Not upheld: Mortgage administration / arrears handling complaint against Rooftop Mortgages Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr M complained that Rooftop Mortgages unreasonably declined his request in 2023 to sell a buy-to-let property at a shortfall of approximately £15,000, contingent on equity from another property sale. When Rooftop eventually agreed to a shortfall sale in 2024, the shortfall had grown to over £60,000. The ombudsman found Rooftop's 2023 refusal was fair because the contingency created genuine security concerns, which materialized when the other property sale fell through. The ombudsman determined that the increased shortfall resulted primarily from Mr M's failure to maintain mortgage payments and the lower sale price in 2024, not from Rooftop's earlier decision. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the principle that while lenders have no obligation to accept less than the full amount owed, they must treat borrowers fairly. Rooftop's 2023 refusal was reasonable because it was contingent on another property sale that ultimately fell through, creating genuine security concerns. The ombudsman rejected the use of hindsight and found that the majority of the increased shortfall resulted from Mr M's failure to maintain payments and the lower sale price in 2024, factors outside Rooftop's control and unknowable in 2023. The ombudsman noted that Mr M chose to let the properties rather than continue marketing them, and that Rooftop's 2024 agreement to the shortfall sale was reasonable given the changed circumstances and arrears level.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website