'Forced downsizing' trend hits homeowners

21/11/2008

Many British homeowners who are currently putting their homes on the market due to the property's owner not being able to meet mortgage repayments it has been suggested.

Analysis from the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA), released by the Times newspaper today, shows that around half of homes being sold by 20 per cent of agents are "forced downsizers".

Around 50 per cent of agents also said that at least 20 per cent of their sellers had put their homes on sale for this reason.

Over recent months, mortgage credit has become increasingly restricted by lenders - who are worried about the ongoing global financial crisis' negative effects on their own balance sheets.

This has made it much harder for homeowners to remortgage their properties - especially those who bought homes at the peak of the market, when credit was cheap.

NAEA chief executive Peter Bolton King explained: "It is those homeowners who were on cheap fixed-rate mortgage deals who cannot replace them and are struggling with the rise in repayments."

Tags; Housing Debt and Bills, Young Family Finances,

Regional Debt Advice; Debt Advice Bolton,

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