27/03/2009 - Evicted tenants `forgotten victims`
Protection for tenants who are evicted if their home is repossessed by the mortgage lender is being urged on the Government by four housing charities.
One of them, Crisis, reports that although rents are being paid, some mortgages are not. And with more than 8,000 buy-to-let properties at risk of repossession this year, the problem is going to get worse.
The charity, together with Shelter, Citizens Advice and the Chartered Institute of Housing, have described these tenants as the "forgotten victims of the repossession crisis".
In some cases, locks are found to be changed, and belongings out in the street, when the tenant gets home from work. Some are refused access to their things, while others are briefly allowed in to retrieve a few items.
The charities say that urgent Government action is needed to avoid a crisis, and are calling for the law to be changed to allow courts to defer repossessions while tenants find new accommodation.
Copyright © Press Association 2009
Related links
|
