For any homeowner, the threat of repossession is a real worry. Many people live day to day earning enough to meet their bills. Then something changes, and all of a sudden mortgage payments start to be missed. When payments are missed, your account with your lender is said to be "in arrears". Often after two or three missed payments, lenders will start to take action with the intention of regaining ownership of the property and sell it in order to recover the debt.
Just because you have gone into arrears and your lender is threatening court action doesn't mean you will lose your home. Often a solution can be found that is acceptable to the lender and you. Selling your property, refinancing it with the existing or another lender, or finding the money to pay off the arrears are just some of the possibilities.
Getting in touch with your lender is strongly advisable. By making contact you are giving yourself and the lender a chance to find a solution that is suitable for you both without the need for court. Some lenders are willing to help and can offer a number of solutions e.g. switching to interest only payments or increasing the term of the loan. Whether you can reach agreement with your lender will depend on your circumstances, but a judge will be more synmpathetic if you can show you have at least attempted to reach a solution.
Going to court, if matters reach that stage, may not be as daunting as you might think. Hearings about possession are held in private rooms in the county court with a judge. A legal clerk will be there to represent the lender and the hearing generally takes about ten minutes. There are no black gowns, wigs, public galleries, witnesses or a jury. Its your opportunity to explain what has caused your account to go into arrears and try to reach an agreement so that you can keep your home and continue to meet any revised payment obligations.
Generally speaking, a judge will grant you a suspended order if you can meet future monthly payments plus a small contribution towards the arrears, or you could offer to clear the arrears if you can gather the funds together to do that. A suspended order means you can keep your home provided you meet the agreed commitment. Paying off the arrears means your account is back up to date so the lender cannot repossess it. Other options such as refinancing or selling your home are only likely to gain extra time to get them through if the judge is satisfied that one of these options is sufficiently progressed and will be finalised within say four weeks.
Refinancing your home may be an option worth considering. However, in a repossession situation time is of the essence and the broker may not have any control over timescales or being able to guarantee you will be able to get the refinance you need. The fact that you are in arrears will also limit the availability of finance to you and the long term cost is likely to be very high. Selling your home is a further option but again beware that you will have very little control over the timescales and it may take time for an offer to be made and for the buyer to get the finance they need to buy your property.
If you are granted extra time at court, it generally comes in the form of a suspended possession order. This enables you to keep your home provided you meet the terms of the agreement set out in the hearing e.g. a commitment to make future agreed payments. Alternatively the judge may grant you an extra 28 days with a future hearing after that time to progress whatever solution you have proposed. If however you fail to win the verdict and the lender is granted possession you will generally have 28 days before eviction.
Repossession is a worrying time, but the key is to get as much information and advice as possible. There are a variety of voluntary and charitable organisations available to you free of charge to guide you through the process, answer your questions and discuss your options with you. Such organisations include your local Citizens Advice Bureau, Shelter and National Debtline.
Author James Bailey has an excellent working knowledge of the repossession process and has helped a number of people save their home in the UK. See more information, articles and obtain a full report on the repossession process at www.repossessionhelp.info
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