News

THE locks were changed on 113 Hunter mortgage-stressed home owners last year, with the sheriff knocking at the door of 189 more residents whose homes were threatened.

NSW Sheriff's Office data, released last month, revealed that more than 300 homes were threatened last year because their owners failed to keep up with mortgage payments, in the wake of rising interest rates and living costs.

Merewether was the worst affected suburb, followed by Cessnock, Warners Bay, Kurri Kurri, Edgeworth, Lemon Tree Passage and Bonnells Bay.

Industry experts predict similar numbers into the next quarter, as Hunter residents prepare to battle through a global financial crisis and feared job losses.

The city's strained charity organisations would struggle to cope with increased welfare needs, Wesley Newcastle City Mission homeless co-ordinator Tony Scully said.

• Read the full article reported by The Herald