Marked rise in repossession levels

A recent report has shown that the rise in repossession levels in the UK is resulting in around one hundred and twenty families a day being evicted from their homes. In the second quarter of this year it is said that one hundred and twenty families a day were losing their homes to repossession, which reflects a 70% rise compared to a year earlier. Furthermore, industry officials have predicted that this figure will continue to rise as the nation edges every closer to a deep recession and the global financial crisis continues to take a hold.

It is hoped that the recent interest rate cuts, especially the recent 1.5% cut, will help to reduce repossession levels by making it easier for households to keep on top of repayments.

One homeowner said: “I have been really struggling to keep on top of my mortgage repayments and at one point thought that I would definitely end up losing the flat. However, the most recent interest rate cut should make a really big difference to my repayments, and could be just the lifeline I have been waiting for.”

After the figures were released an official from the housing charity Shelter said: ‘These figures are not only shocking and worse than expected, they highlight the crippling severity of the credit crunch on ordinary home-owners.’

An official from the Liberal Democrats said: ‘The collapsing housing bubble will produce large numbers of casualties, as people fall into arrears unable to sustain mortgage payments. If conditions deteriorate further, the current stream of repossessions will become a torrent.’

One Housing Association official said that the number of applicants had been rising as more and more people found themselves losing their homes.

She said: “It is vital that lenders now try and modify loans and pass on any interest rate cuts to borrowers as soon as possible, as social landlords and local authorities can no longer cope with the influx of people looking for housing after being repossessed.”