London Banter - reducing congestion

"Cast_Iron" wrote in message
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"Cast_Iron" wrote in message
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I buy a second house. I won't be spending much time there,

Then why bother, why not simply stay in holiday accommodation and
contribute
to the local economy? Plus it may well work out cheaper.

If you buy, you not only get the holiday, you also get a capital gain.
Unless you need to take out a mortgage, it is usually a very good way to
invest money.

so, as I won't have time to do the decorating myself, that,
along with a few repairs, have to be done by a local
builder.

If only everyone did that, but there are many who will use a tradesman
from
their own area, "because they know him". No gain to the local economy.

A holiday home is not likely to be close enough by for most tradesmen to be
willing to do the journey.

I'm not moving an existing house, so all the
furniture, tv, hi-fi, video etc, have to be bought locally.

On the contrary, they can be bought anywhere. Where do you suppose a
permanent local resident buys their furniture etc?

They will buy locally too, but they don't usually refit a whole house at a
time.

Some holiday home owners
when setting up simply move their existing furniture from their permanent
home to the holiday cottage and renew from suppliers in their area. No
gain
to the local economy.

That, as much as anything, is a factor of distance and convenience. IMO, if
the holiday home is far enough away to be worth having, it is too far for
that to be convenient. However, I will admit to having taken a bed with me,
to make sure I had somewhere to sleep on the first night.

How many years' food shopping will a permanent resident
have to do to put the same amount of money into the local
economy?

Many holiday home owners simply take food from their permanent home's
nearest supermarket. No gain to the local economy.

That wasn't the question.

Then, of course, there are the ongoing costs. I
will need both a gardener and someone to clean the house,
if I want to prevent things getting out of hand while I am
away. That is without even spending any time at the house.

That's your way of doing things, not everyone is quite so houseproud or
they
will send someone they know.

Again, probably not practical if the place is far enough away to count as a
holiday home and, if you have a swimming pool, it is essential to have
someone attend to it regularly.

But the net result is that buying a holiday home is depriving someone else
of a permanent home.

Only if there is a local shortage of housing. If you buy in France, for
example, there are tax advantages to buying a new property, so there are
lots of older properties around that nobody wants. They are the ones
invariably offered to the British buyers.

Colin Bignell