Minister must protect vulnerable homeowners in wake of PTSB sale
Labour Finance spokesperson, Joan Burton TD, has called on the Minister for Finance to step in to protect vulnerable homeowners in the wake of PTSB’s plans to sell off up to €4bn of non-performing loans.
Deputy Burton said:
“Many of the thousands of mortgage holders with banks like PTSB will be extremely worried this weekend to have read of plans to sell off €4bn worth of loans in difficulty to other financial institutions, which almost certainly would include so-called ‘vulture funds’.
“So householders’ mortgages on the family home and buy-to-let landlords with one or two properties, may find their mortgages being transferred without any consultation to another financial entity, and then sold on at bargain basement prices.
“As Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe is the principle shareholder of PTSB on behalf of the Irish people, so it is incumbent on him to seek to protect citizens whose mortgages may be sold on to vulture funds.
“The minister must guarantee that no family will become homeless as a consequence of having their mortgage sold over their head without any consultation, and must now look at providing additional protection to those mortgage holders whose loans are being sold on.
“Where households are in difficulty, PTSB like other banks, will more than likely have engaged with many troubled mortgaged holders in the MARPs (Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process). These arrangements should continue to be honoured for a number of years to provide protection to the family home.
“MARPs is meant to provide an orderly structured approach to dealing with loans in difficulty, say for example if a householder lost their job, and to restructure the loan to allow them to pay off the loan over a period of time and secure the family home.
“These arrangements potentially will come under threat if the loans are sold on, putting family homes at serious risk of repossession unless the Minister for Finance steps in to protect vulnerable homeowners.”