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Millions of UK property owners fear repossession and negative equity

A report from consumer watchdog Which? Indicates that almost two thirds of people fear either they or their partner could lose their job during the current recession and more than four in ten are anxious this could make them unable to cover their mortgage.

Meanwhile, 4.2 million people are worried that they could end up in negative equity, almost a quarter of all those who have mortgages and 73% feel the government should be doing more to help them out.

'It's dreadful that six million people fear losing the roof over their heads,' said Which? personal finance campaigner Doug Taylor.

'With people spending sleepless nights worrying about job losses and repossessions, the industry needs to demonstrate that it wants to win back the trust of the British public by fully embracing government initiatives,' he added.

The Which? Report calls for a statutory ban on 100% mortgages after its research found that three quarters of people want them banned. It also wants robust protection against people losing their homes because of unsecured debt and for the government to force lenders to become part of the Homeowner Mortgage Support Scheme if they fail to join voluntarily.

Figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders predict as many as 75,000 repossessions in the UK this year although this has been described by others as optimistic. According to the Financial Services Authority 2.5 million people will end up in negative equity by the end of this year.

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