Spanish bank eviction policy - repossession insanity

[Pelinor]

I think this bank has just bought it's self five minutes breathing space, no more. As it's now gone country wide I think there will be a wave of these incidents, and just like King Cnut the banks won't have a hope in hell of stopping it. But I am sure they are that arrogant they think they will.....with a little help from the Government.

[Janet]

I agree, G, and the national Government says it's going to "bring forward" plans to look at the problem in the wake of two suicides now on the mainland, both of them just before the point of eviction for the properties to be repossessed.

How many people have to die, or threaten to die? The banks have to cave in at some point before that sort of social pressure.

[Perikles]

I agree, G, and the national Government says it's going to "bring forward" plans to look at the problem in the wake of two suicides now on the mainland, both of them just before the point of eviction for the properties to be repossessed.

According to El País this morning, this agreement will not be reached until next week and will not be retroactive. That means that it will have no effect on any cases where the eviction process (ejecución) has already started. It would not therefore have had any effect on the case of the poor woman who committed suicide last week. At most it would oblige banks to make more of their property available for social renting (alquiler social).

The main resistance to a change any more drastic than that is the fear that it might provoke a tide of unpaid mortgages if people think they are legally protected if they just stop paying. So they are talking in terms of 'extreme cases'.

[Janet]

Smacks of the mindset which sees council employees not allowed to take money in case they steal it. When will Spain actually grow up and start acting responsibly, and start expecting others to act responsibly?

[Pelinor]

The wife was just telling me about a report of a man on the Peninsular who was having a battle with a bank about the repossession of some property he owns. It's reported that in his frustration he walked into the bank got every one out and then set fire to the building gutting the bank. I would suggest not the best way to vent your frustrations!

[Nova]

I agree, G, and the national Government says it's going to "bring forward" plans to look at the problem in the wake of two suicides now on the mainland, both of them just before the point of eviction for the properties to be repossessed.

How many people have to die, or threaten to die? The banks have to cave in at some point before that sort of social pressure.

The suicides have made international news now.  Sky

[Perikles]

More from El País:

Kutxabank have suspended all on-going eviction cases, pending new regulations.

[Pelinor]

The story in relation to the woman who committed suicide in Bilbao is quite depressing. I read that the outstanding amount on the mortgage was 164,000€ with interest and charges it rose to 213,000€ and was sold for 190.000€.

The wife just come in and she had been talking about this particular case with her friends. It would appear that her husband knew nothing of what was going on. They were both in full time employment so the general consensus was that there's more to this case than meets the eye.

[Perikles]

Now this might be an interesting development - 47 senior judges have united forces to confront what they see as abusive behaviour by the banks. I find it difficult to read, but it seems like a very strong statement by the judiciary that they will examine all cases of eviction and consider all possible ways of refusing the banks' application to evict if they see alternatives.

[Pelinor]

Now this might be an interesting development - 47 senior judges have united forces to confront what they see as abusive behaviour by the banks. I find it difficult to read, but it seems like a very strong statement by the judiciary that they will examine all cases of eviction and consider all possible ways of refusing the banks' application to evict if they see alternatives.

I haven't read the artical P due the the fact I can't read it. But it seems a strange statement. It seems that they are saying that up to now they have judged it favour of the banks despite there being possible alternatives? The law hasn't changed so where are the 'other alternatives' coming from? And why weren't these alternatives used by the judges or brought to the judges attention by the lawyers for consideration? Sounds to me the judges are admitting to rubber stamping in favour of the banks and ignoring the law?