UP AGAINST THE WALL......
Thursday, August 21, 2008 at 11:58AM I see that property developers in Northern Ireland havet warned that their huge debts could cripple banks if they are forced into bankruptcy. Leading banks are facing huge losses because of the collapsing housing market, a public meeting of more than 200 leading developers and others connected with the property sector was told. Many developers rounded on Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie for her proposal to make them contribute a portion of their developments for social housing.
Listen, these developers need to stop their incessant self-pitying whinging. Business is all about speculation and risk. These guys have been rolling in cash for years now and their serial greed and poor judgement has led them to the current crisis as their landbank crashes in value whilst their costs escalate. I see NO reason to bail them out and if they go bust that might be a good thing as more lean and hungry developers move in. Such is commercial life. Survival of the economically fittest.
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Reader Comments (6)
A bit of an international problem. I expect we'll be bailing out some mortage lenders here.
Mahons
They should be allowed to fail. Because if not they will have no reason not to inflate the next property bubble.
The philosophy of these people seems to be that when times are good they keep their profits, and when times are bad the rest of us should bail them out.
I hope the stupid greedy developers and the stupid greedy bankers who financed them both get a bloody nose. It just might teach them not to be stupid and greedy in future.
I don't have any sympathy for the property developers and speculators as they kept jacking up the prices of houses etc when things were "honky dorey". The people I do feel sorry for are the people at the lower end such as bricklayers, sparks, plumbers, carpenter/joiners, plasteres and labourers who may be facing being laid off quite close to Christmas who may have families and morgages to contend with.
That's the way it goes - and the housing market prices were grossly overinflated. You might make a good choice and end up ahead, or you might make a bad choice and not. I know someone who is pissed that their property lost value within months of buying it, they want some money back. That's not the way it works.
I feel bad for the regular guy, but the economy is either going upward or downward. There is no guarantee that we'll all have work and overtime. We have to scrabble and work and find a way to survive. We are lucky to live in countries that provide the structure to do that - even if it can be difficult at times. A person who owns property, in a country that recognizes individual property rights, is better off even when their property value drops for a time. It's not the end of the world. And if you're lucky enough to be in the market for a deal on property, you're going to come up smelling like roses. This 'crisis' presents great opportunities for many.
Absolutely agree with you David. Well said.