Types of court repossession in London (2003-2023 Q3)
The total number of repossessions in London during the first three quarters of 2023 was 5,301, including 2,376 Section 21 ("no-fault") evictions. This is compared to 1,919 repossessions through the whole of 2020 when evictions were paused during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most schemes introduced during the pandemic have ended and repossessions remain lower than pre-pandemic years. However, there's been a trend of increasing repossessions since, nearing the levels seen before the pandemic.
Between 2015 and 2019, the total number of repossessions in London fell by more than 50%. This fall was primarily driven by the reduction in landlord accelerated repossessions - the route taken by private landlords to regain possession of a property after a Section 21 (a so-called “no fault”) eviction. At the end of 2019, this type of repossession was just over a third of the level it was in 2015.
Repossessions for people with mortgages have almost disappeared in London over the past decade, falling from over 3,604 a year in 2009 to 381 in 2019. This was possibly caused by low interest rates and has remained low over 2022 and the first three quarters of 2023.