Is your house 1 of the 827,000 homes in the UK in negative equity?

Is your house 1 of the 827,000 homes in the UK in negative equity?

The number of mortgage borrowers in negative equity is estimated to be around the 827,000 mark, according to lenders.

Negative equity is where the loan is larger than the value of the property. Despite the shocking figure, The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) believes this is not as great a problem as it was in the early 1990s.

Approximately 1.6 million households were living in negative equity in the early part of the 1990s.

CML have recently reported that the number of properties taken into possession in the first quarter of 2011 was 7% down on the first half of 2010.

Commenting on the research, CML director general Paul Smee said:
"Negative equity is much less common than in the 1990s, and in the current cycle low interest rates and a relatively stable employment market are providing more options for borrowers and lenders in difficulty.