Repossessions fall

There has been a sharp fall in mortgage and landlord possessions, providing some rare good news for the recession-hit property market.

Ministry of Justice figures for the first quarter of 2009 show there were 22,609 mortgage possession claims issued in the county courts of England and Wales, a drop of 42% compared with the first quarter of 2008.

Just over 17,000 mortgage possession orders were made, nearly half of which were suspended.

Some 35,745 landlord possession claims were issued, 5% lower than in the first quarter of 2008. 27,458 landlord possession orders were made, 5% lower than in the first quarter of 2008, of which 44% were suspended.

RICS chief economist Simon Rubinsohn said: “Data released [last week] provides further evidence that government policies are working.

“Even before the introduction of home owner mortgage support and the bedding down of the mortgage rescue scheme, the figures show that both the number of claims issued and orders made fell sharply. As these schemes begin to have a meaningful impact over the coming months, the likelihood is that the number of claims issued will continue to weaken.”