Mortgage repossession orders soar

Mortgage repossession orders soared by 66 per cent to almost 20,000 over the past three months, according to official new figures.

According to the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA), a total of 19,687 repossession orders wee made in the third quarter, the highest since the first three months of 1996.

The number of mortgage possession actions actually entered in England and Wales totalled 29,991, a rise of 55 per cent compared to the same period last year, and the highest since the third quarter of 1993.

The figures highlight the vulnerability of the housing market and the extent of the personal debt problem within the UK.

However, many of the repossession orders are ultimately not enforced, meaning the number of people forced out of their homes is far lower that the figures suggest. For example, in the first six months of the year 54,344 actions were entered, 32,366 orders were made, but only 4,640 houses were eventually repossessed, figures from the Council for Mortgage Lenders figures (CML) show.

"The increase in mortgage possessions fits with the slowdown in house price inflation," Alan Clarke, UK economist at BNP Paribas, said.

"The conclusion is there are still signs of financial stress among homeowners," he added.

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