Help please

RL07

Hi all, i am desperate for some advice please, my situation at the moment is back in March my Wife was diagnosed with cancer and has been having chemo and radiotherapy since. At the end of july she had a major operation to remove her colon and spleen due to chemotherapy damage and has spent the last 2 weeks in intensive care, she is now luckily pulling through.
I am signed off work and on incapacity benefit because of stress and to care for her and she recieves sick pay, trying to cope with everything and 2 children is hard enough but now i face my house being repossessed because i cant meet the payments, and being self employed any mortgage insurance wouldnt matter anyway.
I put the house on the market straight away and i have been seeking help from the local council for accomadation this is very hard to find in my area, my hearing is in october and despite my mortgage company knowing my circumstances they are still going ahead.
What i am hoping is that the judge may let us stay for a while as my Wife wouldnt be able to cope with this as well, i realise i have to give the house up and in the big picture of things i dont really care but i need time can anyone please offer any advice, many thanks

dalip

I am NO good on houses but wanted to say hoW very sorry i am to hear about your wife and wish her a very speedy recovery. Also welcome to the forum. DD or one of the house experts will be along soon so hang in there. All the best Dxx

skylight

Sadly, people and business do not go together with most companies. I can understand why they are looking for reposession if you cannot pay the mortgage - it is just very, very harsh upon your family given whats going on.

Council accommodation is going to be hard to find. Despite your circumstances, they will view not paying the mortgage as making yourself intentionally homeless and therefore do not have an obligation to house you. As you have 2 children though, they do have an obligation to look after the children so you will find yourself in hostel style accommodation for the foreseeable future. This is not suitable for your wife though. You may be better off having a chat with your housing officer and asking if they would pay for a deposit bond under the circumstances and you find somewhere privately to rent. The LHA (new housing benefit rules) should cover your rent as you are on IB. If they wont help, perhaps applying for a crisis loan to help pay the deposit may be more suitable. They would normally deduct a few pounds a week from your benefit to pay it back.

Have you spoken to the CAB?? They may be able to help legally with postponing the court hearing etc, but sadly at the end of the day, it would be just putting off the inevitable. The CAB will also be able to helo fight your corner with the council too.

And most of all, Big Hugs. I know its hard keeping your chin up at times like this and it is difficult being the strong one for your family. Post as much as you like, and please keep us updated with the CAB and court.

take care
xx

debt_doctor

Hi,

As said earlier the court has to decide whether you can afford the normal mort payment plus something off the arrears

First thing is to maximise your income. Your wife is entitled to High rate DLA care under the 'special rules'. Claim it immediately, it is £ 67.00 per week, and does not affect other benefits.You may also then be able to claim carers allowance for your partner.

I also do not see a mention of child tax credit / child benefit, could you please check these also.

We will all help here as much as we can

Best

DD

ekkygirl

Was going to suggest the DLA availability, Also have you tried to switch to an interest only mortgage this would reduce the payments for now. If not hang tight in your own home until you have to leave, The council should take into account your wife's illness when assessing homelessness.

fiveyearplan

Hi RL07 and welcome. I can't think of anything to add right now but just wanted to wish you well, I'm sure your whole family could do without this added stress.

debt_doctor

I agree that you should not be found intentionally homeless. Exeptional financial hardship and severe family pressures are a perfectly valid defence.

DD

RL07

Hi thankyou for your replys, we have been turned down for DLA once but have applied again through a mcmillan care nurse so fingers crossed, my Wife gets sick pay and around £300/month child tax credit and child benefit, i recieve £200/month working tax credits on top of incapacity benefit, so basically we cant meet the mortgage payments of £1000/month and its interest only.
Since my Wife was diagnosed i put the house on the market, also working with local council and a social worker based at the hospital, i realise i have to give up the house but i really hope a judge will give us some time due to circumstances, i think repossession now will send me over the edge, thankyou all .

RL07

Hi again has anyone any more advice please

fiveyearplan

THe only thing I would suggest is to chase the council and see what they can do. I honestly don't think the mortgage company will take anything into consideration. I'm sorry I don't have anything better to advise. Maybe someone else will come up with something.

RichOneday_2

RL07 wrote: »

Hi again has anyone any more advice please

The basics are that most repossession orders when granted are 'suspended'. This means that as long as there is a prospect of you getting the mortgage back on track you will get time. A judge will probably want to see at least the interest element of the mortgage being covered and maybe a token payment towards arrears. If you can manage that there is very little likelihood that a straight repossession order will be granted.

Also, don't be afraid of the judge being an ogre. It will very much feel like he is on your side and doing everything he can to help you, within reason. They have little sympathy for mortgage lenders at the moment. They see and hear about their underhand tactics day in day out remember.

fwiw Channel 4 at 8pm tonight - How The Banks Never Lose is all about this topic and why courts have little sympathy.

I don't know whether you have done so yet but, if not, ring CCCS in the morning and run through your circumstances with them. They are very good.