Spicerhaart Corporate Sales comments on UK Finance Arrears & Possessions

14 August 2025

David Miller, divisional director at Spicerhaart Corporate Sales, said:

“Another fall in mortgage arrears across both residential and BTL adds further merit to the view that the intense financial pressures felt by households and landlords in recent years are beginning to ease. It’s also a testament to the positive work of lenders to catch arrears cases early and provide suitable support.

“While further movement on the base rate and the continued stabilising of mortgage rates certainly helps, the future path of arrears is still far from a given. This is particularly true as the labour market continues to cool and inflation remains sticky and susceptible to potential tax changes and economic uncertainty in the near future.

“Lenders remain focused on staying close to clients and on top of their mortgage book, adopting a proactive approach to determining value and potential risk to provide the best opportunity for a good outcome for all parties. While lenders are committed to keeping repossession as that very last resort, another marginal increase in possessions likely points to sustained pressure in those higher arrears bands – although across all arrears bands we have seen numbers drop. The fact that repossessions still remain at historic lows demonstrates that exit strategies at this level are still possible and lenders are engaging with borrowers and deploying them where they can.”