On 25 Jul 2008 at 10:43am Elvis the Gunslinger wrote:
This may be controversial but here's what I think, I know it has been an issue raised here before but if you look at the bigger picture it's good that Lewes house prices are increasing or at very least staying stable. Higher prices mean a higher class of resident, higher class normally is associated with wealth and education both of which are factors that reduce crime. Therefore, if Lewes attracts only the wealthy it will be a nicer place to live in. If you look at the reverse you would attract more people of low income and poor education, the town would become a modern day Gotham City over run with crime and people ripping each other and the state off at every opportunity. Now I know a few of you will choke on your Harveys and claim you have a right to live here because your parents did but take a step back and think about it. If you already own your property, seeing the price increase is surely one of the reasons you bought in the first place.
Please feel free to argue.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 10:55am Smiler wrote:
And what about our children?
They will be forced to move out of the town creating an age vacuum for the under 30's which can't be good for the social well being of a thriving town.
Lewes needs the vibrancy ambition and energy that younger people can bring.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 11:08am married with kids wrote:
i am 25 married and have 2 children, i have lived in lewes all my life like my parents before me, and there's before them, same with my wife. i earn around 15k and can't afford to buy a house in the town where i grew up and would like my children to grow up. the council will not house us because we are not homeless, so i have to struggle on trying to find the 770 p/m rent 130 p/m council tax and all the other things you need. so no rising house prices are not a good thing as it is forcing me out of my home town.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 11:44am Resident wrote:
Elvis... you are talking out of your backside...prices are on the slide in Lewes. Can get a house of the Nevill for 240K whearas last year the lowest price was 280K....also prices dropping in Landport, Malling etc
On 25 Jul 2008 at 12:10pm Elvis the Gunslinger wrote:
Smiler - whats to say the people moving to Lewes will not have any children?
Resident - Exactly where are you getting these figures from that state house prices are falling approx 15%. I think you making them up. If you look at Market sale values you might be suprised.
Married With Kids - And what right do you have to live in Lewes? one of my points I think. Don't get me wrong I'm not telling you move becasue you are on a relativley low income but there are cheaper places to live and your choice to live in Lewes is costing you.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 12:25pm Roly Mo wrote:
I can't believe you just said that to Married with Kids, Elvis. How dare you! He has a right to live here, because it is his home town. It is because of all these DFL's etc moving in that people who hail from Lewes, cannot afford to buy here, which is a terrible shame. You can tell the real Lewesians, and they are normally the ones living in Landport, Malling and Nevil, and I expect, for those who weren't able to buy at the time before this huge increase in house prices, they are living in rented accommodation. I would be interested to know where you are from. Bring back the Lewes of the old days, I say. Yes, the shops weren't as "high brow" and it was a lot more scruffy, but people did not walk around with their heads up their backsides.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 12:35pm Elvis the Gunslinger wrote:
Why not? No one has a RIGHT to live anywhere. You live where you can afford surely? You weigh up quality of life over location, you spend what you can afford. What qualifies as a real Lewesian?? someone who lives on an estate? I've spent over two thirds of my life here, more than 20 years, I've been a member of Bonfire and have supported most of the pubs in town at some point,do I qualify? Evolution and Change are your friends and they are not going to be chased out of town by small minded locals. If you want to be stuck in the past please don't insist that everyone else stays there to. This brings me back to my original point, would you rather live in an town on the up or a town on the slide?
On 25 Jul 2008 at 1:05pm Bonfire Barry wrote:
On the up please Mr. The Gunslinger. Otherwise I would move to Newhaven and smell the freshly incinerate sea air.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 1:31pm Resident wrote:
Elvis.....clearly you like stirring things up....are you a sad lonely prat? You need to spend less time at your PC and more time living in the real world...try getting out and meeting a few people.
PS. House near me was originally put on the market for 350K and the price had to be dropped several times over months. It eventually sold for 300K....there are similar ones all over Lewes you complete airhead
On 25 Jul 2008 at 1:58pm Elvis the Gunslinger wrote:
Resident - well done you, your maturity is shining through, insulting people becasue you don't agree with them is the sign of someone that I am loathed to converse further with, if we had this discussion in the pub would you have hit me by now? I will however entertain you.
Ask yourself this, if you lived in a desirable area, and you were selling your house, would you, armed with the knowledge that you could acheive top price increase the price of your property? If people saw through this and didn't pay what you initially wanted is this a falling market? or a stable one?
I also find it quite amusing that someone who has posted twice on this thread already can accuse someone else of being lonely and recommend they "spend less time at your PC and more time living in the real world". Take some of your own advice otherwise i fear you might explode with rage.
You sum up main issues I have with a secular part of Lewes, you are in your own insular world where you are always right, global issues that don't effect you are not important, Lewes is far superior to everywhere based on the fact you live here, and Greene King doesn't exist.
Please only respond if you can do so in an appropriate fashion.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 2:21pm Ben wrote:
Elvis, most of what you say is spot on, and I'm definitely with you on the pointless nostalgia that pervades this forum. However I would take issue with your assertion that "... if Lewes attracts only the wealthy it will be a nicer place to live in." Social diversity is healthy for any town or city; social exclusivity creates ghettos, whether top-end or low-end.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 2:23pm Resident wrote:
Can't be arsed to converse with such a plank...not sure what planet you are on...but I'm glad I'm not on it too
On 25 Jul 2008 at 3:18pm Elvis the Gunslinger wrote:
And that ladies and Gentleman is more commonly know as admitting deafeat, please note the return to the neaderthal insults and the apparent belief that I am in fact on the Tras-galactic Internet.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 3:21pm Elvis the gunslinger wrote:
Ben, the attraction of the wealthy would not force people from their council homes (for reasons i'm sure you understand but if i actually wrote them here, i would be lynched), and there it is, the diversity that would be healthy for the town.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 3:35pm Ben wrote:
Hmm, not convinced. That's not diversity, that's schizophrenia. And that ain't healthy.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 3:48pm Elvis the Gunslinger wrote:
In what respect is it not diversity?
On 25 Jul 2008 at 4:06pm Smiler wrote:
Elvis. Some of what you say makes sense but its irrelevant whether anyone coming into this town has children or not. Did you not read my post?
The issue is about when anyone's kids grow up and want to get on the 'Housing Ladder' they won't be able to do it in Lewes and will be forced to move out thereby leaving an age hole.
n'est pas?
On 25 Jul 2008 at 4:26pm Elvis the Gunslinger wrote:
Smiler - sorry I mis-understood your post. There are plenty of young people who can afford to live in Lewes, my parents are here and I have bought my own place in the last few years. This brings me back to my point about people having the "right" to live somewhere. There are a lot of young families in Lewes, as for the youngsters that are looking to get on the ladder - can they really expect to move to a prime location as a first property? With the help of wealthy parents this may be the case, but many will move away through choice and come back later in life - after all Brighton and London surely would be more attractive locations for the younger generation. As for those that are not fortunate enough to be in the position to afford their own properties there is council accomodation provided - if they cannot get a place through the council or rent somewhere in Lewes shoul dthey move to a more affordable area? I can see your point that this may create an age vacuum but it could aslo serve to attract young professionals to the area.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 4:55pm Smiler wrote:
You are the exception rather than the rule if you are in your low 20s and can afford to buy in Lewes.
I want to see a social and cultural balance that isn't based on how much money people earn/inherit.
Replacing the existing youth with disenfranchised yuppy commuters will undermine the social health of our community and lead to less diversification.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 6:21pm Ben wrote:
Elvis: Diversity to me includes a middle ground, whereas you seem to be describing more of a bi-polar society. How one achieves diversity if a town like Lewes becomes the victim of its own success as a place to live, and market forces drive property prices ever higher, is another matter.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 6:22pm BONYAK wrote:
Well said Elvis and Barry, if the poor have to move to Newhaven the poisoned air should stop them breeding.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 6:46pm Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
I agree with you Ben. The lack of the social housing means that only that only those in greatest need, usually those those with social or other problems, get to the top of the list for housing.
The thought of living in a town where there is nothing between them and the DFLs who need yet more shops selling handpainted jugs overpriced cheese is a most depressing one.
We need affordable housing for people to buy to keep the town socially diverse.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 6:58pm Frak wrote:
I find it odd that people blame the cost of houses purely on people moving from london. I thought the rise in house prices was a national trend, not just in lewes. I think you'll find that most younger people can't afford to buy anywhere. Also, to say that prices in Lewes are not going down is rubbish. As someone looking to buy their 1st house I've been following it quite closely and i'm pleased to say their is a definite dip.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 8:23pm sashka wrote:
Whoever lives here needs people to provide services that are not so well paid. The people contributing to our social structure by doing these jobs need homes, and we are failing to provide affordable homes in the way we should.
The smaller affordable homes we used to have, are now expensive bijou properies. The town may be able to survive, but only because we will have to bus/train in keyworkers from somewhere else (or provide more parking!) This is not environmentally ideal, and my opinion is that it is unethical. Lewes is turning into the town for people who can't afford Hampstead.
Not enough housing diversity is not a problem specific to Lewes, although our planners have done a lot to make it worse. The free market economy creates problems, like any system, but as a population we have been too easily distracted by just the benfits leaving us with lovely valuable properties that that only certain people can afford.
I don't want to live in a town like that.
On 25 Jul 2008 at 8:35pm mr t wrote:
open the workhouses then you can all have jobs and somewhere to live ........who gives a stuff about house prices
On 25 Jul 2008 at 8:39pm SHS wrote:
1. Scrap inheritance tax & make it easier for children to take over their parents' homes. 2. Provide more local employment for a wider range of skills.
On 26 Jul 2008 at 1:05pm The Super K wrote:
I have to say I agree with Elvis, Every point you've put to him he's argued well.
Married with children, If you can't afford two children and a house, you should have thought about that before you decided to have children. They are a great expense, I cetainly don't think that I could have supported two kids and my mortgage!
Besides House prices aren't THAT high in certain areas of town.
On 28 Jul 2008 at 12:07pm Elvis The Gunslinger wrote:
Thank you Super K, at least some people on here can debate and consider other opinions without throwing their toys from the pram.
Social Diversity:- So is the council at fault for selling off council housing, and forcing tennants to live elsewhere? Firstly I think it's hysterical that anyone with any money and/or enough dispsable income to buy what they want regardless of others opinions of it in this town is labled as a DFL. It wasn't too long ago that this forum was up in arms about labeling other members of society. Secondly I understand the need to have key workers in the area, wasn't the new development on the Lewes end of Ringmer(The Forge or something) built and intially sold to keyworkers? that is only a short journey away. So I think we have the diversity and are providing for the key workers that the town needs to survive. And the fact is that Lewes is still a great place to live, albeit a slightly more expensive and less tolerant than some would like.
Just a quick note to my detractors who claim that I am evil and nasty, I have opinions unlike so many others who tow the line of being politically correct, does this make me a bad person, no. It reflects more on you for failing to acknowledge anything but your own opinions and existance. I will happily discuss my points of view with anyone as long as they are mature enough to accept them and talk like a civilised human being.
Elvis has now left the building. (but not for long)
On 28 Jul 2008 at 12:48pm Enoch wrote:
Friends and family are the main reasons why people would not want to move away from their home town. There is nothing better than bumping into an old friend in the High Street and having a good chat.
On 28 Jul 2008 at 1:17pm married with kids wrote:
quality of life!! i live around the corner from my parents, and my wifes. my children want to see one lot of them everyday, and we can take a 30 second walk to see them. if we lived out of lewes it would mean a drive to see them, also our friends live in lewes to see them again we would have to drive. you'll no doubt bring in public transport, but how often does a bus run into lewes from affordable places on a sunday. where do you suggest i move to then elvis?
On 28 Jul 2008 at 6:19pm Roly Mo wrote:
Don't see many of those about nowadays, they've all had to move away.........
On 28 Jul 2008 at 6:22pm Mr Tumble wrote:
How about London? Must be loads of empty houses up there. You could be an UFL.
On 28 Jul 2008 at 11:07pm Spinster Of This Parish wrote:
A-ha- its time to view the Emperors New Clothes! - see it naked and in it's hideous true form. The term "affordable housing" is a joke, and includes the term "shared ownership". Both are politically correct terms designed to make those without their own properties and/or on lesser incomes feel included in the property market. Shared ownership is only affordable for those on an income above the national average. A current example (in Lewes) requires the individual to earn 29K per annum so that they can raise enough mortgage for a poorly constructed chipboard bed-sit mmm thats affordable! If people truly want affordable homes, then land needs to be made available on which to build kit homes.
"Key worker" is another PC term - effectively everybody who works in a community is a key worker. The professions chosen to have "key worker" status earn more than other unrecognised key workers (e.g. Teacher versus Town Ranger). Thankfully the key worker idea has now fallen out of vogue.
On 3 Aug 2008 at 6:55pm Lewes Laugher wrote:
Have I misunderstood things? I though Lewes was a town for well-off retired from London, people who still work in well-paid jobs in London, and 'cultural' people living on their inheritances and - on the other side - low-paid near-serfs who service their needs. I keep hoping the serfs will rise.
On 19 Aug 2008 at 5:02pm Elvis the Gunslinger wrote:
So to re-iterate a previous comment - we agere that diversity is an essential in the modern world, but woul dyou rather the town you lived in was on the up or no the slide?