Have we done the current house price increases?

Another relatively big development has just been put in for the next village along the coast.

Lots of 3/4 bed houses with garages and something resembling gardens. Not seeing a lot of 1st time buyer houses go up.

I've also been keeping an eye on houses in places I like the look of and property I really like the look of disappears awfy quick

It's frighteningly mad at the moment. I'm selling my late parents' house. It's a nice detached house in a popular road but nothing that I'd particularly want. The listing went live yesterday afternoon. 9 viewings are already booked and the agent thinks we'll go to "Best and Final Offer" next week at well over asking price.
Now, who's got Santa Cruzs in stock?

In some ways I'm glad I sold-up last year and having a house built with an agreed price.

There's also a big shortage of property for sale in the west highlands and on the islands - what does come up goes quickly as asking price plus. There really needs to be something done about second homes and absentee landlords as its having a real effect on the availability of people prepared to work in these areas.

There are huge material and labour shortages across the building trade, as well as significant price increases - concrete and timber up 40% - plus lots of folks wanting extensions and house modifications - everyone is busy which means upward increase in prices.

I often feel there aren't proper options for downsizing once children have left home, I think a lot of adults might be happy to have fewer bedrooms but still want a nice garden and premium features that often only seem to come with bigger family size homes. There must be plenty of 4/5 bedroom homes with only an older couple in it, there might be a housing shortage but I wonder if there is a bedroom shortage.

Now, who’s got Santa Cruzs in stock?

Start Fitness last time I looked, even have a discounted large Blur

not those of us who own already.

Kind of. I live in a flat. I would have to double if not triple my mortgage to move into a house in the neighbourhood. Houses in my street have smashed through the 500k barrier and show no sign of slowing down. A family member just sold their house for 740k to a cash buyer a week after they put it on the market. Colleague and her partner have been looking for their first house together (they have both sold their flats) and are being outbid by people who don't need a mortgage - again in the 500k bracket.

I can't compete with that, and I'm 'on the ladder' so to speak.

Housing in the UK is just a massive ponzi scheme designed to keep Tory voters happy.

Yes blame the govt, stamp duty holiday cost c 2bn and just stoked up the market. If interest rates go -ve it will get worse.

Too much money chasing too few goods so houses, classic cars, boom time.

Flats in London peaked in 2015 and have been falling ever since.

37, wife 38 and 3 month old son. Renting near Cambridge. Few tens of thousands saved. Genuinely think buying won’t happen for us. It worries me on a daily basis, if either of us lose our jobs we’ll be staring homelessness in the face. All the while a massive new town is being built with 300k boxes being sold at an alarming rate. I’ve no idea where the money comes from.

I’ve no idea where the money comes from.

According to neighbour who moved up from London, it's a combination of equity, a 30 year mortgage and surprising numbers on interest / partially interest only... This from the financial advisor they had who was surprised to find someone buying within reach of full repayment and less than 25 year mortgage.

Mates daughter and partner bid on Glasgow west end property last month.... bid 40k over the asking and were 9th out of 14 bidders... Mental pricing.

My son and girlfriend put an offer in on a 3 bed semi in Milngavie. Offers over £220k. Offered £265. Didn't get it.

Haven't found out final price yet but were told they were 26th of 27 offers.

Renting near Cambridge.

Always been expensive for houses, less than 50 mins to London via direct train line means weire more accessible than some London suburbs. Eg I can get to the City quicker than my Brother in Law who lives in Wimbledon. Hence London pricing for houses.

It's one of the reasons we went for a new build. The market here in Glasgow is insane. Our typical target property is going for 20% over the valuation, meaning we'd need 60k on top of the deposit, which we have but I didn't want to sink into a house that probably needed a new kitchen, new bathroom or totally decorated etc. Found a small new build development near us. Only 2 small streets so not a huge sprawling development. Managed to get a detached 4 bed with garage and huge garden for much less than we'd have spent if we were bidding on older properties.

House on my street sold in less than a week for £865k. Was brand new 5 years ago and £580k, so that's getting on for a 50% rise in 5 years..

Sorry if a stupid thought/question but...

Do the lenders not reject the mortgage if its too far over valuation/market value?

Or are people going in with huge deposits/hoping to knock the price down a bit near the end?

I seriously wonder how my kids will get on the property ladder without me croaking it. The way the rental market is around us we have said our eldest might be better staying home and saving for now to build a deposit but stuff like this makes you wonder how a lot stand any chance.

The thing about it is that, because so much of our perceived "wealth" is based around a house being an increasing asset investment that once prices go up, it's culturally unpalatable for the prices to go down. So if it looks like happening, the government will step in o help he "homeowners".

RDL - lots in Sheffield seem to be going to cash buyers With no mortgage so valuation not an issue.

We have tried to view some houses and been refused as already 40+ viewings booked. Just bonkers.

Loads of houses empty due to owners being in care homes. MILs 4 bed is empty, been empty 2 years. Why, if we sell, the nursing costs jump 20k a year for a direct contract with the nursing home, rather than via the Local Authority. Madness. SIL wanted it cheap, but my wife (POA) has in no uncertain terms that it has to be market rate as the LA has a charge on it, and selling cheap is not in MIL's financial interests.

Do the lenders not reject the mortgage if its too far over valuation/market value?

Depends on the mortgage percentage. If you're selling your existing house and making money on that, then your next mortgage may only be 60%, in which case the bank are less fussed about exact valuation as the new house can fall 40% before its worth less than the mortgage.

I live in a flat. I would have to double if not triple my mortgage to move into a house in the neighbourhood.

I can't begin to understand how people can afford these sorts of house prices. What do you all do for a living? A mate of mine moved recently into a million pound house, but he's the CIO of a FTSE 100 company, so there's that.

I moved house recently. I got £60k for the old one. Y'all live in a different world from me.

I've little sympathy with the downsizers. We are currently selling a small-med 3 bed bungalow in good condition and the majority of that market have been unrealistic time wasters. They want to get rid of their huge gardens and pocket a wodge of cash, but not get rid of any clutter, or furniture, or scale back their triple garage contents, or lose their current open countryside views or whatever. Nutters!

We've hopefully got a sale to a nice couple combining from two terrace houses - so "just" a single garage and parking for 3 cars is bliss to them 🙂

Quite glad we agreed our new build price in September....

Cash buyers really are king at the moment. Doesn't matter if it really is cash or cash+mortgage. The key thing is not having a chain. So many sales are falling through at the moment especially as the latest stamp duty deadline approaches. Around here a true cash buyer will often trump someone who makes a higher offer but has somewhere to sell first.

Absolutely reminds me of the late 80s early 90s crash.
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2003/feb/18/housingmarket.houseprices
^^^ for those too young to remember!

The "must buy now or will never be able to afford to buy" cries make me wince - that was a (very young and naïve) me in '89.

We sold it six years later for about 3/4 of what we paid for it, and could only do that because we'd been paying extra on the mortgage and taking in lodgers to do it. I didn't even put money into my workpension which I now hugely regret as it was a good DB scheme (hey ho). Neighbours from hell. Awful time.

If nobody can afford to buy then prices come down. There are always some people who can sell - people who've lived there a long time/died and the life insurance pays off the mortgage.

In the early 2000s house prices were stagnant and not a lot of houses sold, but there wasn't a big drop.

This feels like a feverish game of musical chairs and heaven help people when the music stops.

I bought my first house in 1989 when govt scrapped Miras so created a mini boom, took about 5 years to get back to price paid. It's a horrible feeling knowing your debt exceeds your home value.

Current market just feels like a repeat, stamp duty holiday and threat of -ve interest rates just makes it worse.

Problem is when prices are low and stable no one wants them.

Mate sold his house in 4 days. Brothers listed one on Friday 3 bed semi, drive and garden £150k. 10 viewings arranged and one offer of £145 without a viewing.

I can’t begin to understand how people can afford these sorts of house prices.

Me neither - my immediate neighbour has just sold and his 2 bed semi and is moving further up the road to a large 5 bed detached house. His has sold for £275,000 house he's bought is £575,000 - so a £300,000 jump in mortgage + tens of thousands that he needs to do the new house up. Which he will as no-stone was left unturned in his current house!

I can’t begin to understand how people can afford these sorts of house prices. What do you all do for a living? A mate of mine moved recently into a million pound house, but he’s the CIO of a FTSE 100 company, so there’s that.

I moved house recently. I got £60k for the old one. Y’all live in a different world from me.

This. I think most people get help from parents, or do it as a couple. I've never got any help from my parents and I'm kind of an eternal bachelor, not bothered about kids and certainly not marriage... So I rent. I'm very lucky in that I pay below market rate in a nice area and have a relatively secure tenancy. I've often thought it would be nice to buy somewhere, but if I'm honest, I'd have to downgrade to a crapper area as I'd struggle to buy on my own here. And by the time I'd have paid it off after working every hour under the sun for the rest of my life I'd be dead. Can't take it with me so what's the bloody point. I'd rather spend the time on my hobbies.

First time buyers wanting to start a family really do have my sympathies though. There needs to be more affordable or secure social housing built. But that's another thread.

I can’t begin to understand how people can afford these sorts of house prices.

If you've been in the market for 10 or so years you'll be sitting on several £100k of equity (in the South East). Then it's quite possible to get a mortgage of 4.5x salary, which in the SE could easily be another £300-£500k.

Seeing a lot of people moving up here from the south, as they can get a much bigger house and be mortgage or have a very small mortgage. Good for my kids as our house value goes up but not for when they come to buy themselves.

I’ve just checked estimates for houses in our street. Yeah they’ve some what jumped in the last couple of years, actually quite shocked by how much.

The listing went live yesterday afternoon. 9 viewings are already booked and the agent thinks we’ll go to “Best and Final Offer” next week at well over asking price.

This was like buying our house in 2015. The listing never even 'went live' - the estate agents held an open house one saturday afternoon, and put the word out to a few people they knew were looking. Final offers due by Monday morning. Our offer (fortunately only 1% over asking price) accepted Monday 11am.

The housing market in this country is mad!

Seeing a lot of people moving up here from the south, as they can get a much bigger house and be mortgage or have a very small mortgage. Good for my kids as our house value goes up but not for when they come to buy themselves.

Eh, in what way is it good for your kids. Do they both own multiple houses?

Sorry if a stupid thought/question but…

Do the lenders not reject the mortgage if its too far over valuation/market value?

In theory yes. Even if you have a large deposit the bank won’t overinflated housing stock on their books because it causes havoc if they have to write down the value (see the Credit Crunch) but everyone involved with the UK housing market is in on the swindle, sellers, estate agents, surveyors, banks and building societies - they know from experience it’s all a confidence game so no one wants to do anything to cool the market unless it’s crazily over valued, verging on fraud. Estate Agents, and I doubt anyone is under any illusions in regards to them are predicting another rise way over inflation of wages this year because it’s good business for them to say that.

As for this recent boom.

It would make sense to me if it was a case of inner City values falling and moving to the berbs and smaller towns and villages but it doesn’t seem the case, they say people are deserting London to WFH in the shires, but London prices are rising too.

I saw prices flatten for less than a year after the Credit Crunch, then rise again.

The only thing that’s going to stop it is house building, and that’s happening at last, but I worry for people who haven’t got on yet, it was a nightmare for us, but we managed it and it’s only got harder.

I’d advise anyone who’s got tens of thousands saved and they’re trying to save more to avoid having to get a 5% first time buyers mortgage to change plans, you’ll never out pace inflation. It sucks for a year, but even at 3.7% (what we’re paying) you at least get to reduce you balance by half you payment each month rather than lay someone else’s.

We're about to go back on the market after our house falling through last year. I'm seeing houses all around go up in value but there is no way I can see ours having gone up despite the work I've put into it over the past 6 months. If we get what we got last time I'd be happy.

I wouldn't believe an estate agent if they told me our house had gone up in value and people were willing to pay over what we sold it for last time.

To the above long term renter, the UK model is terrible for long term renters, I have had the same tenant for 10 years now, we get on well with both his and my hands off approach. Sadly he has no security of tenure beyond 1 months notice, well the 6 months govt eviction ban I suppose, and I could serve notice for no reason at all.

High house prices don't help anyone but the govt in their tax take. Homeowners my be celebrating their new found wealth but in reality you never see it.

Seeing a lot of people moving up here from the south, as they can get a much bigger house and be mortgage or have a very small mortgage. Good for my kids as our house value goes up but not for when they come to buy themselves.

Eh, in what way is it good for your kids. Do they both own multiple houses?

He means when they inherit his house, I think.

Eg I can get to the City quicker than my Brother in Law who lives in Wimbledon.

Given that it’s only 17 minutes from Wimbledon in to Waterloo I’m not sure what your BiL is doing on his way to work.

Eh, in what way is it good for your kids. Do they both own multiple houses?

My kids are young teenagers so don’t own any houses no, they will inherit ours. It didn’t take a lot to work that out.

He means when they inherit his house, I think.

Unless his care costs inherit it first I guess.

I do sometimes dispair when i think of my kids future......but all we can do is give them the tools to make the best of the opportunities they can see.

Locally thanks to unemployment rates rising my house hasn't gone up at all in 10 years but I'm ok with that as it isn't lost rental money and it's a stable family home that isn't at risk of landlord's changing goal posts /don't have to look at the wall paper someone stuck on in 1982

Personal example, all as either a married or 'living together' couple. All in the same suburb of South Manchester.

2002 - Bought £120k 2 bed terrace which was already fully renovated. Painted one bedroom.
2003 - Sold above for £165k and bought 4 bed terrace for £257k, Spent £60k ish on lots of different things, inc cellar conversion/new kitchen/bathroom/ensuite all work done by myself
2012 - Sold above for £395k and bought current 3.5 bed property for £440k. Spent £225k on huge extension, loft conversion and remodelling. Now is 5 double bed/big kitchen diner/2 bathroom etc
2020 - valuation of current property for remortgage purposes £1.1m.

Ridiculous.

By way of showing how the market has gone up in our area, the original '2002' terrace above sold last year for £385k and still had the same kitchen as when we owned it, needed some work doing.

The '2003' house has just sold for £650k and apart from some different paint colours is the same as when we owned it (we know the lads who bought it from us).

There are tiny 2 up 2 down terraces here in very run down states which sell overnight for £350k. 1 bed flats are £200k and 2 bed £295k

First time buyers don't stand a chance in this area.

I do sometimes dispair when i think of my kids future……but all we can do is give them the tools to make the best of the opportunities they can see.

I completely agree. My two are 11 and 8. We certainly won't hand them anything on a plate, however the landscape is so very different from when I was their age.

Personally, I'd like to see a more continental model of long term renting, with long tenancies and more tenants rights. The actual owner of the bricks and mortar is much more like a commercial landlord. The tenant can make changes to the property providing they meet relevant regulations etc etc. However theres sod all chance of that with a Tory govt.

 

Estate Agents have just added on the Stamp Duty savings onto the list price of most properties. I think a big crash is coming when the furlough scheme ends and people realise their job doesn’t exist anymore, frightening. Bog standard 3 bedroom semi’s now a quarter of a million pound. Bricks and mortar costs can’t be more than 30-40K.

Eh? The labour alone would be around that to build a 3 bed semi, let alone the land and materials etc.

Pretty obvious watching whats happening with my in laws that we will be pretty unlikely to inherit anything once care costs have eaten into it- which is obviously fine, I hasten to add.

Very optimistic expecting our kids to get anything out of us in (hopefully) 30-40 years time for the same reason.

Nearing the end of selling our flat we bought 16 years ago at £80k for £105k . Had it on for £110k with the hope of getting £100k for it.
Its was first person to look at it and thankfully hes a first time buyer which was my preference. EA says there was a list of people if the deal falls through so not too worried. £55k to pay off the mortgage.
Had an incredible 2019/2020 year business wise which allowed me to buy our current home outright, so the first time in my adult life at the age of 49 i will be totally debt free.
The £50k from the flat sale will go into premium bonds until the kids (7 and 14) are looking to buy / rent to use as deposits for them.

Bricks and mortar costs can’t be more than 30-40K.

Have you seen what it costs these days to build a shed in the garden.....

I’ve been house hunting recently in Badenoch/Strathspey. Houses are mostly going to closing dates and that creates some big bids with people not wanting to miss out. I put a bid in for a house in Aviemore a few months ago which was 12% above the asking price. I was 5th lowest out of 10 bidders.

Not sure if the market is hot everywhere though. I think you could pick up a big house in Fort William quite easily. I see a lot of B&Bs for sale.

The estate I live on had seen prices stall for around 10 years until a few weeks ago when a builder did a renovation on a house 10 doors away over the course of the last 6 months and put it up for £250k it sold inside 3 weeks for the asking price. Up until that point all 3 bed semis with good gardens, garage & drive were no more than £199k.

Now they are going up for anything between £220-250k and are gone in a week, blink and you miss it. Absolutely ridiculous.

My neighbours kid and her boyfriend just bought their first house for £325k, plenty help from the parents and a 40yr term. I'd be in tears paying that

Aberdeenlune, I saw a lot of guest houses going up for sale in Keswick over the last 3 months

I’ve been house hunting recently in Badenoch/Strathspey. Houses are mostly going to closing dates and that creates some big bids with people not wanting to miss out. I put a bid in for a house in Aviemore a few months ago which was 12% above the asking price. I was 5th lowest out of 10 bidders

We have friends who work in the community over there. They bought their current house by basically canvassing with letters in houses suitable in areas they wanted to buy in explaining them being priced out the market by by holiday homers......

It worked better than continually offering on houses that were always going to closing

Wee 2 bed mid terrace round the corner sold for 60k above asking price, right at height of pandemic.

Madness.

If nobody can afford to buy then prices come down.

I wonder how a CGT amnesty on the increase in value on second homes would affect things.
I guess it's harder to sell a second home, especially for accidental landlords if you have to pay a chunk of the increase in CGT. I'm not saying it's not right that they should pay CGT, but I'd be interested to hear if folk think an amnesty would help by increasing supply, especially at the first time buyer end of the market.

Anyone on here complaining about care costs eating into their inheritence is bloody silly.

Pay for proper retirement planning. Actually pay for it. Don't be a cheapskate and balk at paying five hundred quid that will protect hundreds of thousands of pounds.

The only reason I'm ****ed is that my mum is in sheltered accomodation that can't be ring-fenced in the way that private property can. Propertly can be put in a trust long before death and protected from the state.

Don't ask on a forum or try to do it on the cheap. If your in-laws won't pay for it - pay for them.

Jeebuz people.

It might have the opposite effect with many more people thinking buying a second home would be tax efficient. Though it could work if it was just for 12 months or so.

Property can be put in trust to protect it, then you have a parent terminally ill and the council will pay £500 a week so they end their days in a dump or your pay a £1000 a week to put them somewhere nice and sell to pay for it anyway.

I wonder how a CGT amnesty on the increase in value on second homes would affect things.
I guess it’s harder to sell a second home, especially for accidental landlords if you have to pay a chunk of the increase in CGT. I’m not saying it’s not right that they should pay CGT, but I’d be interested to hear if folk think an amnesty would help by increasing supply, especially at the first time buyer end of the market.

Interesting idea. Me and my wife are accidental landlords, because we’d both bought houses in our early 20’s. So kept one when we moved in together quite quickly. We still have it and think we’re fair landlords. Have pondered selling it but for what we’d “get” after CGT and EA fees, and solicitor fees it doesn’t seem worth it. As selfish as it seems now, I’ll hold onto it as part of my pension plan. If selling it released a better immediate return, I’d consider it. But it doesn’t so we’ll sit in it.

Pay for proper retirement planning. Actually pay for it. Don’t be a cheapskate and balk at paying five hundred quid that will protect hundreds of thousands of pounds.

Roughly edited as take a punt on hiding your assets, hope.your LA doesn't challenge and prove you put it in trust to hide it and take your chances dying in a dump.

A blanket cgt amnesty would just be a tax giveaway, like the sdlt.

If it were targeted to give long term tenants the right to buy it would be more a vote winner and fair.

Ianaa but I believe cgt dies with you, so there comes a point where you just let the investments tick on.

Absolutely reminds me of the late 80s early 90s crash.

My parents’ house they bought at the tail end of that - a “project” that had overstretched the owners and was still in a pretty poor state.

They’ve spent quite a bit in the decades since to get it nice but recently sold it for more than 12x what they bought it for in 1991. Bonkers. Goods/services inflation in that time would only double the 91 price.

I bought last year. I thought this all looked quite bubbly then, I think it looks even worse now. The "race for space" is very real, plus many FTBs have been living at home with parents since the GFC to save for deposits, and now are taking the plunge.
I don't know what will happen, nobody does, but I think flats/apartments will trail behind house prices for the foreseable future, as Working From Home is being cemented as a long term trend.
There are two big gaps in the market - suitable houses for FTBs, and suitable houses/bungalows for downsizing retirees. Housing policy has tried to cover both trends by building flats. But the truth is, people increasingly don't want to live in flats, and they may no longer function as the first step onto the housing market due to things like the cladding scandals.

Eh, in what way is it good for your kids. Do they both own multiple houses?

My kids are young teenagers so don’t own any houses no, they will inherit ours. It didn’t take a lot to work that out.

That's what I assumed. It makes no sense. Each kid will inherit half a house ( a third?). They'll probably need a full house to live in each. So they still need another half or two thirds, which is going to cost them loads more due to price increase.

In what way is that a good thing?
House price increases are only a benefit to people who have an excess of houses.
It doesn't take a lot to work that out...

A blanket cgt amnesty would just be a tax giveaway, like the sdlt.

If it were targeted to give long term tenants the right to buy it would be more a vote winner and fair.

Logical but how many tenants want to buy, I guess is the question with that proposal.

Estate Agents have just added on the Stamp Duty savings onto the list price of most properties.

It's not estate agents, it's just what happens when you have demand >> supply. Prices rise to maximum people can afford. Remove a cost in the process or reduce interest rates and prices automatically rise to reflect that cost. It's economics 101.

My tenants want to buy.

Between furlough and having a baby the mortgage companies decided they wouldn't lend them a (relatively modest these days) £115k to buy it. The repayments would have been £50-80 a month less than the rent I charge, and they've paid rent reliably to me for two years and 10 years before that was individuals not a couple.

They have a small deposit. They can afford it. They had a property they were living in to buy. But bank said no...

You say property goes up

I've just bought a house in sw Scotland for the same price price it was sold 10yrs ago.

Work that out...

My tenant would like to buy too, higher rate taxpayer and cant buy a 1 bed flat in current market, c 325k sw London.

Market needs fixing before all the current renters retire.

Problem is people can just keep buying property they don't need, just because they can. Property based wealth tax would sort it.

There's not a lot of big, nicely finished houses with only a couple of bedrooms. Would be attractive to downsizers or childless couples with dual incomes.

I guess we define houses with #bedrooms as opposed to M2.

I'd like to buy a new house, but I don't want a "family" home or flat...

In what way is that a good thing?

I have 2 kids. They will get a considerable sum for them to use on what they want, it may not be a house. The more it’s worth the more they get, not sure how it couldn’t be anything but a bonus to get more. I’m sure you can work that out.

You say property goes up

I’ve just bought a house in sw Scotland for the same price price it was sold 10yrs ago.

Work that out…

@RDL-82 certainly used to, hsbc turned us down for a mortgage in 2008 as the valuation was 15% under the agreed price, they said put that down on top of the deposit and you can have a mortgage (even though it was a low multiple), we pulled out

We moved last year, sold ours in February for £170k (3 bed semi in a slightly low rent area near Cannock chase) thought we did ok, paid £127k for it in 2004.

The couple next door but one put theirs up for sale a couple of weeks ago for £195k in slightly worse condition than ours and it sold in less than a week. It’s just mental. We’ve had an outlet village open just down the road but other than that I’ve got no idea why it’s suddenly worth an extra 25 grand.

That said, we bought our new house in September for £265k and I thought we overpaid, but then over the road went up for £275k just after Christmas and sold within 2 days for over the asking price. To first time buyers too!

They will get a considerable sum for them to use on what they want, it may not be a house. The more it’s worth the more they get, not sure how it couldn’t be anything but a bonus to get more.

I'm not sure why you're finding this so difficult to understand. They need a house to live in. They'll inherit half a house from you but still need to buy the rest of a house at vastly increased cost. You've been completely duped by the richest portion of society who do actually gain by having multiple houses....

Oh never mind. Yes you're right. It's brilliant that the houses we live in are worth so much. It's totally transforming our lives.
Hurrah..

I have 2 kids. They will get a considerable sum for them to use on what they want, it may not be a house. The more it’s worth the more they get, not sure how it couldn’t be anything but a bonus to get more. I’m sure you can work that out.

But presumably they will be middle aged by then.

And in the meantime, the higher house prices go, the more likely they will be priced out in the intervening decades

But regardless of what they spend the money on when they come to sell the house. The fact that it's been rising is still good for them. How is that so hard to understand?

But where are they living in the meantime?

I'm starting to get a glimpse of why the Tories are still in power TBH.

Very enlightening.