EXTENSION OF MORTGAGES

Otago Witness, Issue 3418, 19 September 1919, Page 24

EXTENSION OF MORTGAGES

WELLINGTON, September 11. A Bill entitled "The Mortgages Extension Bill" lias been introduced into the Legislative Council. The Bill is merely a consolidation of all the legislation of the war period dealing with the extension of mortgages. The Act never did extend mortgages. What it did was to declare that a mortgagee must not exercise certain powers under a deed of mortgage without leave from the Supremo Court. The new Bili proposes to re-enact two sub-sections which belonged to the original Act, but which were repealed in later legislation. These sub-sections declare, in effect, that the Supreme Court may increase the rate of interest payable under a mortgage the term of which has expired, and that the court may consider hardship on either of the parties by the continuance or by the determination of the mortgage. The Bill, in effect, extends the Act until December 31, 1920, with the difference that it is not to apply to mortgages contracted after the passing of the Act. This is apparently acting on the intention of the Government in dealing with the very difficult problem of mortgages. Sir Francis Bell said some time ago when he was waited on by a deputation of Wellington business men that ho did not consider that any of the schemes in Australia for the calling up of mortgages was sound, and that his own inclination was simply to extend the operation of the Act for a considerable period, giving the mortgagors ample time within which to l lake arrangements to pay off existing loans or to renew them. Ho expressed the opinion that already most mortgages had been renewed, and that only an mconsiderab'o number of people were taking advantage of the Act.