REPOSSESSIONS RISE

The impact of the downturn is starting to bite locally with house repossessions in Havering increasing by 10% in the last year.  According to information published by the Ministry of Justice, the number of mortgage repossession order issued by the Romford County rose from 1,025 in 2007 to 1,130 in 2008.  The national average rise was 19% with the total number of repossessions in England and Wales hitting 114,296 last year – up from 95,766 in 2007.

Commenting James Brokenshire said:

“Sadly, these figures underline what I’ve been seeing in my post-bag with more people raising concerns about their financial situation and keeping up their mortgage payments.  Whilst the increase in repossessions in Havering doesn’t appear to have been as sharp as that seen in other parts of the country, it’s still deeply worrying and 2009 is already looking very challenging.  What these statistics also don’t reveal is the serious trauma to the individuals and families concerned who have lost their homes.

“The key message is that if you are starting to get into financial difficulties you shouldn’t ignore the problem.   The sooner you contact your lender the better, so that action can be taken to deal with the issue.  Some lenders have telephone help-lines or debt counselling facilities to assist making contact. Help and advice is also available from a number of other organisations.”

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