Robert Peston - Hooray for cheap oil

[Tarrel]

Well, to be honest, the majority of the public are house-owners (64% according to the ONS).

[vtsnowedin]

Well, to be honest, the majority of the public are house-owners (64% according to the ONS).

Any idea what percentage own their house free and clear with no mortgage or loans against it?
I count home ownership not by the standard definition but by the equity the owner has in hand if a sale is forced on him. If you have a jumbo mortgage for £500,000 and the market has dropped so you can only sell it fore £490,000 you own nothing of value and are £10,000 in unsecured debt.
My home may well be described as this old shack but I own it free and clear so only have to worry about the annual taxes and maintenance.

[PS_RalphW]

in the last census about 48% own outright, 52% mortgaged.

[vtsnowedin]

in the last census about 48% own outright, 52% mortgaged.

That is better then I would have guessed. What is the renter vs. owner (including mortgagee) split?
In the USA home ownership is about 64% and for people 65 and older it is 80 percent but a significant number are still underwater on their mortgages.
http://www.latimes.com/business/realest ... story.html

[kenneal - lagger]

Both the Stamp duty and the flight tax savings will affect only a very small number of people and cost the exchequer very little why it has been done. It won't cost much.

[Tarrel]

Both the Stamp duty and the flight tax savings will affect only a very small number of people and cost the exchequer very little why it has been done. It won't cost much.

Yes, electioneering headline - grabbers. I remember when the Autumn Statement was a low-key, technical exercise, not an episode from X-Factor!

[emordnilap]

Both the Stamp duty and the flight tax savings will affect only a very small number of people and cost the exchequer very little why it has been done. It won't cost much.

In fact, like electric car subsidies, it's just handing over yet more taxpayer cash to the rich.