House repossessions in NI rising

House prices and repossessions are rising

There has been a steep rise in house repossessions in Northern Ireland, according to the latest figures.

In the last year there were 2,600 cases of lenders seizing back property - an increase of 60% from five years ago.

Ursula Toner from the Housing Rights Service said much of it is due to people borrowing against their homes to pay off other debts.

"We unfortunately see a number of clients securing loans against their property," she said.

"If you default on a secured loan you could be at risk of losing your home.

"I think there is a general issue within Northern Ireland of perhaps aggressive marketing tactics by lenders and perhaps people who are already in debt being targeted by such companies."

BBC NI business editor James Kerr said house prices were rising and so were other bills.

"I think prices have risen sharply and mortgages have bottomed out which means homeowners are spending more of their income than ever on their mortgage," he said.

"But according to housing advice workers that is not the real problem - which is that people's other debts are catching up on them."