July 30th Irish Independent Report
Thousands of homes targeted for seizure by banks
Wexford Rentals and Property Management has read that’ BANKS have initiated legal action to repossess thousands of houses and apartments, it has emerged’ as written by Charlie Weston.
Wexford Rentals & Property Management reads that this is despite a loophole in the law blocking repossessions. A new report estimates that lenders have issued legal proceedings to take properties off up to 44,000 borrowers. These are made up of residential and buy-to-let properties, according to calculations contained in a new report by Davy Stockbrokers. An analysis estimates that what it calls non-co-operative borrowers number between 23,700 and 43,700. Letters threatening legal action have been sent to these borrowers. And there are fears that large numbers of properties, particularly buy-to-lets, will be repossessed. Wexford Rentals & Property Management reports that now is the time to ensure that you have good tenants on an air tight lease in the hope that the BANKS will let you make payments and retain your investment.
Charlie Weston writes that ‘Legal action to repossess properties has been taken by both AIB and Bank of Ireland in around one in five of arrears cases, according to the report by Davy’s Conail Mac Coille. Ulster Bank said that up to a third of its property owners in arrears were making no payments at all. The bank said it would not hesitate to repossess in these cases. Strong demand for family-type homes and the presence in the market of large numbers of cash buyers mean that a flood of newly repossessed properties can be absorbed. A number of banks were also likely to keep repossessed properties on their books, take the rental income and slowly release them on the market, Mr Mac Coille wrote. Changes in the law to restore the right of lenders to repossess properties have been passed by the Houses of the Oireachtas and are expected to become law soon.’
