One of the most stressful times in a person’s life is when circumstances change and they fall behind in their mortgage payments, putting their home at risk.
Each day watching the letterbox waiting for that dreaded moment when they receive the letter confirming that a repossession order has been issued..
It’s certainly a serious matter, but is it the end?
Not necessarily..!
This is just one part of a lengthy process which can be very stressful, but armed with all the facts it can be less worrying than most people would imagine.
How did I get into this mess?
There is usually a lengthy process that leads to the Repossession Order being issued, which means there would have been a number of opportunities to protect yourself and your property and stop the process before it gets to this point. The usual reason that it reaches this point is due to fear of the unknown, not knowing what to do and to some degree, hoping it will all work out if you leave it alone.
It usually starts when something dramatic changes in your life. You lose your job, a serious illness, or a partner dies, whatever the reason you are now in a situation where you can’t afford the mortgage repayments so you fall into arrears.
Officially you are in arrears the moment you miss a single payment. However, there are lenders who will give a little leeway of about 15 days for the payment to be received before they attempt to contact you. This is still a long way from them escalating the situation to “Possession Action”, (the official term for repossession proceedings). Therefore the earlier you contact the lender the better.
There is a process called “Pre-Action Protocol for Mortgage Arrears” that a lender must follow before then can even start the proceedings to repossess the property, but by contacting the lender early you can slow down and perhaps halt this process.
By acting fast and explaining your circumstances, there’s a good chance they will be able to work with you to find a solution that works for you and them.
You may be able to agree a payment schedule, to catch up on the missed payments or you may be able to arrange a payment holiday, allowing you to add a period of missed payments to the end of the mortgage term giving you time to get your affairs in order.
As difficult and stressful as it may be, don’t ignore calls or letters, seek legal advice either from a Solicitor or contact one of the following to find out what may be possible:
Citizens Advice
National Debtline
Shelter
Should things be much further along and you have not been in touch with the lender, they may have now moved on to a point where they have applied for a Possession Order to take back the property, it could still take a few months before they can get possession.
It’s important to remember that up until they take position of the property, you still have the opportunity to pay off the arrears or arrange some sort of agreement with the lender.
Even if the lender has gone as far as going to the court and obtained a Repossession Order, you would still have 28 and possibly, up to 56 days to officially vacate the property.
However, there are different orders that the court may suggest such as a “Suspended Possession Order” which means that should you arrange a financial agreement to resolve the arrears, you could remain in the property, unless you fail to maintain the agreement, then the lender could action the Possession Order, but again this could take some time.
If you still remain in the property, then the lender would apply for a “Warrant of Possession”, which again could take a several weeks and if granted, means that the next step would be the bailiffs would be sent around to take possession.
Remember though, that up until the keys are physically handed over, you can still try to resolve the situation with the lender and as the whole of this process could take anything up to 8 or 9 months, your circumstances could possibly change again and you could agree a solution with the lender.
It’s all too much..! Is there another way?
If all of that seems too stressful, while the property is still yours, you do have the opportunity to sell and pay off the mortgage and any debts outstanding. If however, you have a property in negative equity you could still be left with a sizeable debt.
If that is the case, there may be a solution to help.
To investigate what can be done to help, drop us a line or give us a call for a completely confidential chat and one of our team will listen to your situation and work out what we can do, to find a solution that will be, the most beneficial for you.