The number of mortgage possession claims rose 34% year-on-year to 5,343 in Q2, data from the Government shows.
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said mortgage possession claims had been “steadily increasing” since the second quarter of 2021.
Possession claims refer to legal action taken to recover possession of land or buildings, and are often the step preceding repossession.
The MoJ’s data revealed mortgage orders for possession were also 34% higher than a year ago, increasing to a total of 3,395.
At the same time, 9% more warrants were issued, totalling 2,918, and repossessions rose by 29% to 854.
Despite these annual increases, the MoJ said claims, warrants and repossession volumes were 14%, 38% and 32% lower than in the second quarter of 2019.
The median time from claim to repossession has decreased to 45.9 weeks, down from 48.7 weeks in the same period in 2023.
Landlord possessions also rise
Annually, landlord possession claims rose by 9% to 24,495, while there was a 15% uplift in orders for possession, which totalled 18,436.
The number of warrants increased by 12% to 11,172, and there was a 16% rise in repossessions to 6,927.
During the period, 34% or 8,379 of all landlord possession claims were social landlord claims, while private landlords accounted for 31% or 7,668. This compares to before the Covid pandemic, when social landlord possession claims accounted for 60% of activity.
Accelerated claims made up 34% or 8,448 of all landlord possession claims in Q2.
The MoJ said landlord possession actions had also shown a “general increase” since Q2 2021.
Regionally, the highest volumes of landlord claims and orders were seen in London, with 8,488 claims and 5,782 orders at London courts in Q2 accounting for 35% and 31% of the respective totals.
All regions saw a year-on-year rise in landlord warrants except for Wales.
Again, the largest regional number of landlord warrants was found in London, which accounted for 39% of the total.
The median time from claim to repossession has increased to 25.4 weeks, up from 22.1 weeks in the same period of 2023.
This article is based on one that was first published on YourMoney.com‘s sister site, Mortgage Solutions. Read: Mortgage possession claims jump by a third annually in Q2 – MoJ
