A timely riposte

Listening as I do to so much of the output of BBC Radio 4, I find myself inclined to scream back when there are the interminable discussions on the topic of 'home ownership'. This English obsession, from my expatriate perspective, seems utterly absurd.

For this reason I was pleased to read an article in The Guardian this morning, which included the following paragraph:
  
"If we managed to import a German royal family, why is it not possible for us to also import the German housing system – slowly, bit by bit, along with their Christms trees and mulled wine? In Germany tenants cannot be evicted on a whim. Often landlords have to bribe them out if they want control of the property back before the agreed date. Property is of good quality, well soundproofed, spacious and well insulated. Pension companies often hold it, so you know where your rent is going: it is paying for your parents’ generation’s old age."

Full article here.