There were 71,273 ‘risky’ mortgages in 2015

Six of the 10 areas that took out the highest numbers of risky mortgages were in South West London with Wandsworth gaining the top spot, closely followed by Wimbledon and Clapham.

There were 71,273 ‘risky’ mortgages in 2015

The number of UK mortgages deemed risky by the Bank of England grew to 71,273 in 2015, research from accountancy firm Moore Stephens has found.

Six of the 10 areas that took out the highest numbers of risky mortgages were in South West London with Wandsworth gaining the top spot, closely followed by Wimbledon and Clapham.

Moore Stephens says that these figures are concerning given that the Bank of England introduced strict measures in 2014 to reduce the number of risky mortgages taken out.

Jeremy Willmont, head of restructuring & insolvency at Moore Stephens, said: “Despite preventative measures being put in place to calm the market, homeowners taking on too much risk with their mortgages is still a real problem.

“Some homeowners are stretched even with interest rates at their current record low, so an increase of just half a percentage point would represent a significant relative jump in mortgage repayments.

“Homeowners with demanding mortgage repayments need their salaries to keep up with any potential interest rate increases - otherwise repossession and insolvency become real dangers.”