JP Morgan/Rooftop Arrears fees- The saga continues.

[jotty]

Any advice please, we have a mortgage with JP Morgan which started in Dec 2007. At the time my wife and I have good jobs and although the monthly payments where high we felt we could easily afford them, the mortgage was discounted until Jan 2010 when we intended changing to a more mainstream company.

In the last 12 months things have changed as we know, my wife lost her job and had to take lower paid work which impacted on our finances, we ended up in arrears to the tune of £3200 on a £160,000 mortgage. I came to anagreement with the company to repay an extra £250 per month in April. In JUly my wife found a much better job but had to work a month in hand so I was only able to make a part payment.

We received repossesion hearing letters yesterday, which state we have failed to maintain the payments, the figure they quote doesn't actually include payments made this month as per the agreement.

 

So is there any point in writing to the mortgage company asking for a rethink, or are we about to lose our home ?

 

Please help someone.

[Ell-enn]

Hi there, the first thing to do is to write to the mortgage company (by recorded delivery) explaining the circumstances and your proposal to clear the arrears. In your letter you should mention the Civil Justice Council Mortgage Arrears Protocols, whereby lenders are to make claims for possession a last resort.

I can affix a draft letter with the above info for you if you wish.

 

You will also need to enclose a budget sheet with the letter (I have affixed one to this post). Remember when filling it in that the amount you are offering towards the arrears is the amount left over after everything else has been accounted for.

 

There is no way you will lose your home if you are both working and are able to pay towards the arrears each month. Judges would not order possession to a lender at the first time of asking and especially given your ability to pay.

 

Ell-enn

Budget Sheet.xls

[jotty]

Thanks Ell-enn, I have been sat here since 3am in tears (I'm 47 for goodness sake) and your advice has cleared my mind.

 

Off to work now but will do what you say tonight.

 

Thank you

 

ps could I have the draft letter please.

[Ell-enn]

Hi Jotty,

 

Affixed is the draft letter - you just need to fill in the blanks and also where I have put XXX's. Don't offer more than you can afford to pay - £250per month is a lot to pay on £3.5k of arrears. My advice would be to lower your offer in case you have emergency expenditure.

 

You should send the letter by recorded delivery - keep a copy of the letter and the budget sheet as this will form part of your defence when returning the N11M to the court (if they don't cancel the hearing).

Check on the royalmail website in a few days to print off the signature receipt and keep safe with the letter.

 

Also, make sure you have the correct address and department to send it to - even if you have to ring them up and ask (no need to tell them why you want it).

 

Any questions, just shout

 

Ell-enn

Jotty Letter.doc

[jansus]

Pre-Action Protocol for Possession Claims based on Mortgage or Home Purchase Plan Arrears in Respect of Residential Property - Ministry of Justice

 

 

Hi just to add a few words of encouragement. Ell-enn has given you good advice. Never agree to pay more than you can afford. If you make an agreement and stick to it you could ask for the arrears to be capatalised at a later date - or make additional payments if and when you can afford to.

If you have a read of other threads you will see that most hearings are not as bad as people imagine and if you can afford your MP you should be ok.

 

If at any time in the future you have a problem with your arrangement - at least pay what you can and let the lender know IN WRITING so that you keep a trail of correspondence in case it is needed in the future.

 

Hope it all goes OK on the 11th if you still have to attend.

[jotty]

Thanks Ell-enn and jansus, just done the letters, I have noticed that JP Morgan are £900 over in their arrears figure which is this months payment. They have written to me today saying that they are applying for a suspended order. Does this help my case at all.

[jansus]

Well you can dispute th figure in court as long as you can prove payment - you should be asked the question whether you agree the sum they are claiming for so you can bring that up then.

 

If they are asking for a susp PO that means if you keep to the agreement you should be ok. If you do not they will be able to apply for eviction quite quickly.

 

Are there any arrears charges included in the arrears figure they are using for court?

[Ell-enn]

Let us know what the reply to your letter is - we can then start to work on your statement for for the N11M defence form.

 

Ell

[Crapstone]

Thanks Ell-enn and jansus, just done the letters, I have noticed that JP Morgan are £900 over in their arrears figure which is this months payment. They have written to me today saying that they are applying for a suspended order. Does this help my case at all.

 

Don't take any notice of their intention to apply for a suspended order. It's part of their ploy for you to accept it and not defend your case, leaving them the option to enforce the order if you default.

 

Work out the actual arrears and have your day in court if they won't accept your offer of payment. You must attend any court hearing and you are in a good position to avoid a suspended repossession.

[GLADSTANES]

May I ask how many months are you actually in arrears because it does not seem like many to me?

 

This lender is being far too aggressive given the current guidelines.

 

Never give up, never give up, never never never. (W.S. Churchill)

 

All the best

 

Gladstanes

[jotty]

Its difficult to give exact months but the real problems began when we asked to change the payment date from 1st to 15th back in Dec 07, they did this but charged and extra £650 on top of the then very high £1200 normal fee as by changing dates it would incur interest this all happened the day we had gone xmas shopping so as we had drawn out what bit of money we thought we had left bascically £500, the payment bounced. Then the regular charges for the missed payment started despite me trying to get them to waive the £650 extra.

So I would estimate we are 3-4 months in arrears if that helps, bearing in mind the reduction in payments when my wife was out of work.

[jansus]

Dont forget the arrears figures they are using should not include fees - only the actual underpayments of the mortgage.

[jotty]

Hi everyone, not yet heard anything from mortgage company, letters sent last week as instructed.

What should I do next, do I need to go to the HMC online and enter my defence etc.

Hearing is next Friday 11th and getting a bit worried now.

[Ell-enn]

Hi Jotty, don't fill in your defence form on line, at this stage it's best to either deliver it to the court by hand or send by special delivery. Do you need help with the N11M form? Q.27 is the most important part, you need to write a statement with your offer of payment etc. I can help you with it if you need me to.

 

Ell-enn

[jotty]

Thanks yes please, will have more time tomorrow if thats ok

[Ell-enn]

That's fine, just let me know when you're ready to start.

[jotty]

Hi Ell-enn, thanks for your support.

I have now sat down and read the court docs and the Grounds for Possession. I have noticed a couple of things,

 

The actual figure owed is wrong, I owe a lot less as per my recent statement which does not take into account August payment. Also the particulars of claim shows evidence of payment over last 4 months where I made the full monthly payment apart from July when I paid 50% as my wife had to work a month in hand. Last month I paid the normal figure plus £150 as a gesture of good will, they wanted £300.

 

They also then give the impression that I have failed to make the monthly payment in full by quoting the figure before last 2 rate reductions, I have attached a copy of the claim, the payment is currently £588.

 

I cannot dispute the arrears but am trying my best to clear them, they have not increased and as said we are both now working full time.

 

Can I send you the expenditure form to check before we enter it on the N11m.

 

Thanks

[Ell-enn]

Hi Jotty, can you just confirm -

 

Is the mortgage in joint names?

Do you have any children?

 

Ell

[jotty]

Yes it is in joint names, and we have 1 son 19yrs who starts uni next week but will be home at weekends.

[Ell-enn]

Just a couple more questions (sorry:)) - nearly finished your statement.

 

How much are you offering towards the arrears in addition to the normal monthly payment?

 

Do you have proof of payments made in July and August?

[jotty]

We can realistically afford £100 extra, and yes I have their own statement for July and my bank statements for August showing the payments.

The aug one was 15th (normal payment day) £588 as required, 21st £150 extra.

[Ell-enn]

Hi there, statement affixed: you will need to enter the info where there are XXX's (remove the XXX's). Also, when printing it out ensure that your printer is set for A4 paper (not Letter size) so the statement fits on one page.

 

You will then need a photocopy of your letter to them and the proof of payments in July and August. Write on the top right hand corner of each of them the Claim Number.

 

In the box at Q.27 of the form write "please see affixed statement".

 

Then assemble as follows:

 

N11M form

Signed statement

Copy of letter

Proof of payments

 

This forms your pack for court. Now take a photocopy of all of it for yourselves as you will need it to refer to at the hearing.

 

We can go through the court hearing process after you have taken the forms to court (you need to do that tomorrow!).

 

Any questions, just shout.

Jotty Q.27 Statement.doc

[jotty]

Thanks Ellenn you are truly an angel.

 

One more question, my wife isn't really looking forward to going into court as she has friends who work there. Can I attend on behalf of us both.

[Ell-enn]

As long as one of you goes that will be ok (it won't be nearly as bad as you think!)

 

Get those forms to court tomorrow though..

 

Ell

[Crapstone]

Hi jotty,

 

Even though your wife would feel uncomfortable going to the hearing I think she would benefit from it and so could you. As Ell-enn said it's not as bad as what you think and with both of you there you can support and prompt each other so there are no awkward silences if questions are asked.

 

If I'd have just let my OH go on his own he would never have heard the end of it as I'd have wanted a blow by blow account of EVERYTHING several times over down to what shoes the judge was wearing.

 

It's nice just to have someone with you to share any ups or downs on the day so you can both laugh or groan together.

 

best wishes,

 

CS