Repossession rate lowest on record in Q1

Today’s Council of Mortgage Lenders data for Q1 2016 put the repossession count at 2,100, with 1,500 accounting for homeowners and 600 buy-to-let.

Repossession levels were the lowest on record in the first quarter of 2016 – and if they continue in the same vein for the rest of the year 2016 will see the lowest number of repossessions since 1982.

Today’s Council of Mortgage Lenders data for Q1 2016 put the repossession count at 2,100, with 1,500 accounting for homeowners and 600 buy-to-let.

If the rest of the year matched Q1 there would be 8,400 repossessions, the lowest total since 1982 even though there are £11 million UK mortgages today compared to 6.9 million in 1982.

Paul Smee, CML director general, said: “We cannot completely avoid the risk of any individual household experiencing arrears or repossession.

“But lenders continue to work very effectively to help their borrowers through periods of difficulty when they do occur, and borrowers should be reassured that most cases of arrears can be resolved and will not lead to repossession.

“The key to dealing with difficulty is to tackle it early, and to communicate with your lender as soon as you think you may be facing problems.”

For the first time in more than a decade the number of mortgages in arrears of more than 2.5% fell below 100,000 at 96,200, down from down from 101,700 at the end of December and 111,200 at the end of the first quarter of 2015.