Mortgage help demand for jobless

By Paul Lewis
BBC Radio 4's Money Box

Michael Coogan says the cap of £100,000 should be reviewed

Mortgage lenders are asking the government to give unemployed people more assistance with their repayments.

They say it would help borrowers avoid arrears and repossession during short periods out of work.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders and housing charity, Shelter, want the waiting time of nine months cut and the loan cap of £100,000 raised.

The Department for Work and Pensions said the government keeps the matter under review.

Aid at present

At the moment people on income support or jobseeker's allowance cannot normally get any help with their mortgage interest for the first nine months on benefit.

After that the DWP will pay the interest but only on a maximum of £100,000 and at a fixed rate of bank rate plus 1.58%, regardless of the actual interest charged.

"During the waiting period, responsibility to pay lies with the homeowner rather than taxpayer The Department for Work and Pensions

The restrictions were introduced in 1995 after the cost of paying mortgage interest to benefit claimants soared to £1bn.

Michael Coogan, director general of the Council of Mortgage Lenders, told Money Box on BBC Radio 4 those restrictions should be relaxed.

"The state support scheme was reduced in 1995 in the hope that private insurance would provide protection instead.

"What we've seen is, that hasn't happened."

A call for change

In a joint letter with Shelter and Citizen's Advice to Treasury Minister Kitty Ussher, he asked for a cut in the nine month waiting period "by which time the lender will have started possession proceedings."

Calling for the cap of £100,000 to be reviewed, he said it should reflect current market values.

"If it had been linked to house price inflation it would be £300,000."

And Michael Coogan said the changes would not cost anything like the 1995 figure of £1bn.

"I don't think it would put up costs hugely.

"It is short-term relief for those people getting back on their feet.

"In an environment of low inflation, low interest rates and high employment, this bridges the gap for a few months for people who lose their job and look for another one."

And he said that the homeowner could eventually repay the cost

"It doesn't have to be borne by the state - it could be cost neutral by adding a second charge on the home, payable to the government on sale of the property or when the customer is back on their feet."

Government response

The Department for Work and Pensions told the BBC:

"During the waiting period, responsibility to pay lies with the homeowner rather than taxpayer.

"They can take out insurance to cover those payments.

"That is why they have to wait 39 weeks - though some don't have to - for example pensioners on pension credit.

"The government is always reviewing the structure of support for mortgage interest."

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BBC Radio 4's Money Box was broadcast on Saturday, 19 April 2008 at 1204 BST.