Hall could be homeowners’ hero, but there is still a long way to go

IT IS fair to say the Government hugely underestimated the visceral hatred there is for vulture funds when it gave Permanent TSB the nod to sell off a tranche of residential mortgages.

Having bailed out the banks, and taken the pain in the form of higher taxes and elevated mortgage costs, consumers are in no mood to cut any more slack to banks or vulture funds.

But the backlash against Permanent TSB’s attempts to sell its non-performing loan portfolios has been much fiercer than the bank or the Government expected.

People fear vulture funds as unregulated, accountable to no one, lacking transparency, too eager to repossess, and paying little or no tax. They are not in a mood to see vultures take control of family homes.

A solution to the problem of non-performing mortgages could be that David Hall’s registered housing charity, iCare, buys up some of them.

There is no guarantee Mr Hall will succeed. But if he was to pull it off, it is a solution that could work neatly.

It would partially solve the bank’s problem by removing some of its unwanted loans, and avoid the Government being seen to sanction the sale of family mortgages to vultures.

If Mr Hall succeeds, he will be a hero for homeowners. But there is still a long way to go on this one.