The housing charity Respond has called on the government to consider
putting pressure on the banks to forgive some of the debt owed by more
than 80,000 homeowners who are experiencing difficulties with their
mortgages.
The Respond organisation has claimed that the government should
prioritise what it calls, “the mortgage arrears crisis” following this
week's announcement of an interest rate increase by the European Central
Bank (ECB).
According to the charity, the ECB's rate rise from 1% to 1.25% has
left many families bracing themselves for the impact on their budgets.
Respond, which has been housing lower-income families and individuals
for over a generation, acknowledges that the Government is proposing a
two-year moratorium on home repossessions and the greater use of
mortgage interest supplement.
However, speaking this week, Respond's
spokesperson Aoife Walsh said that these are only short-term solutions.
In a statement, Respond urged ministers to consider options such as
the banks agreeing to forgive the borrower the outstanding debt after
his or her home has been sold and the proceeds handed over in
part-payment.
Walsh said that while the bank’s calculate that one in ten households
are in arrears on their mortgage, the actual number of home owners in
arrears is likely to be much higher due to many banks increasing their
interest rates before this week's announcement by the ECB as well as the
impact that last January's Universal Social Charge (USC) has had on
reducing incomes.