Wednesday 30th of September 2009
Individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) may offer help to people struggling with different types of unsecured debt.
Figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders reveal that 11,400 homes in Britain were repossessed between April and June after mortgage repayments were not met.
And while an IVA cannot be directly applied to a secure debt like a mortgage, it can be used on all your unsecured loans - which may make mortgage payments that bit easier to find each month.
IVAs reorganise payment amounts and schedules on unsecured loans - such as credit card bills - usually over a five-year period.
Many Britons may be worried about the chance of their home being repossessed, but unlike bankruptcy, an IVA could prevent such a situation from occurring.
Housing minister John Healey said: "We are tightening the rules to help protect those struggling with their mortgages. There is support available at every stage of the repossession process."
Last week Money High Street supported the use of IVAs as a method of escaping financial difficulty.
The website also observed that an advantage that may be important to many people is the private nature of IVAs - compared with bankruptcy which is advertised publicly.
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