United Kingdom

I agree with Novamdomum

35 years ago, I used to have my own business, designing, bulding and installing high end bathrooms.

Marble, natural stone, sunken baths, steam rooms, HansGrohe shower heads and multi jet systems etc etc.

You know, the muppets who could afford to pay £400 for a pair of gold plated basin taps and import marble directly from Italy.

I got a phone call one day from a Property developer, who asked me if I would be interested in creating a contract with him to maintain his property portfolio.

I drove to his big gaff in Weybridge and we discussed his proposals.

He said, he had just bought 19 properties at a new build in Feltham High street near the train station.

I looked into these properties, They were built and sold as "affordable housing" for the local residents.

This guy had bought 19 of them, specifically to rent out to Heathrow airport staff. at rents £1,000 a month more than the council were charging.

I turned him down! I'm a socialist who believes in an equal society, not a money grabbing tory.

This is what affordable housing is really about.

The first time I heard the words "affordable housing" coming from a lying MP's lips, I knew it was a con.

Its not social housing, which the country lacks and desperately needs, but another means for the wealthy to make more money.

Landlords are ultimately very rich people. Typically, always moaning about being poor and not having enough.

How about just tax their personal earnings at 80% basic rate, rather than the rental properties they own, which will only be passed on to the renters.

If you own more than one house, your tax burden goes up incrementally on a per house basis. If you own two house, you pay an extra 10% tax, if you own 4 houses you pay 20% extra tax and so on, all the way up to 80% for the wealthiest.

Imagine all those properties that were bought 30 years ago, who's 25 year mortgages are now fully paid off by the renters.

Landlords have made an absolute fortune, not only have renters paid their mortgages for them, but they have also made an obscene amount of money on the increased value of all the properties they own, over 30 years.

They should all fuck off, give their properties back to the people, and live happily on the money they have ripped off from the renters.

So... Reeves thinks taxing landlords using NI will make them sell up and release properties into the market which will drive down prices. What is more likely to happen though is that taxing landlords more = landlords immediately charge more rent = fewer people rent = more people buy houses = increased demand drives house prices up = landlords charge even more rent as their property is worth more now = landlords make more money than ever and renters get unbelievably screwed in a rental market that was already bleeding them dry. Reeves makes £2Bn though, so what's a few more homeless families eh?

Is there a way to avoid this being directly passed on to tenants?

Awesome, just in time for my renewal. I wonder how my landlord will phrase the increase this time... "Hi, your tenancy renewal is due. Unfortunately I need to increase the rent a little bit" I reckon.

About time, should have done this before the winter fuel allowance fiasco.