Interest rates versus arrears arrangements

vstheworld

So, we're in the slightly unusual situation of a high income with a high mortgage on average, but a three-year gap where income was about average, or for at least a year, zero!

We had over a year where we had more or less nothing to pay to mortgage but managed to convince company that it was better to wait until I recovered to where I ought to be in my career. Putting it on the market and demonstrating that there was zero interest in buying at anything like what we owed helped.

We are now recovering and will clear arrears this month, which just leaves the COs and the unsecured debt to deal with... anyway.

The mortgage is now approx 1300 a month. The mortgage company have been good in the sense that we still HAVE the house but they keep sneaking rates up by fractions of a per cent. Obviously whilst we needed them onside we let that go. However another hike (OK nudge) has arrived this morning and I've realised we're now paying 100 a month MORE than we were before we got into difficulty.

Is there any regulation around this, given that base rates have been steady for all of that period and they're absolutely and totally aware of our situation? Obviously there's no way we can remortgage given that we've defaulted on 11 unsecured debts between us and two of them have gone to COs in my case.

Or is there any advice on what I might say to the lender now that we can clearly meet the payments but might even be able to agree to overpayments? Is there anything in law which would prevent us making some overpayments in preference to clearing the CO debts? (I'm not suggesting we don't pay ANYTHING to other creditors, I'm just looking at using the disposable income to service total debt in the wisest possible way.)

We're talking about slicing up around 2k per month here but I'm reluctant to use it to clear unsecured debt that is frankly not causing much trouble now. We're making token payments and after three years of pain there aren't any DCAs left that don't have a complaint from us so we really genuinely don't get much hassle.

Trentenders

Who is your mortgage wth and are you on thier SVR? Have they been sending you letters to state that the rate is increasing, or just that the repayment amount is increasing (perhaps due to penalties applied over the past year, in addition to backpayments that they may be asking for).

By the sounds of it, your stuck with your lender. Probably best to give them a call and ask what has happened(?)