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Date Published : Wednesday, May 07, 2008
The recent global credit crunch has made many people touchy regarding their finances. Consumers are more aware of their incomings and outgoings and so are banks.
And it shows the nervousness of the market when some of Australia's largest banks and mortgage lenders threaten to cancel home loans over one or two missed monthly payments.
However, that is what is happening and the head of Tasmania's main welfare organisation recently warned that many families in the state are at risk of losing their homes if banks start cancelling mortgages.
Tasmanian Council of Social Service chief executive Tom Muller told the Mercury that rising food and fuel prices, combining with high interest rates and an uncertain financial climate, mean that pressures on families are increasingly high.
He urged mortgage lenders to have leniency if one of two home loan repayments are missed.
Mr Muller said: "We cannot allow these people to lose their homes over one or two missed repayments or they will end up on the streets or needing public housing when these areas are already in desperately short supply."
Recently, one of Australia's largest banks, Westpac, warned that cash-strapped homeowners may not be able to keep up with monthly mortgage repayments if the current financial situation continues.
Westpac chief executive Gail Kelly said that the high interest rates currently being experienced now will have a "lag effect" over the coming few months, with problems spiralling for a number of families across the country.
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