This time next year, President Trump moves back into the Whitehouse...

[Noggin]

You are showing your age now, they stopped burning second homes in the 70s iirc

Pretty sure it was the 80’s cos I remember that and I was too young in the 70’s for that to mean anything!!

[Cousin Jack]

I thought they all had second homes in Wales

The Welsh burned some of them down a few years ago, and the rest took fright.


Cornwall is stocking up on paraffin and matches, watch this space.

Funny way to address a shortage of housing.

No shortage of houses, just an excess of emmets. If all the second homes and holiday rentals were used to house the Cornish the problem would vanish.

[Count Steer]

The Welsh burned some of them down a few years ago, and the rest took fright.


Cornwall is stocking up on paraffin and matches, watch this space.

Funny way to address a shortage of housing.

No shortage of houses, just an excess of emmets. If all the second homes and holiday rentals were used to house the Cornish the problem would vanish.

Yebbut, if you're planning on burning them down the problem wouldn't vanish.

[mangocrazy]

You are showing your age now, they stopped burning second homes in the 70s iirc

Pretty sure it was the 80’s cos I remember that and I was too young in the 70’s for that to mean anything!!

Yes, the online sources I can find reckon the arson attacks started in 1979 and went on for about 12 years. No-one was ever prosecuted, apparently...

[Noggin]

You are showing your age now, they stopped burning second homes in the 70s iirc

Pretty sure it was the 80’s cos I remember that and I was too young in the 70’s for that to mean anything!!

Yes, the online sources I can find reckon the arson attacks started in 1979 and went on for about 12 years. No-one was ever prosecuted, apparently...

Can’t imagine they looked very hard!!

(I know, it really is t funny )

[Cousin Jack]

Funny way to address a shortage of housing.

No shortage of houses, just an excess of emmets. If all the second homes and holiday rentals were used to house the Cornish the problem would vanish.

Yebbut, if you're planning on burning them down the problem wouldn't vanish.

Burn down a few, the others will sell up in panic. Worked in Wales.

[Horse]

I thought they all had second homes in Wales

The Welsh burned some of them down a few years ago, and the rest took fright.


Cornwall is stocking up on paraffin and matches, watch this space.

Funny way to address a shortage of housing.

And scare away a (the?) major source of income for the area

Rather ironic if the comeovers moved out, prices tanked so locals bought cheap - but then the locals had no jobs so we're evicted, rehoused by the council, then the few locals with proper jobs were funding the councils.

[Cousin Jack]

You are showing your age now, they stopped burning second homes in the 70s iirc

Pretty sure it was the 80’s cos I remember that and I was too young in the 70’s for that to mean anything!!

Yes, the online sources I can find reckon the arson attacks started in 1979 and went on for about 12 years. No-one was ever prosecuted, apparently...

The Cornish Mafia noted that, and made a plan to burn down a few in Cornwall too. Dreckly of course.

[Cousin Jack]

The Welsh burned some of them down a few years ago, and the rest took fright.


Cornwall is stocking up on paraffin and matches, watch this space.

Funny way to address a shortage of housing.

And scare away a (the?) major source of income for the area

Rather ironic if the comeovers moved out, prices tanked so locals bought cheap - but then the locals had no jobs so we're evicted, rehoused by the council, then the few locals with proper jobs were funding the councils.

All joking aside, Cornwall has a major problem. Lots of (expensive) houses being built, almost no truely affordable ones. Lots of second home owners buying up stuff, ditto BTL for holiday rentals. And plenty of people in their 40s/50s selling up in London and moving to Cornwall as a step towards retirement.

Yes they all bring some money to the area, but not as much as you think. I live in a development with several holiday lets and second homes too. I see people unloading cars for a weeks let, and carrying in stacks of beer, groceries etc obviously purchased before they set out. Second home owners tend not to do that much, but they only use the place for 2 months of the year, the other 10 it is empty.

[cheb]

Funny way to address a shortage of housing.

And scare away a (the?) major source of income for the area

Rather ironic if the comeovers moved out, prices tanked so locals bought cheap - but then the locals had no jobs so we're evicted, rehoused by the council, then the few locals with proper jobs were funding the councils.

All joking aside, Cornwall has a major problem. Lots of (expensive) houses being built, almost no truely affordable ones. Lots of second home owners buying up stuff, ditto BTL for holiday rentals. And plenty of people in their 40s/50s selling up in London and moving to Cornwall as a step towards retirement.

Yes they all bring some money to the area, but not as much as you think. I live in a development with several holiday lets and second homes too. I see people unloading cars for a weeks let, and carrying in stacks of beer, groceries etc obviously purchased before they set out. Second home owners tend not to do that much, but they only use the place for 2 months of the year, the other 10 it is empty.

What's your workable solution to the problem then?

[Horse]

Funnily enough, my in-laws have just sold their retirement 'forever home' in Cornwall and are moving back towards civilisation.

And you're right. If we go down for a week, we'll take a fair chunk of the food and drink with us.

[DefTrap]

You'd think 2nd homes were now becoming 1st homes since COVID spoiled the idea that folk can't work effectively unless they're suited and booted at company HQ? Has Cornwall just got shit internet or something?

[cheb]

You'd think 2nd homes were now becoming 1st homes since COVID spoiled the idea that folk can't work effectively unless they're suited and booted at company HQ? Has Cornwall just got shit internet or something?

Working from home is great but who wants to live out in the sticks? I mean, how far is it to a decent cinema or theatre?

[DefTrap]

Working from home is great but who wants to live out in the sticks? I mean, how far is it to a decent cinema or theatre?

I thought you already were?

Personally there's not so much on often enough at any cinema or theatre that I'm going to base where I live on it. Taking "whether I can afford it" and "whether I like the house" out of the equation my primary criteria was based around the commuting distance. Knock that one out and then all i have to do regards the location is balance "the weather" and "proximity to family"

[Cousin Jack]

You'd think 2nd homes were now becoming 1st homes since COVID spoiled the idea that folk can't work effectively unless they're suited and booted at company HQ? Has Cornwall just got shit internet or something?

Some of these p, eople have multiple home is multiple countries. One not far away recently sold for £2.25M and prior to that had been used for about 3 weeks in about 5 years.

And yes, Cornwall has problems with internet and mobile reception too. Patchy problems, and the 1 or 2 days in the office is a real PITA when the office is in London.

[Cousin Jack]

And scare away a (the?) major source of income for the area

Rather ironic if the comeovers moved out, prices tanked so locals bought cheap - but then the locals had no jobs so we're evicted, rehoused by the council, then the few locals with proper jobs were funding the councils.

All joking aside, Cornwall has a major problem. Lots of (expensive) houses being built, almost no truely affordable ones. Lots of second home owners buying up stuff, ditto BTL for holiday rentals. And plenty of people in their 40s/50s selling up in London and moving to Cornwall as a step towards retirement.

Yes they all bring some money to the area, but not as much as you think. I live in a development with several holiday lets and second homes too. I see people unloading cars for a weeks let, and carrying in stacks of beer, groceries etc obviously purchased before they set out. Second home owners tend not to do that much, but they only use the place for 2 months of the year, the other 10 it is empty.

What's your workable solution to the problem then?

All joking aside, I can only see devolution giving enough local control to solve a local problem. And I am not holding my breath for that to happen.

[mangocrazy]

From my perspective as a second home owner in France, if all the Brits (and a smattering of other nationalities) moved out, the local economy would be on its arse. I pay a full year's Taxe d'Habitation and Taxes Foncieres and that comes to around €2000 per annum for around 3-4 months of occupancy. I'm perfectly OK with that, but the fact remains we are net contributors to the local economy. I certainly do my bit supporting the local domaines and caves...

Our gaff is surrounded by empty houses (three within spitting distance) and that would increase substantially if the non-French pulled out. They've even started having bi-lingual pub quizzes in the local bar, FFS...

[DefTrap]

Some of these p, eople have multiple home is multiple countries. One not far away recently sold for £2.25M and prior to that had been used for about 3 weeks in about 5 years.

Isn't the majority of the problem not a handful of multimillionaires on their jollies and more thousands of local entrepreneurs taking advantage by offering places out as AirBnBs?

I have a second home in name only because I couldn't make my mind up where I wanted to live. I certainly can't afford to leave it empty. If I could be arsed I'd AirBnB one of them I suppose and make a decent wedge more.
I think the Fronch think us furriners are nuts - buying up their old, cold, wrecked and bijou houses.

[cheb]

Working from home is great but who wants to live out in the sticks? I mean, how far is it to a decent cinema or theatre?

I thought you already were?

Personally there's not so much on often enough at any cinema or theatre that I'm going to base where I live on it. Taking "whether I can afford it" and "whether I like the house" out of the equation my primary criteria was based around the commuting distance. Knock that one out and then all i have to do regards the location is balance "the weather" and "proximity to family"

To have sticks we'd need to have trees. Very few out here.

I might not have been entirely serious. Where are we in the Sunday newspaper cycle of 'Move to the sticks it's aces' and 'Move back to the city because the sticks are shit'?

[cheb]

All joking aside, Cornwall has a major problem. Lots of (expensive) houses being built, almost no truely affordable ones. Lots of second home owners buying up stuff, ditto BTL for holiday rentals. And plenty of people in their 40s/50s selling up in London and moving to Cornwall as a step towards retirement.

Yes they all bring some money to the area, but not as much as you think. I live in a development with several holiday lets and second homes too. I see people unloading cars for a weeks let, and carrying in stacks of beer, groceries etc obviously purchased before they set out. Second home owners tend not to do that much, but they only use the place for 2 months of the year, the other 10 it is empty.

What's your workable solution to the problem then?

All joking aside, I can only see devolution giving enough local control to solve a local problem. And I am not holding my breath for that to happen.

What could the devolved politicians do that the national ones couldn't? Apart from demonising incomers?