Thousands of families in the UK face the threat of repossession due to missed mortgage repayments every year. It’s natural to hit panic mode when you receive that first letter from your mortgage lender, but it’s important to keep a cool head if you want to keep your home.
You need to move quickly, but you will have a couple of weeks before formal court proceedings start to decide what to do. It is a scary and stressful situation but the good news is that there are ways to avoid repossession.
5 Ways To Avoid Repossession
- Check If You’re Entitled To Benefits
If you lose your job or can’t work due to ill health, then you may be entitled to certain benefits so it’s worth finding out. Eligibility does depend on many factors like whether you have children, savings and income, but if you fit the criteria then it should ease the pressure on the monthly payments.
You should also check whether you have mortgage protection insurance. It’s there to help you when things get tough, and should cover repayments for a year or two to allow you to get back on your feet.
- Get Your Finances Under Control
To stop repossession, you have to repay your mortgage at some point; it is ultimately the only way out of it. If you haven’t already done it, then go through your monthly expenditure, and make sure there are no non-essential monthly spends. Every little helps at this stage, and you never know, it could be the small changes like this that make the biggest difference.
- Speak To Your Lender
Keep your lender in the loop of your situation if you’re struggling to make mortgage repayments. If they understand your situation, then there are a range of options that they can look at like extending your mortgage term so that your monthly payments can be reduced, offering a mortgage payment holiday so you can stop or reduce monthly payments for an agreed period of time, or taking out a new mortgage with lower monthly payments.
- Don’t Give Up If It Goes To Court
Even if your case goes to court, don’t give up. You can still negotiate and come to an agreement with your lender and stop your house from being repossessed.
- Consider Selling Your Home
If your financial situation isn’t likely to improve, then sometimes selling your home is the only way to stop repossession.
If you sell your home yourself rather than letting your lender sell at auction, usually means that you will get a higher price. That means more money for you and you’re controlling the process.
Speed is of course key in this situation, so that you don’t fall further behind in payments. Property cash buying companies, like Hull Cash Buyers, are the best solution; they will make a same-day cash offer on your home and can exchange on the property within a few days.
Are you facing repossession and need to sell your home quickly? If you live in Hull or East Yorkshire, call us on 01482 655346 and our friendly team will discuss our selling options with you.