Totally lighting the touch paper here, flame-proof suit zipped up! Its a long and specific one about people saying they are priced out of housing market ...

[Mintyy]

Aibu to think that if you are 35, have been in full time employment since the age of 22ish, have always earned above the national average wage (so, at the moment, you are on about £28 - £30,000 pa) and for the past 7 or 8 years have lived rent free with no other housing costs such as bills and council tax to pay, then you actually could have got yourself on the property ladder before now? Even if you want to live in the South East (not London).

?

sorry I might have missed that it's not you.

It's not you, is it?

They could quite comfortably have saved £75000-150000 in the 8 years.

Perhaps they have a Rolex habit...

people hve options. if you want to live the party life and spend ll you have got fine, but do not complain that you can not afford to get on the housing ladder.

What's the profession? I could really, really do with a profession that provides accommodation.

Poor old Mintyy. What's the relative been saying to you that's wound you up so much that you have to come and vent/risk getting battered in AIBU?

I am guessing that s/he has been staying with you and you arrived home to find they had eaten and drunk everything in the fridge and you have discovered that s/he used the hand towel in the bathroom to mop up "misses" when aiming at the toilet.

And now they are sitting, drinking your wine and explaining about how you owe them because you have a house - you evil, capitalist piglet, you.

Is that what's going on, my dear?

I know a vicar who gets his accommodation (vicarage) provided and so has very sensibly bought something, anything to get on the property ladder. And that's on a salary of approximately fuck all.

I also know boarding school staff who get accommodation provided. They pretty much all without fail own something, anything to get on the property ladder.

Some of them have what are essentially holiday homes; others have buy-to-lets. But they pretty much all have something, anything.

But surely the truth lies in the words 'rent free' - they are obviously far removed from the reality of any property market.

There is also the issue of getting a reasonable mortgage ... Even though we can afford it we can't secure it

if that particular person complained about not being able to afford a house if that is what they wanted then I would have no sympathy nor patience for such moans.

do they live a particularly lavish lifestyle?

Have lived rent free? Who has by the age of 35? No student loans, either?

is the £20-30k inclusive of the accommodation and board? As isn't that quantified for tax reasons - so the gross inc in £30k but £10k of that is accommodation and board and £10k ni and tax?

If it's you, why would we care? (as in why would you post this, specifically?)

If it's NOT you, why would YOU care?

I bet a billion squid that the poor dears won't contemplate anything less than a four bed detached with drive and garage in a pawsh area. How mean of the world not to make that available in the price bracket.

I know a couple like this.

Fuck only knows what they spend their money on. I don't think they're coke-heads.

They do have v nice cars, regularly changed, frequent very expensive holidays and lovely clothes though. So maybe that explains it.

To answer expat, yes, I think there was a student loan, although the person was a student at a cheap place in the 90s, with parental support.

To answer whoever asked why I care, I care because it has direct repercussions on me and my family.

Sorry to be brief. Shouldn't have posted just before bed time! Will be back.

I still think houses are overpriced in a lot of areas compared to wages. If people think there will be a house price crash eventually then they are wise not to over commit themselves to a huge mortgage and sink in their life savings. Still I don't think people can expect to borrow or be given a deposit by another member of their family as a kind of God given right.

I think we need the full picture before we can bang our gavels.

In theory they should be easily able to save and afford a house. It depends on their lifestyle though. Presumably between them they bring home over £4k a month but if they both drive fancy cars that could wipe out £1k in repayments and insurance, fancy holidays, full sky package, top of the range mobile phones, clothes, nights out, shopping at waitrose, takeaways. It all adds up quite easily if you aren't watching every penny. Perhaps they have debts from before they lived rent free?

Why do you think you are going to be flamed?

Still not getting the flame proof suit though?

There we have it. Prepare to be flamed for wrongly assuming you were going to be flamed