Got this via email. Great idea, now why am I not older...?
Instead of giving Seven Billion Euro’s to the Irish Banks who will squander the money on lavish parties and unearned bonuses, use the following plan.
You can call it the Republican Retirement Plan:
There are about 1 million people over 50 in the work force. Pay them 7 million Euro apiece severance for early retirement with the following stipulations:
1) They MUST retire. One million job openings – Unemployment fixed
2) They MUST buy a new car. One million cars ordered – Auto Industry fixed
3) They MUST either buy a house or pay off their mortgage – Housing Crisis fixed
4) They MUST send their kids to school/college/university – Crime rate fixed
5) They MUST buy 100 Euro of alcohol/tobacco a week …. and there’s your money back in duty/tax etc.
It is the month of August, a resort town sits next to the shores of a lake. It is raining, and the little town looks totally deserted. It is tough times, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit. Suddenly, a rich tourist comes to town. He enters the only hotel, lays a 100 Euro note on the reception counter, and goes to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one. The hotel proprietor takes the 100 Euro note and runs to pay his debt to the butcher. The Butcher takes the 100 Euro note, and runs to pay his debt to the pig raiser. The pig raiser takes the 100 Euro note, and runs to pay his debt to the supplier of his feed and fuel. The supplier of feed and fuel takes the 100 Euro note and runs to pay his debt to the town's prostitute that in these hard times, gave her “services" on credit. The hooker runs to the hotel, and pays off her debt with the 100 Euro note to the hotel proprietor to pay for the rooms that she rented when she brought her clients there. The hotel proprietor then lays the 100 Euro note back on the counter so that the rich tourist will not suspect anything. At that moment, the rich tourist comes down after inspecting the rooms, and takes his 100 Euro note, after saying that he did not like any of the rooms, and leaves town. No one earned anything. However, the whole town is now without debt, and looks to the future with a lot of optimism. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how the Irish Government is doing business today.
A member survey by the Irish Auctioneers & Valuers Institute (IAVI) suggest that the rate of decline in the value of residential property has moderated to an average of 5.8% nationwide in the third quarter of 2009, an improvement on the rates reported in Q1 and Q2. Since the start of the year, this survey has shown that residential property values have dropped by an average of 24%.
Conducted amongst IAVI members nationwide and based on sales activity, this survey shows that the moderation in the rate of decline was most marked in values of residential property in Dublin, which only declined by an average of 3.5% in the period, which is an improvement from an average drop of 7.7% for the previous quarter.
All other areas are following this trend: in Munster, values dropped by an average of 6.8%, an improvement from an average of 10.7% for the previous quarter. Meanwhile, in Leinster (including Cavan and Monaghan) and Connaught/Donegal, values decreased on average by 8.6% and 4.2%, an improvement from 9.6% and 7.4% in quarter two respectively.
Simon Ensor from the Residential Panel of the IAVI National Council said, “Based on the experience of our members’ property transactions, these results show a significant slowing down of the rate of decline of property values nationwide.
“In quarter three, we saw an average decline of 5.8% in residential property values nationwide This is a significant improvement on both quarter one and quarter two, which showed an overall decline of 9% and 9.2% respectively.
“The slowdown in the rate of decline in property values throughout the country and particularly in the greater Dublin area is seen as possibly one of the early signs of a degree of normality returning to the market.
“In fact, our members have reported a significant increase in activity, particularly in July, with a large number of loan-approved clients actively viewing properties. The survey also showed that 65% of IAVI members reported static or improved sales activity in Q3 for both residential sales and lettings.
“However, it is fair to say that in the experience of IAVI members many buyers are still waiting for the market to reach the bottom. There is a strong possibility that this is very close, particularly at the affordable end of the market.” he said.
These results are based on the experience of professional practitioners conducting property transactions, they are more reliable than advertising-based statistics or other surveys, which are based on data from some months ago. In effect, the IAVI survey represents the view from the coalface of those engaged in selling property in the current market. The IAVI represents over 1,800 property professionals nationwide.
The higher page view ratio on our site is because it is targeted at Tipperary/Clonmel property buyers, so a visitor there is “on a mission”, rather than daft, where the majority of clicks are from Dublin based PC’s.
The most revealing figures summarising the current property market are that despite a total of 31,939 virtual viewings for the month of September, there were only 71 physical viewings.
Without wishing to sound negative... (note to self, be positive), September continued the downward slide for all in the Estate Agency business, when the figures are analysed.
House prices continue to fall. This has brought about a large number of enquiries from prospective purchasers, but they are slow to follow up on the enquiry with a viewing and consequently, an offer.
There are two reasons for this as I see it.
A lack of confidence is one.
A lack of available finance is the other.
As the banks wait, in zombie-mode, for the NAMA proposals to get past the Green party, no finance is being made available for house purchase.
Or any other purchase for that matter.
Why Lenihan and Cowen think that giving tax-payers money to the bozos that run the banks is beyond me.
Why they think that over-paying the banks for these toxic liabilities is a good idea is truly beyond belief.
Yet it seems that the fate of almost €60billion of our money hangs on a decision of a movement that does not really have a coherent policy on anything.
That said, if the Greens bring down this Government, I will give them my vote next time out...I may even consider joining the party if they can dethrone Cowen, Lenihan and Coughlan.
Protestations from the Govt. that “The pace of decline is slowing” (i.e. things are getting worse more slowly, but still getting worse) are meant to be good news!
Figures speak the truth and for our part, the figures this month show the continuing decline in activity in the market.
September 2008Viewings 119Offers 43
September 2009 Viewings 71Offers 14
Remember September last year was a poor month anyway, as the economy had started to go into free-fall.
Even still viewings are down 40%.
Offers are down 68%.
Economists predict that levels of negative equity and inability to repay mortgages will increase over the near future, thus driving down the price of property further.
We need a new approach to our country’s regeneration. The current lot have shown no initiative or leadership.
In an effort to sound off on a positive note, they need to go...now!
