15 out of 20

Some interesting property articles in the papers this morning, none more so than a league table showing which UK towns and cities had risen the most in value over the last decade.
On average the rise is 187%. For those of you somewhat mathematically challenged, this means that someting that cost £1 ten years agove is now worth just under £3. I know it looks weird, but 100% rise means £1 = £2.
Anyway, Newry is the greatest riser, at just under 5 times, and the smallest rises are in Scotland, where 15 out of the lowest 20 are. Even so, even Paisley and Greenock ( both pretty ghastly) have doubled.
Now the interesting this is that ( taking the average)and assuming a present value of the housing stock in the UK at about £3trillion, this means that 10 years ago it was worth in the region of £1trillion. So our collective worth ( before morgages) has risen about £2trillion). But at least £1triilion of that rise has been borrowed already, meaning that in the last ten years, in property alone, we have collectively, as a nation, increased our net worth by £1trillion.
No wonder thereis a feel good factor which buoyed NuLabour all these years.It's only now as things turn that the Tories have any chance to make headway. At the same time, people tend to change when they feel secure ( as they did in 1997) as opposed to unsure ( as in 1992).
And wars always start when the harvest is in, and revolutions when things are getting better and people want to move faster.