BBC News have reported a decrease in homes being repossessed in the second quarter of 2009. However, it’s important to note that this does not mean that problems are over, and repossessions will decrease. As record numbers of people are being made unemployed, it’s expected that the number of repossessions will only increase as the year goes on.
The number of homes repossessed in the UK fell 10% in the second quarter of the year compared with the previous three months, lenders say.
But the 11,400 homes repossessed was a rise of 14% compared with the same period the previous year, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said.
The group said early advice for struggling owners, low interest rates and tolerant lenders were helping.
But rising unemployment could soon leave more householders in difficulty.
Low interest rates also meant that the number of homeowners falling behind with their mortgage payments had also levelled off.
The number of home loans with arrears of more than 2.5% of the mortgage balance in the second quarter of 2009 was 205,600. That compared with a total of 203,900 at the end of the first quarter, and 139,700 at the end of the second quarter of 2008.
However, separate figures from the Ministry of Justice gave a hint of a future rise in repossessions in England and Wales.
The number of repossession actions started in the courts bounced back in the second three months of the year, rising by 10% compared with the first three months of the year to 26,419.
The number of repossession orders granted by judges also rose over the same period, up 16% to 19,123.
Homeowners can still negotiate with their lender at this stage of the process to stay in their home. Nearly half of these repossession orders, 46%, were suspended as judges allowed borrowers to negotiate a deal with their mortgage lenders.
Read the full BBC article here
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