Is There A Reverse Tendency Developing Wherein People Are Selling Up In The Country To Retire To A Smaller Place In The City? September 7, 2010
Posted by janey in : general finance , comments closed“Escape to the country” is one of the best known TV programs about selling up in the city or large town and moving to, well , “The Country” , whatever that actually turns out to be. And it’s not hard to see why. Given the opportunity who wouldn’t want to swap busy , overcrowded city life for a chance for a healthier , closer to nature lifestyle in the British countryside?
Well that could have been been the case about fifteen years ago but there is something a bit unusual happening these days. There is a small but developing trend for a few people who have established themselves in the countryside to give it all up and move from the rural environment back into an urban setting. “Utter Madness!”, I hear you shout . “I would never Sell My House in the country and relocate back to the city”. Well let’s have a look at some of the reasons for this role reversal and investigate why We Buy Homes in the country only to give it all up and move back to the city.
When We Buy Houses it’s usually with a viewpoint that our situations will continue to be financially sound well into the future. And most likely this can be a reasonable assumption as if the sale of an expensive house in the city has filled the coffers and the employment or business situation looks rosy then there’s no reason to assume things will not continue. But the ongoing and continuing recession has disproportionately affected rural setting and with finances tightening in the countryside then if someone moves to the countryside to build a rural business to maintain their lifestyle then things were a lot more promising three to four years ago than they do now. A relocation to the countryside based on starting up a local business may have seemed like a good idea at the time but could well end up as a broken dream meaning a move back to the urban conurbation a financial necessity.
In some cases We Buy Houses with a view to a gradual or stepped move to a permanent residence in the countryside. Thus a “weekend commuter” way of lifestyle could be somebody’s idea of having the benefits of moving to the country whilst maintaining the financial benefits of working in a larger town or city. But after a few years of traffic jams, worrying about an unoccupied house in the week or forced absence from the family , and the rushed weekend break only for the whole cycle to start again next week can take it’s toll and start the process of thinking of whether to relocate back to the city and enjoy a bit of stability without the country views! (By the way I fell into exactly this situation and was coerced to Sell My House in the country and move to the metropolis of London so I know all about this reason).
Another reason is the tightening of the gap between property prices between rural and urban properties . Often We Buy Homes based on perceived value , or even actual value. By this I mean that a five bed detached cottage in The Gower with breathtaking countryside views obviously means better value than an apartment in the city. But with property prices inactive or even falling in urban areas and reasonable quality properties in rural areas commanding a premium these days , then it is fair enough for certain rural property owners to consider a move back to the city if they have issues with the countryside , and take a step up the property ladder with regards to the new city property purchase.
The Government Is Looking Into Forcing The Financial Institutions To Meet Lending Targets, But Will This Help A Small Organisation That Needs Financial Support Now? September 6, 2010
Posted by janey in : general finance , comments closedApparently minsters are looking into a scheme to force banks to meet lending targets as a way of tackling the lending drought. Alternatively, the state may underwrite some loans. This should be welcome by firms large and small that have tried and been rejected when requesting their banks for financial support. This was announced by the Prime Minister in Manchester this week and appears to be a positive move to encourage the banks to support firms to get the economy on the road to recovery. Where a small firm has submitted their account for jobs completed or merchandise supplied to a large firm and have not been paid after the agreed final completion date, they may well be concerned, especially if they have laid out a fair amount of expenditure to the work and have bills of their own to pay. If the small firm asks their bank, would this current move by the government have made the banks more amenable to lending, and allowed the small firm to have a business loan? perhaps not, since they have not received any official notification as yet and so cannot change their methods. This can leave the small firm with a problem and make them assess their directions to encourage the large firm to pay the late account, which may boil down to Debt Collection proceedings.
They may well make up their minds that the typical Debt Collection services such as solicitors and Debt Collection Agencies can give may put them off, since solicitors and Debt Collection Agencies charge from 10% to 20% or more of the account value. This may be acceptable, but if not then perhaps the small firm should expand their search and perhaps look at Debt Collection software. For a spend of some £40 the small firm can buy a decent Debt Collection software suite, and also they can use this Debt Collection software suite for any other Debt Collection work that comes up at little or no extra cost. solicitors and Debt Collection Agencies would certainly charge their fees for every Debt Collection work that they take on.
While existing solicitors and Debt Collection Agencies are likely to abide by Fair Debt Collection Practices as part of their trustworthy approach to Debt Collection, the newer Debt Collection Agencies that have cropped up since the financial downturn started may not. These Fair Debt Collection Practices should ensure that the business relationship that has grown during the Debt Collection operation. This quandary over good and bad Debt Collection Agencies and solicitors may well make the Debt Collection software strategy seem the safest choice, even though they will have to allocate their own resources to errors the Debt Collection software and the Debt Collection operation itself. The personnel that are allocated will need learning in how the Debt Collection operation runs and also how to write good quality Debt Collection letters. For this they will need to have a good grasp of the English language to ensure that there are no errors in the Debt Collection letters that reach the large firm. They will all have to abide by the Fair Debt Collection Practices since they will want to be seen as trustworthy while running the Debt Collection operation. So by working hard on the learning and employing Fair Debt Collection Practices the small firm must have a very good chance of convincing the large firm to pay the late account, and all at a cheaper price than that charged by solicitors and Debt Collection Agencies.
