LiveMore comment on UK Finance mortgage arrears and possessions

09 February 2024

Simon Webb, managing director of capital markets and finance at LiveMore, commented: “Consumer Duty is obviously working, as the number of homeowner-mortgaged properties taken into possession is down by a significant 14%. However, the report clearly demonstrates that consumers are still struggling to make ends meet, with nearly 100,000 homeowners unable to pay their mortgages.

“When we see figures like this, we need to be particularly mindful of our older generations who are trying to pay unusually high SVRs when in fact they could potentially get a new mortgage. We surveyed more than 2,000 homeowners aged 50 to 90 plus and discovered that only 4% of 50+ year olds thought they could get a mortgage, which is outrageous. Later life lenders continue to widen their remit of affordability and the types of property they’ll lend against. We lenders and brokers need to let homeowners know this before they end up in these stressful situations.”