The Government is talking but not helping those in need
The government has been telling us for over a year now that they are doing everything possible to help those struggling because of the recession, however, new figures show that this is not true.
The flagship £285m mortgage rescue scheme has rescued a grand total of two households in its first four months of operation. About 1,084 households fearing mortgage repayment difficulties approached local authorities in April alone, government data shows. But only one contract was signed in April and one in March.
The government says that it takes three to five months to complete a case. Therefore the other claims are still in the pipeline.
The scheme allows not-for-profit housing associations to buy homes from people struggling to pay their mortgage and then allows them to continue living there by paying “affordable rent”.
The government had claimed that the scheme could help up to 6,000 households which might otherwise face repossession. The scheme initially amounted to £200m, but an extra £85m was added in April’s Budget, to help other struggling borrowers.
While 1,084 households approached local authorities for help in April, less than half were eligible. To qualify for the scheme, you have to be at risk of repossession and be either elderly, disabled, pregnant or have dependant children.
Of the 452 households that were eligible, 139 households applied to join the scheme in April. A total of 376 applications - including applications made earlier in the year - are now under consideration.
More than 70 of those 376 applications are in the final stages of the process. This means that any repossession action against them by their lender has been frozen.
Although this is a story of incompetence and missed chances to help people in need, there is some hope. The scheme is coming online and problems in the systems will be worked. With any luck, by the time they have got it working perfectly the economy will have picked up and the recession will be a thing of the past.
