Ban new home sales to foreign nationals...

[Skillmister]

How about implementing a system whereby certain residential property cannot be owned by a company. Make it so houses and individual flats etc must be owned by an individual or individuals and for each property on top there is extra tax applied. That way, one person cannot own many properties through a set of companies, avoid tax and buy up everything.
That's a fag-paper idea that I'm sure has many flaws and issues, but you get my thinking.

You mean like the extra 3% stamp duty that is applicable to all additional properties for individuals and for all company/trust purchases?

It makes a huge difference to purchase costs even on moderate purchases yet doesn't seem to have put many people off, at least not from my experience.

 

[Yaayuh!]

You mean like the extra 3% stamp duty that is applicable to all additional properties for individuals and for all company/trust purchases?

It makes a huge difference to purchase costs even on moderate purchases yet doesn't seem to have put many people off, at least not from my experience.

No, a higher percentage tax and no ability for companies to purchase in certain cases.

 

[Dis86]

Surely this is only happening in certain areas, I really can't imagine any foreign investor buying up homes in my area for example.

Wouldn't be too sure. A colleague of mine acts as a 'face' for international buyers. Essentially he buys the property to let using their money in his name. They are offered a guaranteed %age in return for x number of years.

If he can't rent it out he still had to pay them which is the risk to him but the returns are unreal. He is basically getting multiple properties paid for that in 20 years are his. So far I think he's up to about 2 dozen. Mostly flats or terraced houses with council tenants and a couple of students.

 

[Scam]

Wouldn't be too sure. A colleague of mine acts as a 'face' for international buyers. Essentially he buys the property to let using their money in his name. They are offered a guaranteed %age in return for x number of years.

If he can't rent it out he still had to pay them which is the risk to him but the returns are unreal. He is basically getting multiple properties paid for that in 20 years are his. So far I think he's up to about 2 dozen. Mostly flats or terraced houses with council tenants and a couple of students.

That sounds so illegal it's not even funny. I bet he deals with some very dodgy individuals, he should be thoroughly ashamed.

Whats going to happen when you stop foreigners buying these developments? Are people in this country suddenly going to have money to buy them seeing as most people can no longer afford a house without government help?
What a ridiculous idea. Most developers would go bust if it wasn't for foreigners and help to buy!

Nonsense. I don't have the time to look up the stats but investors (not just foreign investors) are the ones snapping up all the 1-2 bedroom flats across the country for BTL. They're driving up the prices for FTBs -- essentially taking away the first rung of the property ladder. As soon as that stops the prices will fall. Supply and demand, as people love to say.

I'm not too sure about targetting foreigners as these "mega rich" people spend an absolute fortune when visiting.

Oh great. Let's turn the UK into Dubai

By the way, NZ has just implemented the exact thing. I'd like to have seen the arguments against it over there. You always get the idiots here arguing that the housing crisis is to be expected because "there's nowhere to build" and "there's too many people". I'd like to see those arguments wash in NZ, lol Essentially what I'm saying is, that if NZ with under 5m people in roughly the same size as the UK has a property crisis, that is cut and dry proof that property markets across the world are rigged. Absolute proof.

 

[Vonhelmet]

Wouldn't be too sure. A colleague of mine acts as a 'face' for international buyers. Essentially he buys the property to let using their money in his name. They are offered a guaranteed %age in return for x number of years.

If he can't rent it out he still had to pay them which is the risk to him but the returns are unreal. He is basically getting multiple properties paid for that in 20 years are his. So far I think he's up to about 2 dozen. Mostly flats or terraced houses with council tenants and a couple of students.

That sounds a lot like money laundering.

 

[Vonhelmet]

Whats going to happen when you stop foreigners buying these developments? Are people in this country suddenly going to have money to buy them seeing as most people can no longer afford a house without government help?
What a ridiculous idea. Most developers would go bust if it wasn't for foreigners and help to buy!

The reason people can’t afford property is because foreign investors push prices up... they’re the cause of the problem, not the solution.

 

[Uther]

Yep.



You condone racism then? The Tory MP wrote "'Foreign nationals should be banned from buying more than 50% of homes".
Everything else is an extrapolation of what he means.

Do you consider these countries racist to, or is it just the UK doing it that you have a problem with:

''The Government should follow countries like Australia, Singapore, Switzerland, Denmark and New Zealand, Mr Philp says. Those countries have introduced measures to limit or ban non-resident foreign buyers from purchasing property.''

 

[wesley]

the rich get richer

The poor get poorer

 

[Maccapacca]

Double edge sword this, the Construction industry is a decent proportion of GDP providing many jobs with thousands of UK companies attached. Add in the industries linked such as transport, manufacturing, finance, insurance, IT, professional services, admin, waste management etc etc etc

Be careful what you wish for.

 

[Vonhelmet]

Double edge sword this, the Construction industry is a decent proportion of GDP providing many jobs with thousands of UK companies attached. Add in the industries linked such as transport, manufacturing, finance, insurance, IT, professional services, admin, waste management etc etc etc

Be careful what you wish for.

The problem is they’re engaged in building houses that will never be used. They’re being paid to dig holes and fill them in again. Maybe it would be better if they could be engaged to build houses for the actual population of this country.

 

[dowie]

Well, 'foreign nationals' doesn't mean foreign investors. It means UK residents couldn't buy home without naturalisation. Madness. Pure madness.

AFAIK this is foreign nationals who aren't resident in the UK - I don't believe that it is being proposed to limit the ability of residents to buy property.

 

[Eurofighter]

I think obviously something needs to be done and this is possibly it.

 

[413x]

Needs to be a gradual implementation of this.
If it' n addresses correctly it could be disastrous. If it isn' aaddressed its an ever increasing divide between rich and poor.

 

[Dis86]

That sounds a lot like money laundering.

How? What's the difference between this or any other investment portfolio?

 

[Maccapacca]

The problem is they’re engaged in building houses that will never be used. They’re being paid to dig holes and fill them in again. Maybe it would be better if they could be engaged to build houses for the actual population of this country.

Massive exaggeration there really, 30% of most large developments will be social housing so I can't see them being empty

 

[413x]

People are so inherently selfish. It's just way things are. No one needs such wealth.
But fixing it in wrong way has so many consequences. Wonder how this will pan out and if anything will be done

 

[dowie]

By the way, NZ has just implemented the exact thing. I'd like to have seen the arguments against it over there. You always get the idiots here arguing that the housing crisis is to be expected because "there's nowhere to build" and "there's too many people". I'd like to see those arguments wash in NZ, lol Essentially what I'm saying is, that if NZ with under 5m people in roughly the same size as the UK has a property crisis, that is cut and dry proof that property markets across the world are rigged. Absolute proof.

NZ is a funny one, their Tories got the most seats (but not enough for a govt) but their Labour Party (which is anti immigration) formed a coalition and is cracking down on basically Chinese immigrants, Chinese property buyers etc... It is a bit funny to see the left wing party being anti-immigrant and the immigrants in this case predominantly voting for the right wing party.

 

[dl8860]

Now I've just bought a place myself, I want as many foreign buyers as possible so the price keeps going up.

Obviously I don't, but it does feel inevitable that house price issues are just now starting to be tackled, and anyone who has bought recently won't be seeing any gains anytime soon.

 

[Scam]

Obviously I don't, but it does feel inevitable that house price issues are just now starting to be tackled, and anyone who has bought recently won't be seeing any gains anytime soon.

Not attacking you personally, but that is a typical UK attitude to housing. Did you buy a home to live in, or did you buy it to make money? Too many people think about the latter first, that's part of the problem. House prices have been increasing since the 80s, so pretty much everyone buying expects to make a fortune out of their home. In reality, only the baby boomers (bought cheap, massive rises since) will get to make life changing amounts of money.

 

[Vonhelmet]

How? What's the difference between this or any other investment portfolio?

Buying property on behalf of someone else and then reimbursing them over the course of 20 years whereupon they relinquish their claim over the underlying asset? How is that like any other investment portfolio?