Sir, – One element of mortgage difficulty that has been completely omitted from the narrative in all aspects for the past number of years is the issue of co-ownership. This is when two people freely buy a property, get a mortgage for said property and one party ignores or decides not to make any repayments, regardless of the consequences. Most people in these circumstances are fully aware that they entered into such agreements with banks on a joint and several basis. However, if one party decides not to make a payment – and remember the mortgage was granted taking both parties’ means into account – the other party is left in a very precarious, stressful and unfair situation. Surely if one party is complying with the mortgage provider, this should be acknowledged in legislation and they should be protected from the full wrath or consequences of the mortgage provider seeking to repossess such properties. It seems unfair that they should be equally punished for the actions of another individual. – Yours, etc,
PAUL M GAFFEY,
Straffan, Co Kildare.