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Slow start for mortgage help plan Slow start for mortgage help plan
(40 minutes later)
Only two households in England have been given help in the first four months of a £200m mortgage rescue scheme, figures show. Only two households in England have been given help in the first four months of a £285m mortgage rescue scheme, figures show.
Local authorities reported that 1,084 households approached them, fearing mortgage repayment difficulties in April, government data shows. About 1,084 households - fearing mortgage repayment difficulties - approached local authorities in April alone, government data shows.
But only one contract was signed in April and one in March, both by householders in the East of England.But only one contract was signed in April and one in March, both by householders in the East of England.
A number of other claims are in the pipeline, the figures show. It takes three to five months to complete a case, the government said.
Other claims are in the pipeline, the figures show.
The scheme allows not-for-profit housing associations to buy homes from people struggling to pay their mortgage and then allows them to continue living there.The scheme allows not-for-profit housing associations to buy homes from people struggling to pay their mortgage and then allows them to continue living there.
When it extended the £200m scheme across England in January, the government said it could help up to 6,000 households which might otherwise face repossession. The government said the scheme - introduced across England in January - could help up to 6,000 households which might otherwise face repossession. The scheme initially amounted to £200m, but an extra £85m was added in April's Budget, to help other struggling borrowers.
Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland have, or soon will have, their own initiatives in place.Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland have, or soon will have, their own initiatives in place.
Breakdown
While 1,084 households approached local authorities for help in April, less than half - or 452 - were eligible.
To qualify for the scheme, you have to be at risk of repossession and be either elderly, disabled, pregnant or have dependant children.
Of the 452 households which were eligible, some 139 households applied to join the scheme in April. A total of 376 applications - including applications made earlier in the year - are now under consideration.
More than 70 of those 376 applications are in the final stages of the process, a spokesman for the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) said. This meant that any repossession action against them by their lender had been frozen.
On average, 1,000 households have approached local authorities across England every month this year in search of help. Even though they might not have been eligible for the home rescue scheme, they had benefited from free advice, he said.
Some 78% of the 303 councils taking part submitted April data to the DCLG. Some local authorities in England have delayed setting up the scheme.