Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

[PlanB]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

a property I had jointly which to get rid of did voluntary repossession. The property got sold by the lender and a shortfall was left of 29k

If it was a voluntary repossession (you handed back the keys) then there would not have been a court order at the time so no money judgment will exist. This means the creditor would have to issue proceedings in the county court to recover their money.

http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_ad..._back_the_keys


However if they sold your property for below market value then you may have the right to make a complaint and escalate that to the FOS which takes a strong line on lenders who under-sell property and in some cases they can order compensation which can be offset against the shortfall to reduce the debt (and you'll buy time while the investigation goes on).

I'm not raising your hopes because we don't yet know the whole story, and you would have to provide evidence. This is the FOS stance on lenders sellng property at BMV:

http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.u...n-disputes.htm

[Sharon2345]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

If it was a voluntary repossession (you handed back the keys) then there would not have been a court order at the time so no money judgment will exist. This means the creditor would have to issue proceedings in the county court to recover their money.

http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_ad..._back_the_keys


However if they sold your property for below market value then you may have the right to make a complaint and escalate that to the FOS which takes a strong line on lenders who under-sell property and in some cases they can order compensation which can be offset against the shortfall to reduce the debt (and you'll buy time while the investigation goes on).

I'm not raising your hopes because we don't yet know the whole story, and you would have to provide evidence. This is the FOS stance on lenders sellng property at BMV:

http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.u...n-disputes.htm

Thanks for the advice yes I did try sell the property myself before giving it up I put it with a agent and they said the market value was 137,995 but the lender shifted it at 110,000 which I don't understand.

What shall I do next ignore Mackenzie or shall I write to them saying I have no assets no money living in rented accommodation no point pursuing and I have told the lender this?

[PlanB]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

I put it with a agent and they said the market value was 137,995 but the lender shifted it at 110,000 which I don't understand.

So the lender sold it for £28k under market value and co-incidently the mortgage shortfall debt is £29k It's up to you but you may want to take issue with Bradford & Bingley (now nationalized and bailed out by the tax-payer due to it's own financial incompetence). It's certainly something you could keep up your sleeve if they do start to get heavy.

[PlanB]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

What shall I do next ignore Mackenzie or shall I write to them saying I have no assets no money living in rented accommodation no point pursuing and I have told the lender this?

^^^^ That's what I would do. With any luck MacKenzie Hall will pass it back to B&B if they sense they're not going to get any money out of you. MH will probably work on commission only for collecting a debt, so they won't get paid if you don't pay them. Only the creditor can issue county court proceedings not a DCA and they'd have to send you a formal Letter Before Action before they do, so you should get a warning.

If it goes back to B&B you can deal with them direct if they contact you. That'll be the time to raise the under-selling issue if you need a weapon to defend yourself

Common sense says B&B only out-sourced the debt to MH because they know it's uncollectable so they won't be surprised to learn that MK didn't manage to collect it will they

[PlanB]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

I've got other debts but they are dropping off my file next year and I really haven't got the money to pay for this. Can they issue a ccj to me?

If your aim is to get a clean credit file next year then it's probably best to avoid a CCJ from the B&B this year because that may go on your file for the next 6 years regardless of when they defaulted you. But I'm not certain about that so wait for someone else with more knowledge than me to confirm

[Sharon2345]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

If your aim is to get a clean credit file next year then it's probably best to avoid a CCJ from the B&B this year because that may go on your file for the next 6 years regardless of when they defaulted you. But I'm not certain about that so wait for someone else with more knowledge than me to confirm

Many thanks for your advice Plan B I will write to Mackenzie first so let's see. I actually feel sick with this debt over my head they know my situation and still think I'd have 29k to give them. Greedy so and so's. last thing I want is a ccj.

I will keep you posted.

[PlanB]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

Many thanks for your advice Plan B I will write to Mackenzie first so let's see.

Here's another thought. Why not add into your letter that you also dispute the sum requested and you intend to make a formal complaint direct to B&B.

The reason I suggest this is because MacKenzie Hall was sanctioned by the OFT for chasing debts which are in dispute. They will be fined £50k if they break the sanction. So why not print out a copy of that OFT sanction and staple it to your letter to help them focus so they may decide to leave you alone and pass it back to B & B

You'll find a PDF version of the OFT sanctions (known as "requirements") to download in this link :

http://www.oft.gov.uk/news-and-updates/press/2009/44-09


Plan B doesn't give *advice* because I'm not a qualified lawyer, but I do have plenty of miles on the clock when it comes to handling housing stuff. My bio should be "Been There Done That, but couldn't afford the T-shirt"

I wish you the best of luck with this debt and I'm pleased to see that you are managing your life very well without your ex

[PriorityOne]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

I doubt B&B would rush for a CCJ on this, to be honest. Their tactic seems to be to try and put the frighteners on you by farming it out to a DCA but they will know damn well that the chances of recovering £29K from you are ridiculous at this point in time..... Until they can locate your ex and establish if his chances of repaying are stronger however, they will be reluctant to sell it. There are a number of ways they can trace ex partners and DVLA is a common one, so chances are that they will track him down eventually and if they get fed up in the meantime, any purchasing DCA can take up the trail themselves to try and get something out of him.

At the moment, Mack Hall are merely puppets for B&B, so will return the account to B&B when they get no joy from you. You may want to consider sending a Subject Access Request to B&B to find out precisely what happened re. the history of this account and how they established a £29K shortfall debt in the first place but to be honest, I'd be reluctant to do this until/unless they threatened you with court proceedings. Chances are they won't because of your circumstances..... and will sell it eventually.

At that point, there's a good chance that it will have been sold with an inaccurate closing balance anyway, which will give the inheriting DCA an almighty headache to sort out, especially if you mention that this could/would render the assignment itself (sale) unlawful....

I went through £52K shortfall debt scenario many years ago and settled it for peanuts without a CCJ in sight..... despite owning another property, so it isn't always as scary as it first appears.

[Sharon2345]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

I doubt B&B would rush for a CCJ on this, to be honest. Their tactic seems to be to try and put the frighteners on you by farming it out to a DCA but they will know damn well that the chances of recovering £29K from you are ridiculous at this point in time..... Until they can locate your ex and establish if his chances of repaying are stronger however, they will be reluctant to sell it. There are a number of ways they can trace ex partners and DVLA is a common one, so chances are that they will track him down eventually and if they get fed up in the meantime, any purchasing DCA can take up the trail themselves to try and get something out of him.

At the moment, Mack Hall are merely puppets for B&B, so will return the account to B&B when they get no joy from you. You may want to consider sending a Subject Access Request to B&B to find out precisely what happened re. the history of this account and how they established a £29K shortfall debt in the first place but to be honest, I'd be reluctant to do this until/unless they threatened you with court proceedings. Chances are they won't because of your circumstances..... and will sell it eventually.

At that point, there's a good chance that it will have been sold with an inaccurate closing balance anyway, which will give the inheriting DCA an almighty headache to sort out, especially if you mention that this could/would render the assignment itself (sale) unlawful....

I went through £52K shortfall debt scenario many years ago and settled it for peanuts without a CCJ in sight..... despite owning another property, so it isn't always as scary as it first appears.

Thanks guys your advice really helps cant thank you enough. I will let them carry on for abit then write Mackenzie a letter and staple the OFT sanction plan b mentioned. I will keep you posted.

[Undercover Elsa]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

Thread moved to the Debt and Housing section which is more appropriate

Elsa x

[Sharon2345]

Re: Mortgage Shortfall Debt DCA chasing me HELP

Thanks guys your advice really helps cant thank you enough. I will let them carry on for abit then write Mackenzie a letter and staple the OFT sanction plan b mentioned. I will keep you posted.

Hi guys,

I have been ignoring Mackenzie since they have contacted me. They do keep ringing every other day. I have not written to them. Shall i keep ignoring until they pass the account back to the mortgage lender or do i just write to them now and tell them i have no money to pay off debt so do what you want?