Some government officials feel as though this steep rise in repossession orders is going to throw the housing market back to what it was like during the early 90’s; insisting that the government take action to make repossessions less “aggressive”.
So far this year 19,000 homeowners have been evicted from their homes, an increase of 48% on the first half of 2007. These figures are only expected to get worse, with The Council of Mortgage Lenders expecting that roughly 45,000 repossessions will have been made by the end of the year.
A repossession order is granted by a court and entitles a lender to apply to have the occupier evicted from their homes. This however isn’t always successful, and a significant number of homeowners seek help which helps them avoid having to leave their homes.
Officials state that they are ensuring the relevant advice and support is in place to help those that are under pressure from their lenders. It has been found though, that instead of using repossession as a last resort, lenders are choosing to issue orders before taking any other action.
Steps are being taken to try and relax the rules surrounding council mortgages, so that the thousands of families throughout England and Wales that are struggling to buy a home will have a better chance. Moreover, a scheme where the council would be able to take over mortgages and then rent back to homeowners is being drawn up.
As mentioned, many of those that have been issued with orders have been able to negotiate with their lenders to ensure that they do not loose their home. It is vital that any letters or phone calls you get regarding your repossession are not ignored as this will only strengthen the lenders case.
If your mortgage is becoming too much to handle, then it may be an idea to look into a remortgage on your home. As mentioned there are a number of organisations in place, specialising in mortgages that should be able to point you in the right direction.