As if we didn't know! It's on the MSN Today page.

Cheers, HG

Note from Moderator.....

Hi HG...it would be nice if you could give us a link to that MSN page as I couldn't find the article !

How to lift and lay a link

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Hope you don't mind the suggestion.

Regards...

Papa.

I would go one further HG.....Pensioners should not pay ANY tax as they have been paying tax all their lives and need a break from it just like they need a break from everything else.

I know that there are some VERY rich pensioners out there but even if they - the government - just set an easy-to-understand high income level before tax started to be applied then even the richest of pensioners would get a fair deal and the rest of us would not be terrorised by the draconian means test.

We also have to remember that there are a lot of pensioners out there that are what is called "property rich, but cash poor" and although these people might look as if they are in clover they are in fact not.

The worst thing about being a pensioner, so my gran tells me, is that the cost of living in Britain keeps going up and up and the fixed incomes of the elderly stay virtually the same. This means that as the days and weeks go by it gets more and more difficult for the old folk to live off their pensions.

It is a damned disgrace that the state pension levels in this country are the worst in all of the European Union and not only should something be done about this situation right now but the start would be that people in receipt of a state pension should no longer pay any income tax.

Hi Angie,

Asset rich, cash poor!

I am in precisely that dilemma! I inherited a family house but little money, and have had to use my savings to pay for probate etc. I want to go live in this house, but at the moment haven't the cash or credit to move. So I'm stuck trying to pay Council Tax, Water, Gas and Electricity for two houses, on one pension! Naturally, the calculations don't add up! Neither house is in a fit state to rent out as I haven't been able to maintain them on a pension.

I've also had to quit driving due to cataracts, or I could and would have moved myself months ago! Unfortunately I'm the only driver in the family, too! My doctor has just discovered I have high Blood Pressure, now I wonder why that could be?

The term 'Bankrupt via Inheritance' comes to mind!

Cheers, HG

You are both so right about that !

I have often said that any property that has come to any person in a legacy that is under say £500,000 in value should NEVER be counted as wealth.

If the property is a castle or a mansion then that can be looked at in a slightly different light.

If you don't mind me being a bit cheeky HG, I might suggest that that second house has become somewhat of a burden to you. Maybe you would be better just selling it and living off the income-received because if you did you would then only have to worry about one expense.

None of us need that kind of worry in our retirement years !

It is currently a pain, Papa, but it is the last Family house, and I would like to keep it in the family. The one I'm currently in has no meaning for me, and I feel I'm just camping here. As soon as I can get myself out I'm auctioning the one I'm in. ( this is beginning to sound as if I'm trying to explain the rules of cricket!)

Cheers HG

I do see your quandry here !

Nevertheless, I would not sell the "camping" house in an auction as they have a terrible reputation for ripping off the sellers. Maybe a straight sale with a solid valuation up front would be a better way. If you did this then you would have enough income to do up the "family" home.

Of course you would either have to live in it while it was being upgraded, ( not a good idea ), or you might have to take a private and short term rental while the work is being done.

I am sure that as you are already psychologically attached to this home it would be very pleasant to eventually actually live in it again.

I am offering this advice as I have bought and sold a large number of properties for most of my life and I know many of the pitfalls attached to such practices.

Good luck to you anyway in anything that you might decide upon as I don't think that maintaining the status quo is going to do you any good.

I don't mind living in the family house while it's being done up, it means I can keep an eye open for the marks of cowboy boots and spurs in the paintwork!

Cheer, HG

A very good and sensible thought HG as there ARE a lot of them about these days.

If you are willing to actually live in the building that is being renovated while the work is being done then that would save you the cost of renting another one. The way I used to get round that one - before I was married and had children of course - was to get a hold of a "living" size caravan and live in that while work was going on. The great thing about doing it that way is because it can be situated on the grounds of the house that is being done up.

I have also found that it is a very good idea to get some word of mouth reports, ( from previous and unbiased customers of the trades-persons that you are thinking of hiring ), on how these suspected "cowboys" might have got on in previous contracts. If they cannot give you a list of previously "happy" customers then I would not touch them with a bargepole.

Last edited by papa_umau on Mon Nov 02, 2009 12:09 pm; edited 1 time in total

That is one of the problems, getting reputable tradespeople. Not living in the area, I don't know who's good or bad, and the Council won't recommend anyone in case it reflects badly on them.

It's a problem, but not an insurmountable one. Getting there is currently the insurmountable problem!

Best of luck to you, as there is no quick-fix for this one.

There ARE a few clues that can give you an idea if the "tradespersons" are decent or not !

Here are some of them:

1). If you find them in the trade-ads and they have quite a big ad they are likely to be quite professional.

2). If they go around in an unmarked van and don't wear proper - and reasonably clean - overalls they are liable to be cowboys.

3). The time that they have been in existence will usually equate with how dependable they are.

4). There is little better than word of mouth when vetting tradespeople and if you don't actually live in the area then ask someone you know who does live there to put out some feelers for you.