LONDON (Thomson Financial) - An increasing number of homeowners are being
pushed to the brink by the credit crunch, with court orders for home
repossessions rising sharply at the beginning of the year, government figures
showed.
The Ministry of Justice said court orders for repossession were up an annual
17 percent in the first three months of the year, and up 9 percent on the fourth
quarter of 2007.
That increase pushed repossession orders up to 27,530 on a seasonally
adjusted basis, from just over 23,400 in the first quarter of 2007.
The ministry's figures do not show the actual number of homes taken into
possession because not all court orders are followed through. But industry
figures expect the actual figure to soar as well this year.
The Council of Mortgage Lenders says repossessions on mortgaged properties
are set to jump almost 70 percent this year to 45,000, from 27,100 last year.
The 2007 figure was an increase of around 20 percent.
alex.brittain@thomsonreuters.com
abr/nes
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