Repossessions up by a third due to ‘historic arrears’

The number of properties being repossessed jumped by a third at the start of this year.

A total of 870 homeowner-mortgaged properties were repossessed in the first quarter of 2024, trade body figures revealed – up by 36 per cent on the previous three-month period and 9 per cent more than the same period a year earlier.

A further 600 buy-to-let mortgaged properties were repossessed in the first quarter this year, up by 20 per cent on the previous quarter, and 40 per cent on the same period in 2023.

The trade body UK Finance said the increase was largely due to historic arrears cases working through the court system, adding that repossession numbers remain very low compared with historic norms.

It said that mortgages in arrears accounted for 1.11 per cent of all homeowner mortgages outstanding, and 0.69 per cent of all buy-to-let mortgages outstanding in the first quarter of 2024.

There were 96,580 homeowner mortgages in arrears of 2.5 per cent or more of the outstanding balance in the first quarter of 2024, up by 3 per cent on the previous quarter. A total of 32,470 mortgages were in the most severe arrears bracket (over 10 per cent) – 6 per cent higher than the previous quarter.

Charles Roe, mortgage director at UK Finance, said: “Households remain under pressure from the cost of living and higher interest rates.”

Lenders will always seek to ensure customers remain in their homes and repossession is only ever a last resort after other options have been explored, UK Finance added.