IVA help may be needed in ‘repossession hotspots’

A new survey has indicated where repossessions in England are running at their highest rate, with this showing a strong correlation to unemployment levels.

Those facing the possibility of losing their home may find individual voluntary arrangements are the solution, as by freezing interest and renegotiating payments with creditors they can prevent repossessions.

The survey by housing charity Shelter revealed Corby in Northamptonshire has the highest rate, followed by the London boroughs Barking & Dagenham and Newham, while other high levels have been seen in Knowsley on Merseyside and Thurrock in Essex.

And the survey showed wider geographical areas have a tendency towards a higher rate of home losses, with these including the M62 corridor, Tyneside and coastal towns around the Wash and the Thames estuary, while the south-west and the south coast have low rates.

These figures broadly match unemployment levels and Shelter’s chief executive Campbell Robb observed: “We know only too well that the combined pressures of high inflation, increased living costs and stagnant wages are really taking a toll on people.

“All it takes is one thing like job loss to tip people over the edge and into the spiral of debt, repossession and ultimately homelessness.”

Many areas where unemployment has risen fastest are those where the most new jobs appeared in the boom years of 2004-07, according to a survey published this month by the Confederation of British Industry.

It suggested this means some areas have structural unemployment problems that were disguised by the boom and unless this is addressed, such areas may suffer the consequences of higher joblessness even while others see the numbers out of work fall.

Posted by Paul Thacker