Finance & Leasing Association11 February 2016
New figures released today by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that the number of second-charge mortgage repossessions was 228 in 2015 – the lowest level for at least seven years. In the final quarter of 2015, the number of repossessions was 33, down 58.2% on the same quarter in 2014.
The rate of second-charge mortgage repossessions, as a percentage of average outstanding agreements, has fallen from 0.34% in 2009 to just 0.10% in 2015.
In 2015, the second-charge mortgage market reported new business growth of 34% by value to £844 million, and 9% by volume to 20,647 – the fourth consecutive year of growth. Although new business was at its highest annual level since 2008, it remains significantly lower than pre-crisis levels, when it peaked at over £5 billion by value and 200,000 by volume.
Commenting on the figures, Fiona Hoyle, Head of Consumer and Mortgage Finance at the Finance & Leasing Association, said:
“Repossessions fell by 49% in 2015 as a whole, as second charge mortgage providers continue to do everything possible to help customers who are struggling with their finances.
“Second charge lenders are putting the finishing touches to systems changes, as they prepare to implement the Mortgage Credit Directive and MCOB ahead of the 21 March 2016 deadline. A huge amount of work has been completed to extremely challenging deadlines.”
Table 1: The number of actual properties taken into possession by FLA second charge mortgage providers1
| Time period |
Number of possessions in the quarter
|
% change on the same quarter in theprevious year |
Annual total |
% change on the previous year |
| 2008 Total
2009 Total
2010 Total
Q1 2011 Q2 2011 Q3 2011 Q4 2011
Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q3 2012 Q4 2012
Q1 2013 Q2 2013 Q3 2013 Q4 2013
Q1 2014 Q2 2014 Q3 2014 Q4 2014
Q1 2015 Q2 2015 Q3 2015 Q4 2015
|
195 234 220 178
151 139 163 175
226 183 144 123
128 133 107 79
72 67 56 33
|
-25.6% 1.7% 3.8% 11.3%
-22.6%2 -40.6%2 -25.9%2 -1.7%2
49.7%2 31.7%2 -11.7%2 -29.7%2
-43.4% -27.3% -25.7% -35.8%
-43.8% -49.6% -47.7% -58.2%
|
1,612
1,467
864
827
628
676
447
228 |
-9.0%
-41.1%
-4.3%
-24.1%2
7.6%2
-33.9%
-49.0%
|
- Possession proceedings arising from FLA members’ second charge mortgage books, which have led to actual possession by the second mortgage provider.
- There were changes to the sample in Q1 2012 and Q1 2013 due to changes in FLA membership.
Notes to Editors
- FLA members in the consumer finance sector include banks, credit card providers, store card providers, second-charge mortgage lenders, motor finance providers, personal loan and instalment credit providers.
- In 2015, FLA members provided £110 billion of new finance to UK businesses and households. £81 billion of this was in the form of consumer credit representing almost a third of total new consumer credit written in the UK in 2015.
