Ms Julie Sadlier:

That is the biggest problem we face at present. Borrowers are making inquiries at their local authority housing departments and are being told the lists are full. They are also being told they need to be homeless before they can be on the housing list, yet there is a statutory instrument from 2011 that states that once they have been deemed unsustainable, they are entitled to go on the housing list. Many letters from banks do not state one's position is unsustainable. They may just say the borrower is not co-operating and they are taking him or her to court, or they may say they have not been able to come up with an alternative resolution and the borrower must sell their house.

When the term "unsustainable" is not used in that letter, we hit another problem. Some local authorities will take affidavits or letters from me to say this means the borrower has been most likely deemed unsustainable or whatever. It is a complete minefield. We have heard that many local authorities are so oversubscribed that people do not have a chance. This is causing huge fear. Given that repossession has not happened, that borrowers are in this channel and they see it will happen soon, they see that when they go to the services they are getting nowhere.

The Deputy did not ask about mortgage to rent but it is really relevant. Every letter borrowers get asking them to surrender their house refers to mortgage to rent. I had one person who got a letter from EBS offering him mortgage to rent who said he was interested in taking it, and they said they didn't do it. He said it was on they letter, but they said still they did not do it. There is all of this ridiculous stuff happening, yet people have to navigate it and do not know where they are going to go. I have had people talk about moving in with elderly parents and go through the logistics. There is nothing.