London is only region to see rise in repossessions

A new analysis of privately owned homes with mortgages outstanding shows repossessions have risen in London - but they’re down in every other part of England and Wales.

Using data from the Land Registry on the number of property repossessed across England and Wales, the analysis found a nine per cent drop in the number of homes being repossessed in England and Wales between 2017 and 2018.

While the data for 2019 only provides a four-month snapshot so far, the figures suggest this trend is on course to continue with repossessions declining again in England and Wales overall.

Looking at last year, the largest annual annual drop was in the East of England where repossessions plummeted 24 per cent, followed by the South East and Yorkshire and Humber at 13 per cent.

The North West was home to the smallest decline in repossessions with a two per cent drop: the region has consistently previously ranked as the UK’s property repossession hotspot with 1817 properties taken back in 2018. 

London’s rise was only minimal - just one per cent - but bucked the trend of every other region/.

“We’re currently enjoying a very prolonged period of affordability where mortgage rates are concerned and this has no doubt helped homebuyers across the nation keep pace” says Marc Gershon, director of property developer Misuma and organiser of Winmyhome, which commissioned the research.

“However, while this doesn’t remove the initial financial barrier of a mortgage deposit, it has encouraged many homebuyers to borrow beyond their means and the danger of doing so is financial difficulty further down the line” he adds.

“As a result, there is still a consistent level of property repossessions taking place across all regions and while this may continue to decline in the short-term, a change in interest rates could see many more caught out.”