A JUDGE has turned down an attempt by a major bank to re-possess a Co Donegal home – for at least a year.
Judge John O’Hagan made the ruling at Letterkenny Circuit Court in a case involving an owner fighting a battle against illness and a tenant who wanted to stay in the home.
The Bank of Ireland applied for the repossession order to be granted, a barrister telling the judge that the owner had failed to make payments and had refused to engage with the financial institution.
She said the bank had made numerous attempts to resolve the issue.
However the tenant of the property told Judge O’Hagan that she is a mother of four, two of her children still at school.
She said her landlord was fighting kidney disease and had been placed at the top of the transplant list.
She said she and her family wished to remain in the house and if it was given to the bank, she would be homeless.
“Have you tried dealing with the bank yourself, paying the rent to the bank,” asked the judge.
The tenant said they had made numerous attempts to do this but that the Bank of Ireland didn’t want to deal with them.
Judge O’Hagan said the lack of engagement between the home owner and the bank meant he had no choice but to grant the repossession order.
However he said he would put a stay of one year on the order, telling the tenant: “This gives you a year to find another home and I hope it works out for you.”