Thread: Please help - I am absolutely desperate!

I hope that someone may be able to see something that I'm not (pretty please!).

We are/were in the process of selling our house after having it burnt down (since rebuilt) and burgled repeatedly by the same guy for the past year. We are decent hardworking people and don't know this guy but he seems to see us as rich pickings. Hence, we desperately needed to sell and found a buyer at last.

The offer from the buyer was enough to settle the outstanding mortgage but we also have a £20k secured loan with First Plus. We applied to First Plus to convert the secured loan to unsecured so that we could sell and would continue making the payments as normal.

First Plus have today come back to us with their decision - they are refusing to unsecure the loan. Consequently we now can't sell.

We are so confused. We don't know what to do now. Our only options seems be either to hand they keys back to the mortgage company, let them repossess and then there won't be enough to pay First Plus. Or, stay in the house, which we just can't do safely.

The problem I guess with the first option is that Northern Rock and First Plus will then both pursue us for the shortfall which we can't afford to pay of course.

We earn enough to be able to keep up all payments but just have no savings and noone we could borrow it from.

We can't go bankrupt because even though I have lived in the UK on and off for 12 years I am not actually a UK Citizen -just indefinite leave to remain (I have a NZ passport).

Can anyone see a way out of this mess?

Thanks for taking the time to read my post - I hope there is an answer out there that I have missed.

Might be cheaper to invest in some CCTV and nail the ****** who is doing this to you?!

On a serious note someone will come along and help you soon there really good on here

Thanks PGH - we've already got the CCTV, a fully monitored alarm system and my husband has had to give up working nights so that he can protect me so not much else we can do on that front!

Thx for replying though!

Sorry, go the people mixed up! - PGH7447 - we're not buying anywhere else, we are going to rent. Can't get another mortage as have no deposit I'm afraid! Have lost £40k in this house since we bought 18 months ago.

Oh my goodness you poor things Maybe a shot gun is the next step?! Seriously have the police not intervened?

No, if only they would! He was bailed pending further investigations after burning the house down. There were 3 witnessess, of which all three pulled out of testifying in court (intimidated we suspect but of course noone will admit that). There was no forensic evidence as he burnt it all so they couldn't make the charges stick.

Since then he's burgled us again and there were again witness, unwilling to testify.

The system is a complete joke to be frank and I spend every minute of my life scared to walk out the front door.

Thanks Spamalot - this was one of the options we considered before trying to sell. We applied to Northern Rock for permission to rent the property out but they declined it on the basis that we owed more than 80% LTV.

Check mate.

Oh im so sorry for you , this must be awful. What about CCTV evidence did that not have him on it?

Originally Posted by Spamalot

Is it worth thinking about renting your property and continuing the mortgage payments as an investment and using the rent money to rent something for yourselves until you get yourself sorted out?

Have I just made sense or confused everybody!

same advise i was going to give the other option is get a big dog !!!

No, unfortunately not - inconclusive - he was wearing a hoodie pulled over his face so they couldn't 100% identify him. Not as stupid as he looks.

thanks Mr Broke - maybe that's the solution - but seriously, who wants to live their life like that! I think we must have bought a house in the worst street in the whole of the country (little did we know). Estate agent said it was a lovely family area. Pffff.

Hi, sooo sorry to hear your'e plight, Can I ask who your'e mortgage is with? I imagine that your'e outstanding mortgage is greater than the £20K secured loan?
That would mean First Plus would be a 2nd charge. I don't think they can prevent you selling as the mortgagee holds 1st charge!

Thanks for replying Bincrunched. The mortgage itself is with Northern Rock and yes - it's way more than the 20k that we have with First Plus. I know that First Plus can't stop the sale if the property has been repossessed but I didn't think that was the case if we are voluntarily selling it. Am I wrong? Any idea how I would find that out for certain?

Hi D & D do you have contents insurance that also provides legal cover? some policies do in which case they would know for sure! Failing that, Citizens A B should be able to help! However I'm fairly certain that First Plus cannot prevent the sale as they only hold 2nd charge which is taken as security to prevent you running off without pauying them! Not as a means to forcing you to stay because of a financial obligation that would be paid off in the event of the sale of tghe property!
First Plus probably thought you wre trying to extricate yourselves from their security! You may speak to Northern Rock & ask them your position
I know this isn't much comfort but try not to panic, I do think I'm right though

Thanks Bincrunched. I have spoken to our solicitor who has advised that the sale cannot proceed unless First Plus agree to remove the charge over the property. The sale would be halted at the final hour when it became apparently we couldn't settle the first and second charge.

Thanks for having a scout around for me Spamalot. If you see my reply above you'll see I've had an answer from the solicitor. Grrrrrrrrr. We owe £212k on the mortgage, are selling for £190k so already there is a shortfall of £22k on that which we are going to pay off at the time of sale (borrowed from family and savings). We wouldn't be able to pay off anything to Firstplus apart from our usual monthly payments - even if they hiked the interest rate we wouldn't mind - anything to get out of here!