Unity Homeloans to Kensington mortgages - Suspended Possession - HELP

[hedgehog0045]

A colleague of mine has asked me to ask this question.

 

He has mortgage arrears of £5k (7 months) due to period of unemployment and other family issues. he is now working full time and is earning £500 a week. He has a court date for a possession hearing and wanted to know what he should offer over and above the monthly payment that will stop his house from being reposessed?

 

Hope that makes sense???

[sequenci]

Try and clear the arrears in a reasonable time (usually 2 years is what the judges are looking for).

 

In the case of Cheltenham & Gloucester V Norgan it was decided that a reasonable period of time could be the rest of the mortgage term.

 

Whatever they decide to offer make sure that the payments are realistic and affordable, a second suspended possession order is much more difficult to obtain. Make sure your friend takes in a copy of their budget to show the court.

 

I wish them the best of luck!

[hedgehog0045]

He reckons he can clear them in 6 months. So I guess that is reasonable as long as he sticks to the agreement.

[sequenci]

well ensure that 6 months is achieveable. he might was to think about 12 months, that way you can factor in space for unforseen circumstances.

[hedgehog0045]

Just a quick question. With mortgage payments, is the payment acceptable regardless of which day of the month it is paid on just so long as it is paid within that particular calendar month in which it is due?

[hedgehog0045]

Thought I would post this on this here for better advice

 

I have a suspended possession order on my house which was issued 4 months ago. I have been paying the normal monthly payments plus and extra £450 to clear the arrears.

 

This month I have paid the mortgage amount and £200 of the £450. I have sent the mortgage company a cheque today for the balance of the £450 (£250) however I am aware that they may not bank this until tue/ wed of next week.

 

My question is, will they class this as payment accepted within the month or will they class it as defaulting on the arrangement and take it to court again?

[Guest wino]

Hi Hedgehog, I don't know if they will class this as payment within this month or not. I would ring them now to say you have sent a cheque so they can note this on your file. Most companies will accept this and not take any further action in regarding repossession. They tend to get a bit cheesed off when you don't pay and don't let them know what's happening. SO RING NOW. I'm sure you'll be fine.

[PriorityOne]

My understanding has always been....

 

If you move into a property on a certain date of the month... then the mortgage becomes due on the same date the following month. If you were to pay before this date, there shouldn't be a problem.... but if you were to pay after this date, then you would incur further interest on the account.

[Penfold92]

Just a quick question. With mortgage payments, is the payment acceptable regardless of which day of the month it is paid on just so long as it is paid within that particular calendar month in which it is due?

 

 

It does vary from lender to lender, however, always talk to the lender and they will usually not mind if the date is changed on agreement. Don't stop dd's etc and not talk to them. Paymnets made the same month should not effect your credit file, if they do query with them as it is updated monthly...

 

 

Hope that helps,

 

Penfold

[hedgehog0045]

We have a suspended possession warrant on our house which was granted to the mortgage company 4 months ago. We have paid the payments as ordered with the exception of this month. We are only able to afford the normal mortgage payment and not the extra for the arrears as I am self employed and due to the christmas holiday period have lost out on 2 weeks pay.

 

Question is will the mortgage company accept my normal payment only or will they apply to enforce the warrant?

[Ell-enn]

Hi there,

 

You should make the normal payment and contact the mortgage company to advise them of the situation - they should be understanding provided you can come to some arrangement to pay the missing arrears payment.

 

Who is the Mortgage company?

 

Kind Regards

 

Ell-enn

[hedgehog0045]

Hi there, the mortgage has just been transferred from Unity Homeloans to Kensington Mortgages.

[Ell-enn]

OK, you should definitely contact them to advise of the situation. Sub-prime lenders like Kensington are usually fairly quick off the mark with missed payments under suspended possession. If you can make the normal payment as soon as possible it will help your case.

 

Even if they do go for possession, you can apply to the court to further suspend as you can make the agreed payments going forward. If there is only the additional arrears payment for this month missing, you should be able to come to an arrangement with them to clear that at a later date. Any arrangement you make with them you should get the name of the person you speak to and ask for the address to write to them. Then confirm in writing referring to your conversation with Mr/Msxxxx on xxdate and detailing what you have agreed to pay - send by recorded delivery and keep a copy for yourself.

 

Please don't avoid contacting them or making a payment - the sooner you do so the better it will be in the long run.

 

Kind Regards

 

Ell-enn

[sillygirl1]

Don't forget that once you have paid off the arrears completely you need to get the court to close the case, otherwise Kensington will come after you again much faster as the original order will still be 'active'.

[rory32]

From CAG's mortgage FAQ's

My mortgage provider is seeking repossession what can I do?

 

Seek legal advice! Where your home is at risk this is beyond the scope of a self help forum, although some pointers to be aware of:

 

A mortgage provider can not evict you without a possession order from the court. If you leave without having received a possession order they need not obtain a possession order and can go straight for a sale order.

 

If they apply to court for possession you can rely on s.36 (2)(b) of the Administration of Justice Act 1970 which allows the court to suspend the possession order for such a term as the court considers reasonable. If the debtor can repay with in the reasonable time no possession order is granted.

 

Under s8 AJA 1973 in exercising the powers under s.36(2)(b) the court only has to consider the sums payable in arrears not any term which may render the full amount repayable.

 

What amounts to a reasonable period will depend on the circumstances of the case and can include the whole remaining term of the mortgage as occurred in Cheltenham & Gloucester v Norgan. This case also stated the factors the court will take into account when deciding what is reasonable:

 

Ability to make payments now and in the future

Likely duration of financial difficulty

Reason for arrears

The period of agreement remaining

 

So basically if you can show you can pay off the arrears over the remaining period the court will not order possession.

[rory32]

Some case law for you:

Royal Bank of Scotland –v- Elmes April 1998 Legal Action 11, Clerkenwell County Court

Issue – suspended possession order on payments less than current instalments

A district judge suspended a warrant for possession for three months on terms that the defendant pay £250 one month and thereafter £500 per month for two months, thereafter the case would further considered. The defendant had good prospect of obtaining employment within the period. The lender appealed in the basis the court had no power to suspend on terms of payment less than current instalments.

Assistant Recorder Thomas Q.C dismissed the appeal, and held that s.36 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970 enables the court to impose any terms about payment so long as the borrower would, within a reasonable period, be able to clear the arrears and pay the current instalments.

[hedgehog0045]

I have sent them the payment with the little extra I can afford and a letter explaining my situation along with my proposals to clear the extra arrears payment. Hopefully this will keep them satisfied.

[Ell-enn]

That's great - did you sent it recorded delivery? (just in case they say they haven't got it!)

 

Kind Regards

 

Ell-enn

[hedgehog0045]

That's great - did you sent it recorded delivery? (just in case they say they haven't got it!)

 

Kind Regards

 

Ell-enn

 

Oh yes and paid £4.30 to make sure it gets there tomorrow before 1pm.

[Ell-enn]

Great stuff!!

[hedgehog0045]

I have been under a suspended possession order since June for my mortgage of £700 plus £450 towards the arrears (Current arrears are £5400) .

 

I could only afford to pay the mortgage payment for december and not the arears payment. The mortgage company has now issues notice to enforce the eviction warrant.

 

How do I approach the court with regards getting the suspended order reinstated? Is it possible? They have asked that the full arrears of £5400 must be paid to stop the warrant.

 

Just to add that I am married with 5 children ages 15 months to 13 years.

[Killerschick]

Firstly I would recommend going to a CAB or law centre for advice, assistance and possibly representation at Court.

However, if you want to do this one your own when you receive a Warrant make an application to suspend it using an N244 (available on the Court Service website: http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/courtfinder/forms/n244_0400.pdf or from the Court office). Explain why you have not maintained payments under the existing order (£450 per month is incredibly high when your mortgage payment is only £700), give details of your new proposal and support this with a financial statement (the BBA/MAT one is particularly good hopefully this will link you to it: BBA - British Bankers' Association - Error - Page Not Found to show you can afford the payments. Make sure your proposal is realistic and don't be pressured into increasing it by the mortgage company it is better to get a low order and overpay than agree to the absolute maximum you can afford.

Bear in mind that the law (through the case of Norgan v C&G) says you have up to the remaining term of the mortgage to repay your arrears. Say your remaining mortgage term was 10 years (120 months) you would need to pay £45 per month on £5400, over 20 years £22.50 etc. That is the minimum the court are likely to accept so I wouldn't propose that little unless it is really all you can afford.

[hedgehog0045]

What are the chances of the court ruling in the favour of the lender though. It would be devestating for me to have to leave my home and I am really worried about this now.

 

I was pressurised at the initial court hearing into offering the £450 extra and in hindsight I tthink £250 would have been more affordable.

[Killerschick]

If it's a first suspension and you can prove your offer is affordable then your chances are very good. Equity in the property is also a positive as it shows the judge the mortgage lender is not at much risk. The Courts don't want to evict people who can repay their arrears in a reasonable period.

Even £250 a month is a lot - you'd be clearing the arrears in less than 2 years. Bear in mind what might happen if you had an unexpected expense and factor this in when making your calculation, the financial statement is quite detailed and should prompt you to think about expenses that don't happen every month like car tax.

[make them aktiv runners]

Please do not keep starting new threads as people often miss what you have said before.

 

On your other thread you stated that you have now made the December payment late together with a smaller portion of the arrears. First and formost you must do all you can to get the mortgage back on track, your best case is to ensure that your mortgage is at the level you had agreed to. If you are up to date with the previous agreement (£700+£450pm) then the judge will be more sympathetic.

 

Do a car boot sale. Make your own meals (no takeaways) and do packed lunches for the children - the food bill can usually be trimmed.

 

As you are self-employed you will have a good idea which months will produce better income. Use these months to get in front with payments, ie use your worst months as your "normal" budget and extras can then go to the mortgage.

 

Check out your entitlements. There is a free website where you do not have to identify yourself, just input income, and it will assess tax credits, council tax etc for you.

 

entitledto

 

Is the house that important. If you are living beyond your means it may be better to win the fight then sell yourself to buy something a little cheaper. After all, it is you and your family that may struggle far more than it is really worth struggling.