QUOTE (rb277170 @ 3 Apr 2008, 16:49)
<{POST_SNAPBACK}>The housing market will affect even those who are not moving. If they've got a variable rate mortgage the rates are going up , if they are coming out of a fixed rate mortgage they are facing a step increase. In the worst cases the credit squeeze may mean some people will not be able to remortgage at all. We have all lived in an era where people are bending over backwards to lend money- I think you will find that such sources are drying up.
Famillies are cutting back. It is also becoming more difficult to justify spending £100 on the new Hornby RXXXX for yourself when the family is sacrificing other things. So model sales will slow down- pricing will become an issue.
Russell
Agree with you totally, Russell. Saw a story on tv yesterday which said that the number of mortgage products had fallen from 15,000 odd to just over 5,000, which is probably no bad thing. The finance sector is panicking a bit because they don't know how exposed they are to this sub-prime thing that they should never have become involved with in the first place. The market cannot afford to grind to a halt, though, there's too much at stake. So I'm probably a bit more optimistic (just don't quote me on that when the bailiffs are chucking us out!)