I think so too Ted . Where Thachers plan went wrong was in not using the money from the sale of council houses to build more .
2 Likes
I disagree. It was the first step in doing away with housing being provided by tax payers. Government be it central or local should govern, not be landlords.
If housing is not provided by the government it leaves poor people with no alternative than to be at the mercy of unscrupulous landlords .
2 Likes
And the problem with that is? In any case one way to cater for that would be an expanded rent act.
In a word Rachman.
1 Like
Not necessarily, but he did serve a market sector and fill a need.
“Perec “Peter” Rachman was a Polish-born landlord who operated in Notting Hill, London, England in the 1950s and early 1960s. He became notorious for his exploitation of his tenants, with the word “Rachmanism” entering the Oxford English Dictionary as a synonym for the exploitation and intimidation of tenants…”
You admire this man?
1 Like
You forgot to add “And keep the Folks off the Picket Line”
Nobody of a certain age will forget the name Rachman:
Perec or Peter Rachman came to England during the war as a refugee from Poland. He died a millionaire in 1962.
Rachman started work in an estate agency in Shepherds Bush but soon branched out on his own to exploit the post-war housing shortage.
From 1957 onward he bought up many run down old houses in Paddington and North Kensington, using loans from his building society.
To maximise his profits he wanted to get rid of sitting tenants and relet the properties at much higher rents. He developed an effective three step approach to dealing with “unprofitable tenants”.
- tenants were offered a modest sum to leave
- tenants’ lives were made intolerable with all night music and parties in the rooms next door
- Rachman’s henchmen would go in and cut off electricity and water and break locks and lavatories
It was an effective strategy. The new tenants were usually immigrant families from the West Indies who had nowhere else to go and had to pay extortionate rents for tiny squalid rooms.
By 1959, a special police squad was set up to investigate Rachman who by then lived in Hampstead and travelled in a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce.
Detectives discovered a network of at least 33 Rachman-owned companies controlling his property empire. They also uncovered his sideline, prostitution. Rachman was prosecuted twice for brothel-keeping.
In 1960 he suddenly disposed of his Notting Hill property interests. Whether this was because the police were creating too much heat or he had made more money than he knew what to do with is unclear.
I understand that man. I admired Charli Clore - knew him slightly too.
What are you on about ?
The nature of Rachman and other property developers, many of whom got and still do get much worse press than they should.
Why did you mention Charles Clore ?
Another developer of the same era and one who, unlike Rachman, got very bad press.
The demand for houses around here is unbelievable . For example one that is next to me but on a different road and estate (don’t ask it is the way the areas was built) it went on the market only a week or so ago and sold within 2 days. Even mine I grabbed had only been on for a week or so I believe and had 3/4 viewings after mine so I had to say yes there and then, or loose it, to secure it.
Even Zoopla check on prices around here is far behind in their recognising the true prices they are selling for
Deleted
Seems to be everywhere RS .
It’s a sellers market there are just it seems very few houses around .
Where I live they can sell anything estate agents have an easy job .
Our bungalow (the one we now live in) went back on the market after a sale broke down on the Monday morning, V saw it on Rightmove that lunchtime and phoned for an appointment the next day. We viewed it at 12 noon on Tuesday, liked what we saw and drove straight round to the EA’s office to register our interest and paid a deposit there and then. Even that wasn’t fast enough to stop a 12:45 viewing but, having paid a deposit to the agent, stopped any more appointments being made and offers accepted (we offered the full asking price and could pay for it without having to sell our apartment in Worcester). That took a load of stress out of it for us and the vendors and we were able to sell our apartment at our leisure (2 weeks after putting it on the market).
I didnt think a deposit could be put down on a house I’ve not heard of this . How does it work if the sale collapses?
I would think it is a good idea and stop gazumping .