By one of those pieces of library serendipity I went to look again at the books for sale trolley on Wednesday. Thought of buying University Mathematics Vols 1 + 2, published in 1965. Looks like something from very much longer ago now. Maybe if I cranked my way through it would provide the kind of brain exercise which is supposed to keep dementia at bay.
But I thought better of it, too heavy in more than one sense
Then I spotted a slim volume: Housing & Public Policy by Stewart
Lansley
Written at the end of 1978, Callaghan’s winter of discontent. Six month’s later, Margaret Thatcher was prime minister
Written from a leftish point of view: ‘This book aims to provide a counter view to those who argue that market forces should have freer if not free reins in shaping housing development’ – it nevertheless recognised the emergence of the idea that owner occupation is somehow the natural form of tenure, to which many aspired
From the vantage point of 2008 what really stands out is the criticism of building society lending policies. They should be more ‘socially responsible’, provide more low start mortgages with a higher % of the value of the property, more willing to lend on older houses in the inner cities, to black households, the low paid & those with fluctuating incomes, in other words ‘those … not otherwise able to buy’
The government had introduced a House Purchase Assistance Bill which Lansley criticised as doing ‘nothing for the potential first-time buyer who is unable to save’ or persuade lenders to be more flexible:
‘Previous attempts to persuade building societies to adopt different policies have proved ineffective, despite the ever present threat of greater control … they have not eased their lending criteria … are reluctant to lend above 90%’
So it was not just evil right wing stupid bankers who thought such mortgages would be a Good Thing
Still, at least we now have greater control over some of the former building societies
Related post
