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Advice for people facing court repossession proceedings
If you have a mortgage of €188,000 on a tracker rate of 1%, then the annual interest is about €2k a year.
If you are paying €6,000 a year, that means that you are reducing the mortgage by €4,000 a year.
Based on our experience in observing court proceedings, it's very unlikely that they will get an order for possession any time soon if ever.
The problem is that while the balance on your mortgage is reducing, the arrears balance is increasing all the time.
They will argue, with some justification, that your mortgage is not sustainable. The problem for you is that the alternatives are not sustainable either.
1) Show up in court, ideally with your wife, and tell the Registrar the full story. You get an automatic adjournment on the first appearance, but you should show up anyway. Do not bring a solicitor. You will do much better on your own.
2) Keep a record of all your efforts to engage with Tanager. Show that you have been trying, but they have been refusing.
3) They will have to certify that they complied with the Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears. If they have not engaged, then they are not complying.
4) You can argue that your mortgage is sustainable. You are gradually reducing the the balance outstanding. Perhaps at some stage, your business or earnings will improve and you will be able to resume full repayments.
Longer term, you should see if it's at all possible to get family help to clear the arrears, or, at least, resume full repayments.
How much is the house worth? With your arrears record you won't get a mortgage elsewhere. But could you sell it to a family member or friend and rent it back?
There is also the possibility that you might qualify for the mortgage to rent scheme. A housing agency would buy your house and rent it back to you. The local authority would probably give you a Housing Assistance Payment to help you with the rent. But I don't think you should be investigating this for some time.
Brendan