Repossession figures drop back

Permalink: Repossession figures drop back
by Gill Montia

Repossessions declined in the second quarter of 2012 with the fall in line with seasonal trends seen over the past three years.

According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), banks and building societies took back 8,500 homes, down from 9,600 in the first three months of the year.

In addition, the number of loans with arrears of 2.5% or more of outstanding balance dipped to 157,400 compared with 157,800 at the end of March.

However, while levels of arrears in lower and middle bands showed slight improvements, there was a small increase (from 28,000 to 28,300) in mortgages with arrears of more than 10% of the outstanding balance.

Figures for the year so far suggest that the CML’s forecast of 45,000 repossessions for 2012 as a whole is somewhat high but no downgrade is expected as the uncertain state of the UK economy may have a negative impact in the months ahead.

Commenting on the data, the CML’s director general, Paul Smee, says: “The figures show that lenders, borrowers and debt advisers are working together to get through the current period of economic difficulty and keep mortgage possessions in check.”