Repossession Ban!

luckylucy1977

Advice please if possible. I have tried to contact CAB but can’t get to speak to anyone and worried.

My sister has been struggling with the interest rate rises. She has 3 kids and both her and her husband work but they just don’t seem to have enough. She finally told me about her money problems and we don’t have any savings but I have managed to help her with an extra £100 a month out my salary towards her mortgage. However with the new rise and possible future rises I really can’t afford this now. She has tried looking into benefits but they are not entitled and have too poor credit for a loan. 

She has now said they have decided not to pay their mortgage for a few months while they sort themselves out. I know! What on earth does that achieve. I have tried so hard to explain that helps with nothing at all, literally makes things worse. However  she is convinced there is a repossession ban for 12 months. I did say I didn’t hear them say a ban but apparently she has been told none of the banks can carry out repossessions until June 2024 because of this ban. She keeps telling me it will be only for 2 months or so but I know she will do this for longer if she thinks she can’t be repossessed. She is not listening to any advice or can’t even understand how it won’t make things better because she will have even higher arrears.

Can you advise if there is a 12 month repossession ban?

I have looked into news articles but it’s very vague on the word ‘ban’. It doesn’t really sound like a ban to me.

thanks all.

amnblog

Depends on her Lender

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mortgage-charter/mortgage-charter#the-charter

if she is not paying, suggest you stop feeding the fire with your cash.

Sea_Shell

  amnblog said:

Depends on her Lender

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mortgage-charter/mortgage-charter#the-charter

if she is not paying, suggest you stop feeding the fire with your cash.

I agree with the above.   If they insist that they're going to stop paying, then you should too!!

They won't need your £100 will they.   

What you could do, is ringfence that money yourself, to maybe give them later, if push comes to shove, but only if you can still afford to.    If you can't, you can't, and you've been more than generous so far. 


Even if there was a BAN, it'll only delay the inevitable, if they can't (or won't) pay, and will still put them in arrears.    But if they won't listen to you, then they'll have to learn by their own mistakes, won't they. 

fatbelly

For decent lenders that was always the case. It's just now that there is general agreement that possession will not take place for less than 12 months arrears.

It doesn't change the fact that this is a priority payment because you can lose your property. Almost everything else is lower priority.

If she has already stopped paying credit cards, loans, catalogues, mobile phones, water, and electricity, gas, tv licence and council tax then i can understand. 

Otherwise, no, she's approaching this in the wrong way

Sea_Shell

Good point Fatbelly

Have they already stopped paying everything else?!     I bet they haven't, and this is just a knee jerk reaction to the "news".

TBH, if it were me, I'd be asking to see a full 'Statement of Affairs' before i gave them any more money, as it's likely savings could be made elsewhere, but they might not like the answer!

simon_or

In practical terms, the 'minimum 12 months between missing first payment and property being repossessed' is largely meaningless.

A bank repossessing an owner occupied property is a long winded legal process
- someone missing a first payment
- the bank picking it up, discussing it with them
- getting to a stage (repossession has to be a last resort for the bank) when they apply for repossession to the court
- court then sends out paperwork
- the defendant completes and returns the paperwork
- the hearing happens and (if it isn't dismissed or adjourned) the court makes a decision

All the above takes time and the likelihood of everything happening inside 12m is very very low, especially given the current state of our courts.

Caz3121

luckylucy1977 said:

she is convinced there is a repossession ban for 12 months. I did say I didn’t hear them say a ban but apparently she has been told none of the banks can carry out repossessions until June 2024 because of this ban. 

I am assuming she is referring to this....https://www.gov.uk/government/news/chancellor-agrees-new-support-measures-for-mortgage-holders
there is an article about it here https://blog.moneysavingexpert.com/2023/6/martin-lewis--the-new-mortgage--forbearance-rules---how-big-a-ch/

user1977

From my past professional experience, 12 months was a fairly typical period for the whole repossession process anyway (from first default to completing a sale) - you don't get kicked out the moment you miss a payment. It's an expensive and risky process for lenders, and the last resort for them.

fatbelly

And because LTV rates have come down, the lender's money is (nearly) always secured on an asset worth more than that.

They can afford a delay in liquidating the asset.

Doesn't mean that stopping paying the mortgage is the best course of action.

Get her to post on the debt-free wannabe board

silvercar

user1977 said:

From my past professional experience, 12 months was a fairly typical period for the whole repossession process anyway (from first default to completing a sale) - you don't get kicked out the moment you miss a payment. It's an expensive and risky process for lenders, and the last resort for them.

You would get kicked out from when the lender achieves a repossession order in court and the bailiffs turn up to evict you. The sale completing is irrelevant. Repossessions are sold as empty properties with the services taped up, not as homes with the repossessed sitting quietly while prospective viewers stroll through their soon to be ex-home.

Saying that, I would say it would be a good few months of negotiating with the lender before they pulled the plug and moved to repossession, so this 12 months rule probably adds 6 months to the timescale.

ACG

There is not a ban as such, they can still start the repossession process and go to court, get the order etc - they just cant physically evict you for 12 months (but I think you have to be up to date with your mortgage up until around the 15th July - dont hold me to that though).

These announcements by the government are nothing but smoke and mirrors. 

There is very little new in there. Realistically if you stopped paying today, it would probably take around 12 months before eviction took place anyway - by the time enough arrears, it went to court and bailiffs were in place. 

On a side note, your sister will also incur legal costs, late fees, fines etc and you would be amazed at how quickly the interest racks up when it is not being paid. 

She would be better defaulting on any loans/credit cards and then setting up a payment plan on them. The one bill you do not want to get behind on is the roof above your head (and council tax). 

If they have no debts and are genuinely just struggling to get by they need to downsize/downgrade. Accruing mortgage arrears is the worst thing to do. Downsize on your own terms not when you are 2 months in arrears or more. 

But I agree with the other comments, keep your money. Its safer in your hands. You can lead a horse to water and all that.