like your puppets – last years flavour was black.

An interesting article. What will never ever be discussed is who had the greatest capability to execute this crime and reap the greatest benefits (keeping their dumb puppets in line). Take a bow Mossad.

Don’t you just love the hypocrisy.  US naval war criminals shoot down an Iranian air bus = reasonable mistake.   Libyan patsy release = debate.

Do you still have her or has she gone to car heaven?

I don’t know anything about the ‘Marian cult’ but the Virgin Mary is very important in the Orthodox (true worship in the Greek language) religion. One step behind the holy trinity.   As a male Orthodox Christian I have the choice of joining the priesthood, or attending church once or twice a year to keep the boss happy. As with the vast majority I choose the latter.  

Assumption day is the third most important day of the year in the Christian calendar.   Orthodox = Easter, Christmas, and then Assumption day.   I expect that the UK will have something similar when the blessed Barbara Windsor finally pops her clogs.

Just another step in the process of keeping the populace fearful. But yet again we lag behind the US. They get you to complete their stupid form online, send you clearance to approach their immigration officers, and then get you to complete the same ridiculous form by hand. Watch this space we will be doing the same in a couple of years. All this nonsense has nothing to do with ‘terrorism’. It is simply a method for keeping the gullible and feeble minded in line.

Angelite The answer is very simple - you stop paying benefits of any kind. As I said in my previous post reversing this culture will take at least as long as it took to set up. As Mao said even the longest journey starts with a single step. Creating and supporting an under class helps nobody, especially the people that are sucked into the system.

I think the real question is when are UK residents going to wake up to the fact that their government is in the process of merging sterling with that other great currency that is used to purchase game board houses and hotels.