Stories from court as home repossessions hit five-year high

Stories of people facing court proceedings to get their homes back were shared with the BBC Mortgage recoveries hit five-year high.

BBC journalists in eastern England and London attended various district courts as mortgage holders and tenants appeared before judges.

They included a couple who now owe £13,000 on a house they had bought, and a woman facing repossession of the house she left after her marriage broke down 15 years ago.

The BBC also heard that landlords were struggling with financial pressures; The agency that represents lenders said taking back a home was “always a last resort”.

Data from the BBC’s research team showed mortgage recovery orders in England and Wales reached 10,853 in 2024-5; this was the highest figure in five years.

Rising unemployment and interest rates have been contributing factors in recent years, said Andrew Goodwin, senior economist at Oxford Economics.

Correspondents were sent to the courts in the East at Northampton, Peterborough and Norwich, as well as the courts of Stratford, Wandsworth and Croydon in London, to hear the cases and pressures faced by mortgagees and tenants.

The courts heard cases regarding both mortgage and rent recovery.

A former management consultant in Croydon said he and his wife had lost their jobs in 2024 and were left with mortgage debt.

She said the prospect of losing her son’s childhood home hit her hard, adding that it was “the perfect place for us.” Now they have until March to pay off debts.

A weeping woman who had not lived on her own property for a long time in Stratford 15 years after his marriage broke up The house, which owed £87,000 in mortgage debt, was repossessed.

Other stories heard throughout the day included:

• 3 houses were seized less than an hour at Stratford Magistrates’ Court, including one who owes £87,672
• A case of Wandsworth 30 year tenant was in danger of losing his rental property because his landlord had to increase the rent
• A 75-year-old man living in social housing in Peterborough told a court he owed nearly £3,000 worth of debt. victim of a scam
• A single mother in Norwich County Court owed £5,200 to landlord unpaid rent

Those who were in danger of losing their homes were not the only ones who shared their problems.

Caseworkers and lawyers in the courts explained: “moved” with requests for help.

“Until a few years ago when I started my career I would think to myself ‘this person is not going to end up homeless’,” said Angus King, a housing lawyer at Southwark Law Centre.

“I knew we would find a way to keep them out of this, but that’s not the case anymore.”

Southwark Law Center housing cases worker Billy Harding, speaking at Wandsworth District Court on Wednesday, said people were emerging at “crisis point”.

The BBC found that across England the number of people seeking help from their council to prevent homelessness is increasing.

Figures from 244 councils that responded to Freedom of Information requests showed three-quarters of them reported an increase.

Broxbourne in Hertfordshire had the highest rate in 2024/25; here 95 out of 100,000 people were seeking help.

Similarly, bailiff repossessions was rising again After the decline during the Covid-19 pandemic.

A landlord attending Norwich County Court also told how anxious he was about coming to court to collect £2,200 in unpaid rent.

He told the judge that the tenant, a carpenter, offered to repair the property’s windows in lieu of rent.

“It wasn’t a problem, but he never got back to me about it,” he said.

A lawyer speaking on behalf of landlords in a separate courtroom said landlords also had bills to pay or financial problems and could not be expected to provide financial support to their tenants.

Karina Hutchins from UK Finance, which represents the banking industry, said taking back a home was “always a last resort” for lenders.

With additional reporting by Charlotte Rose, Gabriela Pomeroy, Stephen Menon, Jon Ironmonger, Phil Shepka, Matt Precey and Jessica Ure

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