Sale and rent back schemes 'need further regulating'

Posted: 01 Oct 2009 09:46:47 GMT

The people who get involved in sale and rent back schemes need more protection than is currently being provided, according to one property industry expert.

Catherine Hearnden, director of financial services company MyMortgageDirect, said that consumers who sell their property with the aim of renting it back are often ripped off.

"I'm not sure whether it [should be] a Financial Services Authority (FSA) thing or whether it should just be consumer protection but they certainly need some sort of protection," she explained.

Overall, Ms Hearnden said she supports the concept of sale and rent back, as it allows people who cannot afford to pay their mortgage to stay in their homes.

Her comments come after the FSA detailed a number of measures that are set to be implemented in order to protect vulnerable sale and rent back customers.

Included in the plans - which are scheduled to come into effect next summer - are the banning of emotive terms such as "fast sale" and "mortgage rescue" in promotional literature about the scheme.


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