CML: Mortgage Repos, Arrears Rise in UK

The numbers of repossessions and cases of mortgage arrears in the United Kingdom rose in the first half of this year, but both remain at extremely low levels by historical standards, according to a new study by the Council of Mortgage Lenders."The number of properties taken into possession rose from 3,070 in the second half of last year (the lowest figure on record) to 4,640 in the first half of this year (similar to the half-yearly levels of 2002 and 2003)," the CML said. "The number in the first half of last year was 3,160. Repossession occurred in 0.04% of all mortgages, compared to 0.03% last year." Peter Williams, CML deputy director general, said arrears and possessions "now look set to rise a little, but only to the sort of levels experienced in the past few years." The CML can be found on the Web at http://www.cml.org.uk.