₦airaland Forum

LionInZion:
💯
It's pointless educating people with such mentality. Just like you I'm also concerned about young people growing around people with such views. They'll psych them up to walk on eggshells all their life. Unfortunately, it is what it is. A man once titled his book Slaves Who Love Their Chains Will Remain In Bondage

Nice title- in this case it's not even loving the chains. It's believing the chains are there when they are only but an illusion.

Reason why I am strongly against some of the visa changes cos they perpetuate poverty which then has a way of debasing peoples mind. Someone who struggled in 9ja, then struggled to get into the UK and continued to struggle for over a decade while paying huge sums in fees might inadvertently think the reason they are suffering is because they are inferior or not intelligent enough. It takes alot to get a child who grew up with such mindset to succeed. Talk to an average kid in a grammar, private and state school and general difference in thinking and aspiration (which mostly starts from home) becomes evident

Goke7:
Apt! 💯 the story you shared the other day about those parents who rebuked their children for complaining about being sexually bullied in school comes to mind, I still struggle to digest that story but the kind of comments you see here validates that’s how many people still think.

It rings true. Imagine the son of such a person coming to tell him/her they were abused and called a monkey at school or their daughter returning to tell them she was touched inappropriately. Their response might just be - 'know you place'

Smartcitizen:
If you are intelligent you will understand that houses are used as store of value and not for immediate profit.

The house I built in 2009 with just about 4m in a land of 2m is being priced at 35m today and I'm not selling because that is for my boys future when he finishes his academics.

People build to save money because shares in Nigeria is rubbish.

This got me thinking

In 2009, 1usd was about 120 Naira hence 6m naira would have been about 50,000 usd

That same 50k usd is today worth 84 million.

That means you'd have made more if you had just held usd than buy and build (even accounting for rents).
Now imagine if that 50k usd was invested in global assets in 2009. That would be worth over 200m. Inflation and devaluation has truly hit our economy.

P.s I'm not speaking against your investment

airsaylongcome:
How many properly built houses do we have in Nigeria? Not up to 20% of new building are up to standard or code

If you're building to rent, then you should build it to standard and maintain it properly. It'd last decades

Sheuns:
A dilapidated house doesn’t appreciate in value.

A properly built and maintained house wouldn't get dilapidated. It's stand for hundred years and over.

Moreso, with real estate, the house is not manytimes whats driving value- it's the land it sits on. A dilapidated house in cental Abuja would still sell for hundreds of millions

CoronaVirusPro:
Real estate also takes time to appreciate while cost of maintenance keeps going. Why would I want to that. When I keep money working without doing anything.

Not advocating for either here. Just saying that one needs to consider all variables when calculating 'ROI'

CoronaVirusPro:
The most unprofitable business is building a house for profit.

Why spend 300m on a house you will have to wait for years to get to profit while maintenance keeps going on.

At 15 years, the house itself is already depreciating and only the land it sits on is appreciating, that’s even when you build in the right location.

Just sit that 300m in a money market account and start reaping profit instantly.

I don’t know who sold false narratives to people that building a house for rent purposes is profitable.

Good point.
But you also need to factor in the capital appreciation of the property/land to get the real ROI.

With property, the capital appreciation plays a much higher role in the eventual ROI than rent.

Sheuns:
It’s only in Nigeria that value of property keeps going higher. A house built in the 90s and abandoned would be selling for hundreds of millions. Ask them why it’s so, they’ll tell you you’re buying land.

This is the case in virtually every vibrant country in the world. Assests including houses and land appreciate.

LionInZion:
If everyone shared the same mindset as yours, there would still be transatlantic slavery, black people would still be enslaved and fed to dogs at the slightest provocation in plantations across western countries, women would still be ineligible to vote and drive.

Martin Luther and Malcolm X would be turning in their graves reading this. Anyway, all the best with your 'knowing your place' mentality. I refuse to be part of such.

Hehe... there are narratives that are manytimes not worth the effort to engage with. You are not going to convince a man who sees himself as little that he is not. It's largely thesame thinking that fuels the 'go back to your village' trope we sometimes hear in 9ja.


Today, when people come with such thinking I smile and observe. Afterall, some people would always scrape the bottom. My only appeal to them is not to let such narrative take hold in their children- cos if they offspring approach the world thinking they're being done a favour, they would be trampled upon by even people that look like them.

Two favourite quotes come to mind...

Goke7:
Very true o, just look at the way ICE is clamping on people all in the name of going after criminals to deport them, at end the farmers and hoteliers are the ones crying now that their workers are being targeted 😂 so tey baba Trump had to complain too. That’s when you’ll know how deceptive these rubbish they do are.

Hehe.. looked this up and it's quite interesting. One narrative after the other that there is no point following what he is doing. Ultimately, decisions have consequences.

Ogonsbaba:
Can you recommend the solicitors details as their price was affordable? Please, how many weeks did it take for them to complete the process and hope they are responsive? Thanks

My solicitors are local and most people prefer a local ones too.
A good way is asking for quotes from those in your vicinity and compare prices. Also, if you know those who bought around you of late, they'd have good info.
I gather Law Blacks Solicitors also have sensible prices

Senseless. These false narratives only lead to stereotyping

Goke7:
😂 you never sabi these people they are one of the most deceptive humans you can ever come across, forming posh and victims at the same time! It’s the same way the afrikaaners in SA who owns over 70% of the land in SA will tell you that how the govt is impoverishing and killing them

Hehe... humans are selfish but the UK has thought me that in developed societies, when you hear news of one group crying, you have to stop and think about alot of variables before responding. E.g why is the media reporting it this way e.t.c

Infact, manytimes the cry of the most impoverished goes unnoticed while the rich make the loudest noise. Wealthy farmers would protest paying a trumped down version of inheritance taxes, young people outside work would say 'the NHS has done nothing for me' forgetting they are in one of the most privileged societies in the world. Migrants have had it demonstrably tougher with each passing year but someone listening to the media would think we're loafing around all day leaching on the NHS with our many untreated diseases.

AKALAMAGBO:
I felt the same way.. the mistake I made was instructing them to go ahead.

Hehe.. It's not a major issue. A year down the line, you it wouldn't be a bother. It's still within the wider range

With my recent purchase, only one solicitor among the three I contacted gave a quote below 2k.
When I purchased my place a few years ago, this was my quote.

Solumtoya:
Time to remortgage as my 2-year fix is coming to an end. Barclays has a product with rate less than 4%, ie. 3.8% or so for 75% LTV. I just need the property to valued right so I can fit into 75% LTV with minimal one-off overpayment. If I can get sub-4%, then 5yr fix is a "sure banker".

Similar to me. I'm due later this year and hoping for a further drop in rates. 3.5 ish wouldn't be bad. Good enough, my estate devs recently increased the sale price of similar dwellings. I'm hoping that'd feed through into the valuation before I'm due.
Barclays publishes their rates online. I looked at them but wonder why the 10yr fix is so high.

AKALAMAGBO:
Can someone advise if this fee is too much from the Solicitor?

That’s the quote I got for a 3 bedroom house selling for £290,000…

Should I shop around or is that reasonable? NB: The EA referred them to me.

To me its a bit high. My recent purchase even as a ltd co was under 2k and the solicitors have been responsive.

Kenn55:
Hypocrisy at its peak.
You dislike Indians so much to the extent you denigrate them by calling them awon pajeet and you are allowed to be openly Indianphobia but others are not allowed to be homophobia.

You defend your Agege community but you can't defend the Indian community against MAGA. So much for being accommodating.

Anyway, I will take Indian community even with their fault over the Agege community anytime anyday. Anybody wey no like am, make e go chop Apple wey Abacha chop those days

Hehe. When someone makes denigrative statements about himself it's doesn't take long to see that there are deep seated issues with inferiority complex.

willyede:
More than nine million pensioners are to receive Winter Fuel Payments this year after Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed details of a massive u-turn.
Anyone with an income of £35,000 or below will benefit from the payments of up to £300 designed to help them stay warm in freezing weather.
It means the overwhelming majority of those who lost the money will become eligible again, at a cost of £1.25 billion in England and Wales, following an Express crusade demanding the allowance is reinstated.

This reversal captivates the dilemma every government has faced for the last 2 decades and it's the reason why many unsustainable bits of society cant be touched.

I can vividly remember the chap telling me of his plan to sell houses 4 bed house for over 500k, buy a bungalow and then use the remnant for a holiday house in France. Thesame breath he used in telling me how 'cheap' properties in France were was same he used to lament how this government wants to 'kill off all pensioners' because they took away winter fuel payments.

ehizario2012:
Good morning people, please is it practically possible to run through a mortgage process from start to moving in without involving a mortgage advisor? I mean doing everything by one's self? Thanks.

Saw you post on the mortgage thread and I see why you asked.
While its possible, I dont think its worth it especially for a first time buyer.

Most mortgage advisors would not charge you an extra fee for a residential property. The lenders pay them and for the most part, you don't get a discount if you go to the lenders directly. It's still thesame rate so why not let someone do the hardwork at no cost to you?

To me, except your application is straightforward, a good mortgage advisor can be very helpful. For renewals, it's a different thing

ehizario2012:
At what point would one know if the deposit would be 5% or 10%? I have two people that got 5% for new builds in Rotherham here but we're not so close and can't discuss those terms. Thanks

Once you start searching, you'd soon know the price range of the house type you want. You'd also know the max deposit you can afford beforehand.
It's worth having a chat with a mortgage advisor early on as they'd be able to advise on the prevailing rates you're eligible for. You then decide what rate to go for bearing in mind lower deposits would mean higher rates. 5% tends yo be specifically expensive

So in summary, for the large part, you're the one who decides

Lexusgs430:
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This is the exact reason I say, climate change/global warming is the greatest scam (before or after religion).......😊😁😂

Hehe... abeg save our planet.

Viruses:
Thank you for this information.

If I have a mortgage but didn't use it as my office address with company's house due to lender's policy, can I still expense part of the mortgage as I work from home?

What exactly does the mortgage policy state? It may be against converting your personal home into a business e.g shop but hardly against having a home office in todays world of working from home.

Also, I do not think the business address on companies house is a deciding factor. Many people use their accountants address for to protect their privacy but that should not stop claiming relevanst costs if part of your business operates from your home. Always worth clarifying with your accountant.

Gerrard59:
Well, young people of today in developed countries should brace their minds not to receive a pension when they are in retirement.


Largely in the south. The birth rate in the north is way higher.
https ://www. economist. com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/11/07/why-the-fertility-gap-between-north-and-south-nigeria-matters

It is not any high cost of living. People these days want to get everything at once - enjoy their lives, travel here and there, eat here and there, buy this and that, target this promotion and that, achieve this milestone and that, alongside bearing children. I am an advocate of fewer children since I am a Nigerian, but for the developed world, they have to choose a struggle. They cannot enjoy those material aspects of life and still expect an increase in the birth rate.

People say that often but if the winter feul issues is anything to go by, it'd be a while before we see a government that'd even think of significantly reducing talk removing more of removing the state pension. Reason I'm considering making voluntary contributions (though laws for those who have lived abroad might change)

Same thing were both saying. The global trend is also visible locally in Nigeria. On average (keyword: average), southern Nigerians tend to be more educated with less poverty rates than northern Nigerians. This has ultimately fed into birth rates differential we see locally. Even personally, my sisters have less kids than my mum who inturn had less than my grandmum. The education, quality of life and independence had conversely increased with each generation. This is not something to be frowned upon. The advent of a more interconnected world has meant many nations are having less kids before they even get rich. Africa is the major outlier as regards to birth rates and that is quickly changing.

oluayebenz:
I have never seen a real Canadian complaining about the pride month, so what's the fuss about it nah.

Immigrants sha, una own too much 😀

Who is a real Canadian?

Meogom:
Hello guys.
Trying to choose wilhich rate to go with
The options from Barclays are
1) 4.84% for 2ys fixed without product fee
2) 4.67% for 2yrs fixed with product fee of £900
3) 4.67% for 5yrs fixed with product fee of £900.

My mortgage advisor suggests we should go with the first option, as she's positive we can get better rates in 2years.

Whats your advice here please. Will appreciate your insights.

A few bits to consider
I had same thoughts two years ago but then, interest rates where at their peak and many people were worried about higher rates for longer. I felt inflation had dropped and rates should follow hence went variable. Now, I'm unsure about rates. They are likely to fall but it's unclear how low they'd go.

Few things to consider
Would you have ILR in 2 yrs?
Is your work situation likely to change? I.e go from employed to self-employed?
If you're convinced about rates, what is the variable rate for a 2yr fix?

For Barclays, the rates your broker would give you would likely match what the bank publishes online. Worth having a look at it. If the 2yr variable for your ltv is close then it may be better. From the ones listed, I'd likely favour the the 2yr fix thats cheaper overall.

The kind of workd people use to describe themselves her says so much about how they think and interract with the outside world. I used to think it's the new arrival syndrome many plagued with on arrival to the west but it's become more obvious it's a deeper complex issue of self-hate and deprecation.

In other news, I see Elon is the latest discardee -more would definitely follow.
Biko when would the Indians start getting it hot hot? Trump is almost 6 months in ooo

Gerrard59:
The pension system can be revamped in the following ways:

- Citizens handle their pensions
- Retirement ages should be increased to 75
- At a certain age, people should receive less pension.
- Unmarried people should be taxed THRICE as married people. Married people with no children should be taxed twice. Married persons with children should be taxed far less than any other group.

The core issue about low birth rates is not necessarily the costs (Niger Republic has a high birth rate), but modern day women who have deliberately refused to have more children or even marry at all. In East Asia, women are not marrying, and culturally, marriage comes before bearing children. The government should tax unmarried persons very high.

Hehe. These your policies would sure kick out any govt overnight.. There is a reason why PM after PM eventually turns to more migration.
Take the winter feul payments - older folks around me kept complaining about it at every opportunity. One said 'this government wants to kill off the old folks'. Same person has a second house in Spain which he and wife visit for some months every year. Another while complaining is also looking to sell of his house valued at over 500k, then get a quaint bungalow and use the remnant to buy a second house in France.

You can handle your pension if its a SIPP. Regarding state pension, there is no seperate money stored anywhere for it. Na classic ponzi - needs more people coming thru to pay. Finally, na person wey get money dey think abt management.
75? Dude, I'm not prepared to work to 75. Me that is already thinking of which Caribbean beach to routinely visit while sipping pina colada in my 50s

As societies prosper, birth rates decline. First high birth,high death, then high birth, low death then low birth, low death rate. That is where most are and frankly we don’t know what's next. People make the mistake of apportioning low birth rates to high cost of living forgetting the poorest parts of the world have significantly more kids. Even looking into most nations e.g Nigeria, same is the case.

Cyberknight:
There are definitely some efficiency gains to be found in every organisation, and these can be found down the line when the new councillors have understood their briefs and the organisations that they run, but ultimately the best long-term solution to getting councils to deliver value for money lies in properly increasing councils' revenue (anathema to Reform-ists and the magic-money-tree general populace) and/or reforming their single greatest expense - adult social care.

Hehe. Reason why I don't get some of the stress over Reform.
With the unforgiving nature of British politics, I'd much rather they have a stint at the helm of affairs than drive policy from the side without bearing any repercussion. Let them make Britain great again make we all enjoy. Only that it might be anxiety provoking for people on visas

It'd be interesting to see all the folks on benefits fare - those who think the reason they can't get their 6-figure cushy job or drive their choice care is because of dem migrants.

Emerald138:
Hi everyone, I've been in the UK for nine months now on a student visa, and I've been unable to secure a part-time job, even as a kitchen porter or warehouse assistant. I receive impromptu interview calls, and at the end, they ask about my visa status and when it expires.

When I tell them the month it expires, they say they can't proceed with my application.

I am at my wits' end as I have no way to pay my upcoming bills. I would greatly appreciate any advice, tips and help. Thank you

Have you considered going thru agencies? Students I know tell me they are more flexible. Also, as someone said, you could let them know your PSW is around the corner.

Gerrard59:
Generally, developed countries would have to increase birth rates or revamp the pension system. Something has to give in. The UAE model is good for even immigrants (after all most immigrants are economic in nature), but bad for the pension system in the UK. Another option is to increase taxes, but many wealthier European countries have high taxes and low birth rates. The UAE/Qatari/Singapore model fits smaller and wealthier nations. The alternative for more populated countries would be to increase the birth rate or rework the pension system.

Interesting post you quoted. Things have now matured.

True, the two issues you mention and the pursuit of low migration are what I call the three conundrums most developed nations are dealing with today. The fact is that none knows how to marry these three. Most were looking to Japan to learn but their struggle has become increasingly apparent.

So far, no nation has reliably been able to significantly reverse low birth rates. I think it'd ultimately get to a stage when having kids becomes more fashionable but that'd be decades/centuries away- time which many can't afford. Take the winter fuel payments that did this government the most havoc and its subsequent reversal or the U.S debt issue. Everyone wants freebies with someone else paying for it