James (62) kept his home with the help of a mortgage advisor
The service kept him safe from homelessness.
James* (62) living alone, having major mobility and health issues, and in receipt of a long term social welfare payment, approached the Dedicated Mortgage Arrears adviser (DMA) service in a distressed and dismissive frame of mind.
James had been forced by the lender to put the house up for sale 18 months previously and was paying interest-only on his mortgage. Sale of the property would have cleared the mortgage in full, with €10k equity for the client. However, James was suffering from stress caused by concern about the possibility of being homeless in the future.
Lenders had been reluctant to consider solutions which involved the recovery of residual loan balances after the death of the borrower from his / her estate.
The DMA, drawing on knowledge of clarification provided by the Central Bank to lenders covered by the Mortgage Arrears Resolution Targets, regarding instances in which sustainable mortgage arrears solutions may extend into the borrower’s retirement, decided to build a case and work with James and his lender with a view to achieving a solution to his mortgage arrears.
The DMA gathered all relevant details and worked with James and his lender to develop a proposal for consideration by the lender. The proposal developed would see James staying in his home, paying interest only on his mortgage and the outstanding mortgage arrears being cleared from his estate, following his death. The lender involved agreed to consider this proposal.
“All I’d say is, if you’re struggling with debt, take a deep breath and get in touch with those who can help. Debt should never become a worry, and if it is, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.”
Following negotiation, the lender agreed to give James a five (5) year interest-only arrangement initially, taking the house off the market and agreed that at the end of that term, it would consider extending the arrangement with lifetime tenure.
This solution would provide James with the reassurance of knowing he would not become homeless, and gave him a certainty for five (5) years, at least and with a commitment that the lender would consider extending the arrangement with lifetime tenure at the end of the five (5) years.
James found it hard to believe that the lender was agreeing to this and was delighted that he could take his home off the market. He was extremely thankful to the DMA service for what he said was “possibly saving my life”.
If you are in mortgage arrears and fear you are at risk of losing your home, you may be eligible for assistance under the Abhaile service. For information, click here or call the MABS dedicated helpline on 0761 07 2000.
^The Insolvency Service of Ireland regulates Personal Insolvency Practitioners
*Names and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.
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