Escalating repossession rate must be tackled says Smyth

The Bailieboro based Deputy explained, “The hallmark of Fine Gael and Labour’s time in office is one of abject failure when it comes to dealing with home repossessions. Between 2014 and 2015, the number of repossession orders on family homes granted by circuit courts increased by 20%.  The last Government refused to take concrete action to protect homeowners and this has resulted in a significant rise in the number of individuals and families who have lost their homes.
“The next Government must make mortgage arrears a priority.  There are families across Cavan and Monaghan that are fearful of losing their home, and the last Government failed to fight the corner of these homeowners.  It is no longer acceptable to sit back and allow this situation become a crisis.  We saw that happen with homelessness and housing emergency, which has been exacerbated by rising mortgage arrears. This problem must be tackled.

“The Mortgage-to-Rent scheme has not had the desired results.  It was set up to keep people in their homes but unfortunately this is not happening – fewer than 3% of mortgage holders in arrears have applied to the scheme, and of those only 3% of them have qualified for assistance. The scheme is simply not working.
“Fianna Fáil wants to change this. We would set up a new system to help people at risk of repossession. We will adapt the system to provide sustainable solutions for people in mortgage arrears or facing repossession.  We would also ensure that banks are prevented from securing a repossession order if they have failed to comply with the Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears.

“This is an issue that we have been raising for some time and will continue to pursue a plan to help people at risk of repossession.'