Older homeowners with equity
Mortgage Rescue Scheme
You ask about the mortgage rescue scheme. There is a regional property cap for mortgage rescue which is set by the Government. In Sheffield the cap is £140,000. This means if your property is worth more than £140,000 it is not eligible for the scheme. There is also a maximum amount of equity you can have for the scheme which is 25%. If your property is worth £xxx and you owe £xxx then you have about xxx% equity.The reason that the equity is set at 25% is that if you have more equity than this your lender would usually work with you on your options as there's a good chance they will get their loan amount back at some point.
You have too much equity to be eligible for the 'mortgage to rent' scheme and our local agent doesn't provide the 'shared equity' option for mortgage rescue.
And/or
I have contacted the agent just to double check to see if they can help with your case.
Endowment problems
You mentioned that your endowment policy had failed to provide you with enough capital to pay off your mortgage when it ends in 18 months. The Financial Services Compensation Scheme advises borrowers about endowment complaints. You can find out more on their website here:
There is also advice about endowments on the Money Advice Service website here:
Shared ownership
You could consider selling your home and buying another property with the equity. You can search for properties for sale on the internet and you might want to consider shared ownership. You buy a share of your home (between 25% and 75% of the home’s value) and pay rent on the remaining share.You can get help from another HomeBuy scheme called ‘Older People’s Shared Ownership’ if you’re aged 55 or over. It works in the same way as the general shared ownership scheme, but you can only buy up to 75% of your home. Once you own 75% you won’t have to pay rent on the remaining share.
There is general advice about shared ownership on the Gov.UK website here:
You can also find shared ownership schemes by using the 'advanced search' optionon the Housing Care website here
Equity release
These schemes arenot suitable as you'd need more than the equity you have to pay off the remaining mortgage
Or
You can find out more about equity release on the Money Advice Service website here:
There’s also some information on Shelter’s website here:
The FirstStop advice service can provide help and support with equity release. You can call the FirstStop Advice Line on 0800 377 7070 or email them at
You can visit their website here:
Breathing Space
If you are an owner occupier and you are in difficulty with your mortgage there is help available from Wakefield Council through the Breathing Space scheme. Breathing Space offers an interest free secured loan that provides help to pay your mortgage. You will have to repay the loan at the end of three years.
You may have got into difficulties with your mortgage because of a drop in income due to losing your job or ill health or some other change in your circumstances. The loan offers only short-term help, so you should have an expectation that you will be able to afford your mortgage payments in future, and that you will be able to repay the Breathing Space Loan.
There are criteria for the loan. We can discuss this in more detail if we feel that it might be an option for you.
Bidding through the housing register
You can bid for properties using yourhousing registration numberxxxx which is dated from xxxx. More advice about bidding and general housing options including housing associations can be found on the Sheffield Council Housing Service website here:
If you have just joined the housingregister you might find a property through bidding on the ‘First Come First Served’ properties. You can find out more about these properties on the Property Shop Website here:
A lot of the First Come First Served properties are age banded for people over 60 years old (or 55 in some cases).
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Kind regards
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