It’s not looking good is it?

[User15384]

Cost of living crisis
Choice between heating v eating
Pound dramatically falling
Higher interest rates
NHS on brink of collapse

And now the warning of a flu-covid “twindemic” this Winter

It’s all quite overwhelming and sad and seems to be never ending 😞

Hardship is living in a tent with no money, one meal a day, no heating and ill children.
What we have happening is uncertain times, but we have a roof over our heads and money.

Avoid the news is what I say.

The last time I remember the IMF being publicly critical of government economic policies was with Greece which was on the brink of financial collapse as a country.

The IMF criticising UK government policy and urging them to reverse it is a massive deal.

So anything less than absolute subsistence and we should all be grateful?

Life wasn't perfect 'before' was it? Before this cost of living crisis which it's been named oh so dramatically

Things have gone up in price .... that's what it is. Prices have gone up regularly in the past only this time it's been given a dramatic title

A dramatic title?
You think food prices increasing by over 10% so far this year is normal?
Or the dramatic rises in energy?
Or maybe you are so well off that another £100 a week on energy and food is neither here no there?

How would the media stopping mean people who can't currently afford to heat their homes be able to heat their homes?

Give me strength.

I'm not spending £100 a week more on food.

Criticised by who??? Crackpot elements of the Tory party who are in cahoots with the institute of economic affairs. Who while we are on the subject are a good example of an ‘incredibly partisan organisation’ to put it mildly. It will come out of the woodwork who is funding them at some point and I’ll eat my hat if it’s not some very familiar names we’ve already seen cashing in on shorting the pound.

I think there are a lot of very well-off people in the UK who are making money out of this financial crisis. Some of them may be on here telling us all there is no issue at all. Life is normal. The Bank of England and the IMF are just wrong and there is no need to worry our pretty little heads about anything.

Intrest rates have been so low for so long , surely people should have been overpaying on the mortage ? Or investing

Too many people living on the never never , look at inflation around the world its the same

It's almost the squeeze on wages and rising inflation passes certain people by.

Yep how dare people not be rich. Only got themselves to blame.

Ive been to tesco and the prices have raisen again. We are two parent working family we shouldn't be struggling or worrying about money. We shouldn't be working to barely survive. I'm surprised there's not rioting and out rageml.

It's not real for us and loads of other people.
We don't all need or want to join in with
"the sky is falling in" fearfest, over and over.
It's exhausting.

This ^ There is literally no point in worrying about what you can't change. Just prepare as best you can - if you can. Just try to take it as it comes.

Never said that , but far too many people blame others in 2005 my rate was 7% for my first house

How clueless are you?

The pay freezes imposed by the Tory government as part of their Austerity policy meant that as the years went by, people's wages fell in real terms. So they weren't able to pay more on their mortgages.

Gymgo
Tut Tut.... you aren't ever allowed on MN to suggest that people should be responsible for their own finances. When they can blame everyone else - parents, landlords, people who have worked their way up to decent jobs or saved and invested their spare money, rich people and so on.

And what was the house price and the pound worth?

A lot of people don’t seem to be getting how serious this is for the UK economy. This is nothing remotely like the ‘90s house crash even 2008. Everything systemically broken is still there and, on top of it, less buffer to just print more debt to get out of this.

This the credit card company calling time on your out of control spending at the same time that your roof is leaking and your job is being reviewed by HR. It’s about the worst combination of events combined with total lack of leadership or fundamental support.

👋🏼

It was shit. We had no money, no heating, food cupboard nearly always empty, depressed mother, equally depressed father. I went to school in my own clothes as we couldn’t afford the uniform. The shame! Living in the fear of a nuclear attack and then AIDS. It was bleak, but I appreciate that for some this is their reality in 2022 (maybe not AIDS anymore..) BUT we didn’t have a constant source of social media shoving the gloom in our faces 24/7.

I’m thankfully well off now but I remember those days with such feelings of sadness.

And yes to the media hyping up the despair currently. I only pay attention to serious news sources. Even the Telegraph has turned into a red top masquerading as a broadsheet. Sensationalism everywhere. No escape from it.

Absolutely this! 24 hour rolling news doesn't help.

Yes but your house probably cost much less in proportion with your earnings. I paid 7% for my first mortgage in the late 90s but my flat (in London, admittedly a less desirable part) cost £45K!

I think some people have only got themselves to blame for their financial situations buying a house which is too expensive for their means. But the majority just want somewhere to live.

And some people took a chance and it paid off. I know someone who bought a house costing nearly £500K, got an interest-only mortgage as it was the only way they could afford it. Six months ago they sold for £900K and downsized. They had enough to pay off the mortgage and buy a cheaper house outright. And timed it perfectly!

My greatest fear now is hyperinflation. We seem to have some of the key components that lead to it...