I was watching a talk show this morning and one of the debates was about re-instating the winter fuel allowance. One of the people who called up to speak to the panel was saying that she was recently widowed and now lived alone in a large house with only one state pension and a small private pension income from her late husband but she was just outside of the threshold to claim income support.
One of the panels advice was for her to sell her home and buy a smaller one. The lady was 81 years of age and had lived in her home since she was married many years ago. She said that when her husband was alive there was two state pensions and her husbands full private pension of which she now gets a small portion. She told the panel that there was no way she could afford to sell her house as they had used much of their savings when her husband was ill to buy medical equipment and keep the heating on 24 hours a day because of his illness.
She also said that heating a house for one costs the same as heating it for a family. She said she canno claim income support as she is abocve the threshold for claiming benefits.
I totally understand what the lady is saying because she could have been speaking about me. I live in a large detached house, get a state pension and a portion of my late husband's private pension and pay tax on it as well. I am also just above the threshold for pension credit so cannot claim any benefits at all.
My question is, why are we being told to downsize our homes, I love my home, I have been here since we married in the 1960's and raised a family here, my home is my heart, when I go out and go back home again I breathe a sigh of relief because I am back where I belong as I am surrounded by my memories. Also I am 84 years of age and could not do with the stress of moving.
I can manage on my income, that is not the point, the point is, why are we being told to sell our homes, get something smaller so we can afford to pay our energy and food bills.
To mend broken Britain has you put it doesn’t help when the government doesn’t care about our pensioners. The amount of money they give to prisoners and refugees is ok in your eyes, unbelievable some people
Cossy
heavenlyheath
Just tell your BIL to sell if he wants to he has worked hard for what he has don't let his money grabbing daughters have it. Make the rest of his life easy spend his money on his needs.
I absolutely agree
We quietly tried but it’s too late, new carpets arriving any day, decorators booked for after Xmas etc.
What concerns us is he thinks he needs a new knee and had a funny turn earlier this year so he is on his own there. The daughters live about an hour and two hours away.
He comes to us every so often for the weekend and all he talks about is how his house is too big etc.
If I downsized I'd need a bungalow. Not enough are being built and they are very expensive far more than my house
Doodledog
How is the £8m a day worked out, please? If people are here illegally aren’t they under the radar, and therefore cost nothing? As soon as they claim anything they are no longer ‘illegal’ and are either seeking asylum legally or deported.
..Re them costing nothing - well there was me reading an article only earlier today by a woman talking about her nice town with very nice standard University accommodation that is in process of being used to house "illegals" (wonder how much all that will cost....). As she pointed out - it's all ready for these a. men. b. military age group (18-40) c. short military haircuts d. gyms in these places to keep their fitness levels up to military standard. I must admit that got me wondering why they're being given such nice accommodation (at our expense) when many of us have problems having a halfway decent roof over our heads....
She has her own theories on just why (clue - the word "military") - and that gave me pause for thought and had me wondering. Though, like most of us, I do wonder why nothing particularly effective seems to be being done to keep them out....
One reason for downsizing is to free up a larger property for a family to buy. We sold our ‘ family’ hone when we retired and moved in to a smaller bungalow. No regrets!
Poppyred
I’m sorry BUT if you can’t take responsibility for yourselves WHY should the government help you out?
If older couples or widow/widowers in large houses decide to stay put for whatever reason that’s fine. Just don’t complain or expect handouts.
Totally agree, Poppyred. Agree that moving is stressful and fraught with difficulties but if it means moving somewhere smaller, more manageable, warmer and cheaper then do it. Ridiculous to expect to be subsidised if you decide to live in a property that is far too big for you. Unfortunately, however, because bungalows are in short supply that keeps the prices of them high and not everyone wants to live in a flat. There do seem to be many small terraced houses where I live though.
Luckygirl3
Moving house is a massive and stressful undertaking and very hard when older and with physical limitations. It is not to be undertaken lightly. I did so a few years back when my OH died and it took me some time to surface.
Also the presence of known neighbours and community are valuable assets to someone who is becoming less physically able.
Moving can also have a detrimental effect on mood through loss of community and also being in unfamiliar surroundings.
Ideas that seem great on paper are not necessarily the best on the ground and in practical terms.
Yes, moving house is stressful but the result would be a smaller house with lower outgoings and a simpler life.
You can pay people to help you pack and move, the estate agent(s) and solicitor deal with the transactions.
You speak of the local community, but for many people it is no longer that. When they first moved in and had young families there were neighbours of the same age and at the same stage in life. Over time people age and move on for various reasons. Some, like my mother in law, end up marooned in a sea of young working families with whom they have little in common. She had no local friends at all and a good-sized house and garden to maintain.
We downsized four years ago, it was a lot of work but it has been very worthwhile. We live in a very friendly mixed estate with a management company taking care of all our outside maintenance.
If you are an older person living in a house larger than you need that is fine provided you have enough income to heat and mantain it as well as look after yourself.
If you have a smaller income it often makes more sense to move yourself and your memories to a nice new home that suits your income better.
4 years before retirement we downsized from a 4 bed detached house with a huge garden which we’d brought our family up in to a 3 bed semi detached bungalow, with a small garden which was more expensive than the 4 bed house, so we had to use all our savings to pay for the difference
But I would do the same again in a heartbeat, the bungalow is easier to clean, the garden is easier to maintain, close enough to a bank of shops for when my mobility wanes as is my doctor’s, pharmacy and vets, with the local hospital being 10 minutes away on a direct bus route. It’s all down to what you need going forward memories move with you you’ll never leave them behind (unless you want to)
Freespirit55
To mend broken Britain has you put it doesn’t help when the government doesn’t care about our pensioners. The amount of money they give to prisoners and refugees is ok in your eyes, unbelievable some people
The amount of money they give to prisoners
???
I will ignore the refugee comment!
It is fine if you can manage in a large house and I hope you can continue to do so.
The reason given in Denmark for advising the elder generation to sell homes that have become too large and move into something smaller are the following:
A large house, especially if it is not newly built will usually be dearer to keep in a state of good repair than a smaller one. And we all know that if you decide to sell at some time, the value of a house in poor repair is far less than that of one in good repair.
Large houses are often set in fairly large gardens-
The older we become, the harder it probably will be to keep the garden looking moderately nice, as well as cleaning and repairing the house.
Those who have lived all their married or adult life in the same house have most likely a cellar and an attic, perhaps a garage and garden shed as well, crammed full of things we no longer need or use.
Yes, you can leave them there to rot, but if you have to move, the entire house etc has to be cleared. Do you really fancy that job in you late eighties or early nineties?
None of this advice is given here because of inflation or the cost of heating - but simply because since families stopped living two or three generations in the same property, or alternatively a stone's throw away from each other, it has become harder and harder for old people to cope.
The good thing about advice is that it is up to you if you want to take it or not.
Can the Pensioners in that sort of situation not close up completely parts of their house just for the Winter and turn the heating off in those rooms. If you close the curtains and draft exclude the internal doors the cold air won't get through. I know that I wouldn't mind moving to a smaller place but the cost and the upheaval puts me off and I'm just 72. No one expects pensioners to move out of their family homes but sometimes it an make their lives so much easier. Not to mention less worry for their families.
CariadAgain
Doodledog
How is the £8m a day worked out, please? If people are here illegally aren’t they under the radar, and therefore cost nothing? As soon as they claim anything they are no longer ‘illegal’ and are either seeking asylum legally or deported.
..Re them costing nothing - well there was me reading an article only earlier today by a woman talking about her nice town with very nice standard University accommodation that is in process of being used to house "illegals" (wonder how much all that will cost....). As she pointed out - it's all ready for these a. men. b. military age group (18-40) c. short military haircuts d. gyms in these places to keep their fitness levels up to military standard. I must admit that got me wondering why they're being given such nice accommodation (at our expense) when many of us have problems having a halfway decent roof over our heads....
She has her own theories on just why (clue - the word "military") - and that gave me pause for thought and had me wondering. Though, like most of us, I do wonder why nothing particularly effective seems to be being done to keep them out....
How are you defining 'illegal immigrant', and who do you think is putting them up in university accommodation?
For reference, the government explains that:
those who arrive in the UK illegally will not be able to stay here and will instead be detained and then promptly removed, either to their home country or a safe third country.
www.gov.uk/government/collections/illegal-migration-bill
Illegal immigrants are not accommodated at UK expense.
TopGunner
I thank my late husband for ensuring I would be looked after after he died. I get a share of his private pension and my full state pension and am above the threshold for claiming benefits but I am comfortable, can buy food and heat my home from morning until evening. Losing the winter fuel allowance has not made any difference to how I will live my life but like I said, that is thanks to my late husband and I providing for ourselves during our lives together and ensuring we had a comfortable retirement which sadly my husband only lived for two years after retiring aged 65.
I do think that people who have made the effort throughout their working lives to ensure they have a decent retirement are being penalised for the people who didn't and now expect handouts and benefits. Same with illegal immigration, these immigrants we know not who they are or what they have done in their own country, still get more given to them than any pensioner and to me that is absolutely diabolical.
As far as I am concerned the Labour government is more about looking after immigrants than their own British born and bred people.
I had empathy with your post until you started blaming 'illegal immigrants' . Tedious and ill informed,
Awful idea...especially for an older person...no idea who you are letting lodge in your home
Well said WaterMeadow.
At 73 (me) and 78 (him) I think we should have moved years ago. 5-bed detached, not enormous but now 50 years old. New roof being done as we speak. We can afford most costs (though council tax and heating are now sky-high) but the whole place needs work doing. This morning the toilet seat fell off and we have no idea how to repair it. The shower screen broke two years ago and causes the carpet to get soaked. I could list 100 small repairs that are long overdue (kitchen cupboard doors falling off, light bulbs burnt out, some rooms not decorated in 20 years. DH takes all day to mow the lawns (used take 40 minutes for the same area) and the rear hedges are grossly tall and brown instead of green. He now has mobility and posture problems. It won't be long before he cannot manage the stairs.
The house is full of "junk" (mostly his) that he refuses to even go through never mind get rid of. He would stay here till he dies, at which point I will be out like a flash. I can't clean it properly, even pushing the vac is painful. Getting a "handyman" or a cleaner in our village is imppossible. We are nearly half a mile up a steep hill (no buses) and the village has few shops worth visiting. We have to drive everywhere and DH is getting past it (struggles to get in and out of the car).
I have spent the whole of this year having cancer treatment with the hospital being 20 miles away and over an hour by car, two hours by public transport. No local taxis and Uber has never been seen here.
Elder DD lives 30 miles away and is busy busy. Younger dd is 200 miles away. Most of my friends are dead, though being a member of a few local organisations means I have places to go and people to chat with. But I could do that anywhere.
The new roof meant clearing the loft. DH said there wasn't much up there - but it took five visits to the tip (10 miles away) to get rid, and there is still loads left over.
A 3-bed semi-bungalow would do me fine.
DH does not notice the mess, never throws anything away, keeps his clothes on the bedroom floor and his study papers similarly. You can't get a hoover through the door in several rooms.
But that is me just griping. Re the purpose of the post, nobody should be made to move if they don't wish to and can maintain their homes properly but I would love a house where I can at least cope with keeping it a place worth living in instead of this crap I have got.
I definitely would not support public funds being used to allow people in large houses to stay there, mental health or not. My MIL lived in a 400-year-old 10-roomed "cottage" and when the roof caved in the council not only provided a new roof but installed a damp course, new electrics, central heating, bathroom and kitchen free of charge. I was horrified at that use of public money. When she died DH said he didn't want to sell it (family home and all that crap) but I know it would never have been maintained, not even cleaned. He hung on for 5 years like that before I insisted. Now I can't insist on anything and he would dig his heels in.
I might put it up for sale next week!!!
Well said . We are managing well but others, just over the threshold, are facing a bleak winter. Good toe you if you are willing to sell up and move to help fill the ‘black hole’ but don’t judge others’ choices .
Dinahmo
Have you thought of the ‘The viager system’
This French system helps elderly people, to realise the value of their house while still alive, and yet remain in their property. It effectively acts as a pension top-up.
You can live in your home until you die and the ‘owner’ has to pay for the up keep of your home.
A family member is moving from their 4 bed detached to a 3 bed semi adjacent to them, ideal.
Septimia
We have a house larger than we normally need. We don't use all of it all the time, but it is needed when we have visitors.
We are heavily involved in local activities, the community and church. If we moved we'd lose all that. Nearly all the other houses in the village are as big (and expensive) as ours, or bigger, so no chance of moving locally.
What's the point of isolating ourselves by moving?
This says it all 'we need a large house for visitors., so do you expect the government to subsidise you having visitors?
Primrose53
My BIL is widowed and lived alone. He is 75 and fairly healthy although he had a bit of a scare a few months ago and it made him think about the future.
He has a house in a very posh area where houses sell overnight but he says he could downsize and the garden is too big. He complains that it costs a fortune to heat. He is worried about the stairs in future. He has two daughters who only visit when they need something. His words.
He started looking at smaller properties then the girls told him to stay where he is! We all know they want him to stay so they end up with a very expensive house. They also put him off buying anything for himself, like a new car or a holiday but don’t mind him spending money on a new kitchen and getting decorators in to do the whole house and getting new carpets because obviously that benefits their inheritance.
I hope he takes some equity release if he stays in the house. No reason why he should be struggling to please his greedy children.
tictacnana
Well said . We are managing well but others, just over the threshold, are facing a bleak winter. Good toe you if you are willing to sell up and move to help fill the ‘black hole’ but don’t judge others’ choices .
I don't think it is about judging but if people are sitting in a big house saying they can't afford to heat it then the advice to sell and get a small house, easier to heat and hopefully money in the bank is good advice.
Madmeg
We've tried to update ours and keep it in a good state of repair since we bought it nearly 40 years ago.
Bathrooms replaced, new flooring, windows replaced, extra loft insulation, decorated etc etc. New loo seats (again) a couple of months ago.
However, we do need? want? a new kitchen so that's next on the list.
Then it will need redecorating again.
It is a task and a half and, of course, costs money, especially when you can no longer DIY.
The house is full of "junk"
We've started decluttering but are at that stage where it's in piles or spread out - what next?
Houses are like the Forth Road Bridge was!
Now I can't insist on anything and he would dig his heels in
I do understand.
Sometimes it's necessary to put your foot down very firmly!
theworriedwell
tictacnana
Well said . We are managing well but others, just over the threshold, are facing a bleak winter. Good toe you if you are willing to sell up and move to help fill the ‘black hole’ but don’t judge others’ choices .
I don't think it is about judging but if people are sitting in a big house saying they can't afford to heat it then the advice to sell and get a small house, easier to heat and hopefully money in the bank is good advice.
As I've said, that is all well and good if you can - and want to - do that, but it's not an option for everyone. I'd love to have a newer build, easy to heat house, but for various reasons, we can't sell.
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