4 March 2009
Reading East MP, Rob Wilson, was joined by Reading West Candidate, Alok Sharma, and the Conservative Housing Spokesman for Reading Borough Council, Cllr Terry Byrne, this morning as they launched a Repossession Advice Pack, with practical advice for homeowners across Reading worried about meeting their mortgage repayments.
The Pack gives step-by-step advice for people who are concerned that they may not be able to keep up their monthly mortgage payments, and steers people away from making their situation worse. It can be downloaded from http://tinyurl.com/reading-housingadvice
This comes as new official Government statistics show a large increase in mortgage repossession orders being issued by the courts – with 313 being issued across the country every single day. A staggering 702 repossession orders were issued in Reading in 2008, an increase of 34 per cent on the year before.
Rob Wilson said, “As the recession bites and the number of repossessions soar, there are thousands of people across Reading worried about paying their mortgage. I have seen a rise in the number of constituents coming to my surgeries asking for help after they have been kicked out of their homes – one gentleman was having to live in his car because the Council refused to help him. I hope that this advice pack will provide people with some practical advice and support so that they may not have to lose their homes.”
Alok Sharma added, “There are many families locally who are worried about the very real threat of losing their homes. If anyone finds themselves struggling to meet their mortgage payments they should not wait until things get much worse but talk to their lender and also get independent advice from experienced organisations such as the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.”
Cllr Terry Byrne said, “This is an excellent document that brings together details of all the rescue schemes available along with some sound advice on how to manage the situation. At the recent Credit Crunch meeting I suggested that the council should be looking at the court lists to see when repossession hearings are coming up and contacting the owners before the event – with a bit of joined up thinking it should also be possible!”
The Pack gives step-by-step advice for people who are concerned that they may not be able to keep up their monthly mortgage payments, and steers people away from making their situation worse. It can be downloaded from http://tinyurl.com/reading-housingadvice
This comes as new official Government statistics show a large increase in mortgage repossession orders being issued by the courts – with 313 being issued across the country every single day. A staggering 702 repossession orders were issued in Reading in 2008, an increase of 34 per cent on the year before.
Rob Wilson said, “As the recession bites and the number of repossessions soar, there are thousands of people across Reading worried about paying their mortgage. I have seen a rise in the number of constituents coming to my surgeries asking for help after they have been kicked out of their homes – one gentleman was having to live in his car because the Council refused to help him. I hope that this advice pack will provide people with some practical advice and support so that they may not have to lose their homes.”
Alok Sharma added, “There are many families locally who are worried about the very real threat of losing their homes. If anyone finds themselves struggling to meet their mortgage payments they should not wait until things get much worse but talk to their lender and also get independent advice from experienced organisations such as the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.”
Cllr Terry Byrne said, “This is an excellent document that brings together details of all the rescue schemes available along with some sound advice on how to manage the situation. At the recent Credit Crunch meeting I suggested that the council should be looking at the court lists to see when repossession hearings are coming up and contacting the owners before the event – with a bit of joined up thinking it should also be possible!”
