Squats and squatting / London housing

What kind of fucking nights out are they calculating that could save you £6k??? Speedboats made of gold rolling on a river of cocaine?

I think they've calculated it on the basis of a standard night at the Greyhound.

It's always interesting how little is really known publicly about the state of affairs in housing:

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/jan/01/over-11000-homes-have-stood-empty-for-at-least-10-years-data-shows

Flouncer, you back again?

Interesting to read about the 1946 squatting action:

https://www.theguardian.com/housing-network/2018/jan/08/empty-homes-councils-uk-housing-crisis-squatting

https://pasttenseblog.wordpress.com/2018/01/14/today-in-londons-squatting-history-2013-the-491-gallery-closes-leytonstone/

what an interesting but sad blog
although there are still things happening in london of course, too often I find out about them too late

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/londoners-spend-more-than-a-third-of-monthly-income-on-rent-study-finds-a3743031.html

Who are these rich bastards who only pay a third?

This is an interesting dispute. I suppose its outcome will depend heavily on who's in Government next--with the Tories, it'll probably remain an inconclusive stalemate (although there might be support for the Council's stance from the Mayor of London), with Corbyn it'll probably be the Council that wins.

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/12-billion-earl-s-court-revamp-is-undeliverable-council-leader-argues-a3744906.html

I wonder what the Mayor will do about this one:

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/plan-for-3bn-makeover-of-elephant-and-castle-roundabout-halted-a3746181.html

I assume it'll be referred to him for a strategic decision.

I'd prefer it if they held back on that location a bit until they're able to rip out that ridiculous traffic scheme again.

As the first new flats in the Heygate Estate are being finished it turns out that predictably there is no social house, no affordable housing, everything is being sold to overseas 'investors'. It's a shit show.

https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/qkq4bx/every-flat-in-a-new-south-london-development-has-been-sold-to-foreign-investors?utm_campaign=sharebutton

Whilst I agree it’s a shit show if you were CPO’d out, it’s innacurate to suggest there’s no ‘social’ or ‘affordable’ housing - there’s a bunch of shared ownership and a smattering of social rent properties.

But yeah very different to what existed previously.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/may/10/celebrate-house-prices-falling-britain-property-values

Looks like the (very large) St Ann's hospital site has been bought by the Mayor's Land Fund
https://www.london.gov.uk/press-releases/mayoral/sadiq-buys-first-site-with-his-250m-land-fund
Not entirely sure what that means in terms of development (it's promising 50% affordable homes but how affordable and how achievable we shall see). People seem to be getting excited about it but there doesn't seem to be that much detail.

Well, we'll have to see whether that approach delivers the envisaged benefits. I am in favour of public authorities owning land, and in this case the large site is already on that footprint. What I don't like is when they assemble very large sites from many smaller ones and plonk larger buildings on them (usually without any regard to the historic lines, as per estate building in past decades). Perhaps it'll be an intermediate step towards social housing.

As for St Ann's, it'll be key to integrate it well into the surrounding street network. Streets like Hermitage Road suffer terribly from rat-running, and permeability through the St Ann's site would have considerable implications for traffic movements in the area, so that all needs to be thought about in advance.

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2018/aug/25/flats-block-converting-offices-living-space

A strange mixed bag of an article ...

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/london-council-calls-for-extra-powers-to-take-over-millionaires-empty-homes-a3955186.html

Yeah weird. Kim is a bit weird.

After 20 years, squatters occupying the Amsterdamse Droogdok
Maatschappij former shipyard have been ordered to leave. Photographer
Sanne Derks met members of the community, who say moving elsewhere is
impossible

https://www.theguardian.com/cities/gallery/2018/oct/08/life-amsterdam-biggest-squat-amsterdamse-droogdok-maatschappij-in-pictures

It'll be a shame if they leave. I stayed there for a while a few years back. Amazing people and some awesome custom van and car projects going on while I was there.

This one features a great quote:

He added that because Almacantar had sold half of the apartments, cleared the debts run up by construction and leased the retail space at the bottom of the tower “we see no point in chasing a market that is increasingly detached from reality”.

Or maybe you're detached from reality? Just a thought.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/oct/31/brutalist-market-flats-at-londons-centre-point-taken-off-market

I came to post that too

Increasing numbers of luxury London flats are now proving hard to sell. All 10 of the £30m-£50m apartments towards the top of the Shard have been empty since the tower was completed six years ago after its owners, led by the Qatari royal family, failed to achieve high enough offers.

More than half of the 1,900 ultra-luxury apartments built in London last year failed to sell, adding to fears that the capital would be left with dozens of “posh ghost towers”. The swanky £1m-plus flats, complete with private gyms, swimming pools and cinema rooms, are lying empty as hundreds of thousands of would-be first-time buyers struggle to find an affordable home.

It's 'Brexit'!

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/brexit-blamed-as-developer-struggles-to-sell-luxury-flats-at-londons-centre-point-a3977236.html

I heard that the Qataris gave the apartments in the Shard to family members as gifts after they failed to sell them for the price they were asking for. I don't think they are technically vacant. My source for this quite reliable.

Imho, it was always going to be a stretch to sell ultra kuxury apartments with London Bridge station as your front door.