House Repossession in the UK: Facts, Figures and Advice

If you’re having financial difficulties and are faced with the possibility of having your home repossessed, you are likely to feel completely helpless. There are however, many ways in which you can delay the process of house repossession or stop it altogether.

There are a number of different reasons as to why your home may be repossessed including bankruptcy, default on secured loans and mortgage arrears. Statistics also show the direct impact times of national financial crisis have on the number of house repossessions taking place. For example the 90’s housing crash and 2008 recession had a clear, significant effect on the number of house repossessions during that time with their being a huge 92% increase in repossessions between 2007 and 2008 during the recession.

How Can You Stop House Repossession?

Although the thought of house repossession is daunting and incredibly stressful; there are steps you can take to postpone it and stop it happening all together. The process tends to go like this:

  • If you’ve missed your first monthly mortgage payment, you will be contacted by your lending agency or bank. You may face some kind o penalty or they may increase your interest rate.
  • If you miss a second monthly payment, you will receive further letters and warnings from the financing agency regarding the possible consequences of the delayed payments.
  • If you don’t contact your lender first, they are in a position to initiate the filing for repossession of your home sooner. You should contact them first to begin negotiating and discuss a payment proposal in order to give yourself more time.
  • The law requires the agency to inform you when they are beginning repossession proceedings. You can then contact a qualified professional for expert advice and help, or seek legal advice before you receive a court date or any further information about your house repossession.

The UK government also provide a free legal representation for repossession hearings in most major county courts which are known to have prevented 50% of immediate repossession cases when used.

If for any reason you are unable to come to any agreement with your lender before your home is repossessed, then you should consider getting a bridging or repossession loan or look into quickly selling your home before it is repossessed as you may get a better price for it.

This infographic created by Tic Finance features key facts and figures about house repossession within the UK, and also provides simple steps you can take to effectively deal with the entire house repossession process.

House Repossession in the UK

Infographic Source: https://www.ticfinance.co.uk/house-repossession-uk-facts-and-figures/

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