N244, Eviction date 20/08, Time to sell

[xxchris]

Hello, I hope someone here can help me. After having fought eviction successfully 4 times we have again fallen behind with 2 payments on our suspended repossession order, this time due to urgent works (collapsed drain) that had to be carried out whether we wanted or not as it was backing up into the house.We can prove that with paid invoice.

 

Long story cut short we want to put an end to this vicious cycle and sell the house ourselves, having had estate agents here over the weekend confirming that the house is worth more than we owe. And they think it should sell quickly because apparently there is a shortage of houses of this size in our area.

 

We have the money to bring the arrears up to date prior to the eviction BUT that's all we have - I worry that if we pay it and the Judge does not allow us to sell ourselves we have no money left to find a place to stay, as there are 4 children aged 10-16 in the property that is a very worrying scenario.

 

Can someone please give me advice:

Do we pay in the arrears and take such a huge risk or can we eg turn up at the Court with the cash in hand?

Is there any sample N244 around on here which quotes any relevant cases as I am mightily confused which ones would be the appropriate ones for our case?

 

I really hope that someone is online who can point me in the right direction as the last Judge firmly told us not to bother coming back...

[sillygirl1]

I have alerted the site team to your post, you shouldn't use a sample N244, you need one specific to your needs.

 

I would offer the payments to the mortgage company first and then go for the charges on the account, that would give you time.

 

If you do go back to court a 5th time you can also let the Judge know you are selling, have everything from the estate agents ready and it would help if you had an offer or two already.

[xxchris]

Turns out I have to put the N244 in before 4 today. I realise the time span is ridiculously short. If anyone can provide any insight at all I would be beyond grateful.

 

Many thanks.

[sillygirl1]

Put your case clearly and simply, don't use legal language as you could lead yourself into further trouble.

 

Basically state

 

I xxx have three children aged between x and x, their education would be severely disrupted by an eviction.

 

The arrears recently arose due to essential maintenance of the drains outside the property. Had this work been left undone it would have caused the property to become unsafe to live in and caue further damage. (include the invoices).

 

We are appointing an Estate Agent to sell the property, a recent valuation (include the paperwork) would prove that the value is sufficient to completely clear the outstanding mortgage account.

 

There are a lot of arrears fees, legal fees and other fees on the account which can be reclaimed and should help offset part of the mortgage.

 

Keep it as simple as possible and good luck.

[xxchris]

@ sillygirl1: Thank you. We have spoken to Kensington almost daily but they insist on all arrears (20K+) cleared in order to stop the eviction and we can only clear the arrears on the payments which formed part of the suspension (2 months). So with the eviction set for Thursday I am not in the position to speak to the lender anymore. Thank you for your help.

[citizenB]

Site team are aware and S.O.S has been sent.

[sillygirl1]

Offer the 2 months to them in writing (email is fine) then you have a trail of how they are continually making things difficult for them.

 

Try NOT to phone them as you won't have any records of what they say. If you do phone back it up with an email stating date and time of call (and duration of call), who you spoke to and what was said on either side (a synopsis will be fine). Again you will have a record of their behaviour.

[xxchris]

Thank you so much. I have sent the email but I don't expect them to reply. It has been said on numerous threads that case references are helpful, but I have tried to follow them through and found it all very confusing. Should I physically pay the money into the mortgage account or hold onto it in case the decision is not in our favour? I know that this is a difficult one but any thoughts are greatly appreciated.

[sillygirl1]

I would physically pay it, that way you can prove to the Judge how time wasting the continuing eviction proceedings are. Print out proof it has been paid and take it to the court.

 

When you go to court you could ask for the judge to not award costs to the mortgage lender and ask for them to refund you any costs they already have added after the previous eviction hearing.

 

Others will help but this is holiday period so people may not be online as much.

 

Any news?

[xxchris]

Well we have taken the advice and paid the money in... we will file the N244 first thing in the morning. I thought since we absolutely have to get the witness statement right it might be a good idea to wait if someone is around here later in the day.Thank you so much for your help thus far.

[Ell-enn]

Hi, do you have a copy of the contract with the estate agent ?

[xxchris]

Hi, yes - I have a Confirmation of Marketing complete with Initial Marketing Price. The brochure is ready, too and it will be live tomorrow. Is that likely to be sufficient?

 

Thank you.

[Ell-enn]

It will certainly help - are you able to make any payments while the house in in the process of being sold?

[xxchris]

Yes. We have a payment agreement from the last (suspended) eviction which we have brought up to date today, including the payments towards arrears, just August to pay now which we have to pay by the end of the month. And will. We can then continue the original agreement until the house is sold. We only fell short because of the drain works.

 

On the N244, would I ask for a Suspension of Eviction or an Adjournment of the case ...or the Right to sell the property first? And would I give reasons on the form or would I go with a Witness Statement? Thank you very much for your help.

[Ell-enn]

Hi, you should ask for suspension of eviction. Have a look at my guide here http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?325527-CAG-guide-Are-you-facing-eviction-or-repossession - page 16 shows an example of a witness statement for the N244 application - 14 &15 shows how to complete the form.

 

You will need to affix a copy of the bill for drainage , the estate agent contract, advert or brochure and also proof of the payment you made today.

 

Have a go at the wording for the statement and if you'd like us to look it over, post on here.

[xxchris]

I have a go at wording it now. Thank you so much for your help. Can anyone tell me if we have half a chance to get the right to sell ourselves?

[Ell-enn]

When was the last suspended possession order? Have you reduced the arrears since the order?

[xxchris]

At the beginning of the year. The arrears have come down by 2000 pounds since. We only want to be able to get six weeks or so to sell ourselves.

[xxchris]

Here it goes, any thoughts or help would be greatly appreciated. Many thanks...

 

We are the defendants in this case and respectfully request the court to consider the following information when hearing our application:

The changes in circumstances which led to the most recent suspension of eviction are still ongoing and we are able to afford the repayments which were agreed.

The arrears in June and July arose due to essential maintenance of the drains outside the property. Had this work been left undone it would have caused the property to become unsafe to live in and cause further damage. Please see the attached invoice for confirmation. This was a lot of money that we had to find in addition to ongoing expenses and we have informed the lender about the situation. We also promised that we would make the missing payments up which we have now have done.

We therefore have brought the arrears down since the last hearing.

Despite keeping the Claimant advised of the situation and making the offer to repay the arrears, they have refused to negotiate and demanded the full arrears to be paid in order to stop eviction.

We believe that it is best to use the current change in the property climate to sell the house and settle the mortgage account in full.

 

We have appointed an Estate Agent to sell the property; their valuation proves that the value is sufficient to completely clear the outstanding mortgage account including all fees. Furthermore we have been advised that the property is likely to sell quickly because there is a shortage of properties of this size in the area.

We believe that it would be beneficial to all parties if we were given the opportunity to sell the house ourselves as we are likely to achieve a price which is high enough to settle the mortgage account in full whereas the cost of an eviction and repossession/ auction would be likely to leave a family of six at the verge of bankruptcy.

There are four children aged 10-16 living in the property, one of whom is starting Sixth Form, another who is starting GCSEs, one starting Secondary School and one in his last year of Primary School education. Their education and opportunities to do well in school would be severely compromised if an eviction could not be avoided.

We assure the Court that we remain committed to making the monthly mortgage payments plus payments towards arrears as set out in the most recent Court order.

We would also like to point out that we have tried hard to reach an agreement with the lender even after the eviction date had been set.

We believe the above to be true and factual.

[Ell-enn]

You should insert the paragraph

" Therefore we respectfully ask the court to consider S.36 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970 when considering our application"

this should be inserted after the para starting We assure the court that we remain..........

[xxchris]

Thank you so much. I really hope that we stand a chance in court.

[Ell-enn]

When you take the N244 to court, make sure all your attachments are securely fixed together. Take a copy of it all before handing it in so you have a set to refer to in the hearing. You will need to pay the court fee in cash

 

Also ask the court if they have any duty legal advisers on the day of your hearing, if so you can approach them for advice and they can accompany you into the hearing to support you.

[sillygirl1]

Is there any update on this.