Law / Ikea suspends all investments in Poland [35]


Miranda, your economic knowledge is rather inexistant. They have tried rent regulation in Poland for over half a century and they ended up with the horrible and disgusting panelaks that r still littering the landscape.

As a rule, artificially capping a price only creates shortages. In this case the landlords would have little incentive to invest in properties (which means developers would have little incentive building them), offer their existing properties, let alone maintain the tenanted ones. In the extreme, you would actually end up with a government running the housing for the entire population, just like it was during the good old days of communism.

What you seem to loath, and rightly so, is the perceived landlords' greed. But that's simply profit seeking and that's a crucial component of a free economy. What is lacking in here is competition that would increase the offer and thus bring prices down. That's precisely where the government is failing, by creating all sorts of hurdles (zoning, red tape, tons of regulations..) before a single brick gets laid.

Trusting any government to solve a housing crisis is madness. Trusting a polish government is even worse.

PJ

Real Estate / Interest Rates for Home loans In poland [39]

I have two mortgages from DomBank and most foreigners I know of who bought properties in Poland have done likewise.

There is a good reason for that. 3 or 4 years ago it was virtually impossible for a non resident foreigner to get a mortgage in POland. Dom bank were among the few ones offering their deals through Open Finance.

A few other banks did too (BZWBK springs to mind but the amount of papers they required was hilarious) but as a matter of fact, Dombank rates were among the most competitive at the time.

Obviously things moved on a lot since then.

Point taken though. I will apply for 3 mortgages by year end for properties due to completion in 2009 and I will certainly use your services.

PJ

Real Estate / Mortgage prices and rates in Poland [28]


How times have changed.. I remember rednet as a mere clumsy real estate website 4 or 5 years ago, with an even clumsier boss, robert something I believe, who was harassing all UK based property brokers trying to sell them the latest off-plan deals.

I must say he did VERY well for himself and rednet is now barely recognisable.

Hats off to his entrepreneurial genius.

PJ.

Polonia / Polish people don't like clubs in Holland :D [15]

Might be of use. Some time earlier this year , around end of April I think, I got invited to a polish party in Holland, about 30km or so across the border from Germany (Elmpt). Cant remember the name of the exact location.

The party was organised by a dutch couple who, so it seems, have substantial investments in Poland, and also employ quite a few poles in Holland.

The couple are very friendly, the party is held regularly on Saturdays in a local bar. The usual Anglo pop as well as polish pop music played.

Now, I can think of a 1000 ways to better spend a Saturday night. I personally left after an hour. Just not my sort of thing. However, if anyone is interested I can ask around and try to get the exact details. Serious enquiries only please as I cant be bothered otherwise.

PJ.

Real Estate / Interest Rates for Home loans In poland [39]

@kneehawk JW Constructions, 1 at Lewandow Park and 2 at Osada Wislana. Or vise versa, cant remember.

@Andy b. BTL investors are by definition aggressive, and most of them would take a 100% LTV mortgage any day even if the rates are somewhat higher. Costs aren't an issue if they can be covered by the mortgage and the mortgage spread over a long maturity to keep repayments low. Problem with lower LTV mortgages is that the initial deposit kills u and ultimately reduces the number of properties u can get.

I personally wouldn't even bother listening to any bank offering less than 80% LTV even if it were at 3%. Pt is to get the highest LTV and the longest possible maturity. The level of interest rates is a secondary concern to the LTV and maturity.

A highly geared portfolio might be risky but in my view, no pt in going into BTL seriously as a business if someone is not comfortable with high gearing.

PJ

Real Estate / mortgages advice - buying an apartment in Warsaw [15]

Seek a broker and let them do the job for u. Too much hussle otherwise that is not worth it.

There are a couple of guys on the forum who go by the names of andy and daniel mascarading as honest brokers, if there ever is such a thing ;-)

PJ

Real Estate / mortgages advice - buying an apartment in Warsaw [15]

Just good natured banter. Nothing personal.

PJ

Travel / What are nightclubs like in Warsaw...? [33]

Clubbing is not taken that seriously anywhere east of Berlin. That includes Poland and all the way to Vladivostock. If u r/were a seriously well connected hip clubber in NYC, you might as well live off those exciting memories and forget about clubbing in Warsaw.

Travel / What are nightclubs like in Warsaw...? [33]


For some reason I doubt that's the sort of clubbing he is after ;-)

PJ

Travel / What are nightclubs like in Warsaw...? [33]


Take ur girlfriend and hop on a plane to London or Paris for a weekend, stay at a 5 star hotel (St Martin Lane or Hotel Costes to name a few), get the concierge to sort u out with all the guest lists and get a good VIP night out.

The only place in eastern europe that is likely to provide u with a VIP thrill is Moscow but it definitely is not for the faint hearted.

PJ

Real Estate / Interest Rates for Home loans In poland [39]

Hi Daniel

Could you please clarify what you've just said regarding refinancing a property in Poland, i.e. Could you please make no assumptions that some things are self evident.

I know u r not a native english speaker but better structuring your posts could help getting you customers.

Example: Ive got a property financed thru Dombank. Its value rose substantially, how can I remortgage the property to release cash, and what are the available offers ?

Thanks

PJ.

Life / Indian moved to Poland [532]


Correction. What Poland (and all the Warsaw pact countries) had is a tradition of misallocation and waste of resources towards ventures that had nothing to do whatsoever with what consumers and the population at large needed or wanted.

PJ

News / On the verge of new and ideal world [63]


Do not mind him, Human Life has always been cheap in the Russia.

PJ

Life / I AM BLACK. SHOULD I MOVE TO POLAND? [107]


Your really fancy sharing such deep thoughts on a web forum..?

Poland is fine for a black man as is most of Central and Eastern Europe, with the notable exception of Russia.

The only thing is do not go there to try to make it. Its tough enough for the locals and white Europeans alike.

Hence, u much better off going there as an established professional.

PJ

News / The past and future of Poland. Poland is lost. [113]


I cant think of many things that a foreigner would have to go to Poland and buy out of passion or deep desire. The country is a classic case of an ex communist state with all its ills, and has very little appeal. That's a fact.

Also, I cant believe that some people are still complaining about foreigners buying up property in Poland. If anything the poles should be grateful. That's called foreign investment and the money is recycled into the wider economy in more ways then u'd ever think.

PJ

News / The past and future of Poland. Poland is lost. [113]

I am not saying the place is hopeless, far from it.

I was replying to the person who seems to imply that every rich man and his dog are flocking to Poland buying up half the country. It simply ain't true. The country has next to zero appeal. And that's a fact.

The country has been in the EU for a while now and I don't know a single person in my entourage who is even considering going there for a weekend, let alone go there to buy stuff.

The only western foreigners I keep coming across in Poland are professional people who are there for professional reasons: work or business.

Otherwise there is the usual load of Ukrainians, Belarussians and so forth, who are just too happy to be around. But these are hardly the sort of people buying up the country.

PJ

Law / Child Support Payment in Poland [47]

Goon2020, whatever ur problem is, just pay a few hundred quids and get a solicitor and/or an accountant to sort you out.

Keeping ur child support to a minimum is no different to minimizing ur income tax.

Discussing an extremely personal issue on an internet forum is neither smart nor helpful.

PJ

Law / Child Support Payment in Poland [47]

Now why did I even bother intervene in a thread that, from the onset, had all the symptoms of slowly degenerating in the usual despicable manner .... I wonder.

PJ.

Travel / What are nightclubs like in Warsaw...? [33]


You just can't help bragging about ur girlfriend now can you :-)

PJ

News / Polish vs russian economy [57]


That's a fallacy and a common misconception. This has also been the official German dogma of a strong economy since the 50ies, i.e. having a positive balance of payment.

Suffices to say that, for instance, the UK hardly sells anything tangible, yet attracts much more capital than Germany. Likewise, the US which is chronically racking up huge deficits in balance of payments, attracts more FDI than any other country. There is a good reason for that: those two economies are much more dynamic and offer better return on investment than the rigid German one.

Given that you are a notorious Germanophile, no wonder you state such a view.


The question doesn't make sense. It is like asking which is the happiest of the two populations.

As the proverbial "you can drown in a river that is a foot deep on average" goes, GDP per capita, average this and that are mere statistical tools and mean nothing on a individual basis.

Can you actually describe how a "a solid 4% 2nd Quarter growth" feels like for the average Joe? of course u cant. GDP and the like are mere tools for politicians to keep fooling their subjects that they are actually doing something.

You need to look at the question from an individual perspective. Take a Pole and a Ruski at random and see who is wealthier, according to their own conception of wealth, and who is the more successful in his own pursuit of happiness. Whatever conclusion u'll come to, will only apply to that specific case.

PJ

News / Polish vs russian economy [57]

your statement was ambiguous to say the least. You seemed to imply that, as I said before, the larger the balance of payment, the stronger the economy. I pointed out that's a fallacy.


Saying that u need to sell stuff to be better off is fairly trivial and there aint much to say about that.

What people trade are good and services. Obviously the more goods and services they trade the better off they are. However, humans cant work on endlesslyy piling on goods. Each individual tends to work a certain amount of hours per day after which leisure time becomes more valuable to him than actually producing goods. Hence, saying that the actual amount of goods and services is the only valid criteria for measuring an economy is nonsense. As you may have by now guessed, productivity is another obvious criteria. If you r smart enough to produce the same amount of goods in about half the time it would take a dumb competitor, u r obviously better off economically speaking.

PJ

News / Polish vs russian economy [57]


That's overly simplistic and bordering on the naive, but I'll leave it there.

PJ

Real Estate / Can I buy a small farm in Poland? [49]

Joland & Co, u might fool the entire forum but u certainly wont fool the ever vigilant ukpolska :)

PJ

Work / british working in Poland with no language [43]


Phew..

Life / Studying the possibilities of living in Poland.. [34]


Given the questions u've asked, doesn't look like u did any research whatsoever, on line or off it. U probably are expecting to be spoon fed on this forum.

Grab a Ryanair ticket and go spend a weekend our there in Poland. U'll learn more than u'll ever read on here.

PJ

News / Polish vs russian economy [57]


.. and the Brits are leaving for Spain :-)

PJ

Love / Polish men vs German men: Who is hotter? [513]


I suppose it didn't occur to you that you might not be their type at all, even by their standards.

PJ

Life / Present for Polish friends ~ is anything hard to get any more? [57]

There were times in 1989 when some desperate Poles would cross the border to western Germany having 4 bottles of vodka.

Those were the days of the mighty Deutsch Mark.

The market price of 3 bottles of vodka (money they send back to their family) would exceed their monthly income back in Poland. They would then commit any sort of petty crime to be able to spend a month, fed and sheltered for free, in a German prison.

Na ja, times have certainly changed :-)

UK, Ireland / 2 years in London, maybe it's time to go back to Poland? [60]

true

PJ

Life / What is BIALYSTOK like to live? [19]


Are you sure? I drove from Warsaw to Bialystock (and back) last June and the trip took ages. Roadworks along a big chuck of the road, and the stretches that r roadworks free are not only of horrible quality but u get stuck behind huge lines of Lithuanian lorries and u cant overtake them. Also, correct me if I am mistaken, but there only seem to be 2 stretches of motorway that make a whopping total of ... about 15km or so.

Last but not least, the road is littered with well hidden Police vans operating speeding radars.

Now to the bloke who asked the question, mutley, the city has nothing special, if you really have to go live there cause ur mad in love and ur bird wouldnt live anywhere else then I guess uve got no choice. Otherwise there are far better places in Poland.

As for those saying Baltic sea is close, that's irrelevant. Its like saying Palermo is cool cause its by the Mediterranean sea. The place is a dump.

PJ