This article is from page 5 of the 2014-08-12 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 5 JPG
A CLARE stonemason has secured a € 223,000 write-down on his € 346,390 family home mortgage as part of a Personal Insolvency Arrangement (PIA).
The arrangement was approved by Judge Patrick Meaghan at the Circuit Court in Ennis on Tuesday.
A separate PIA in respect of the man’s wife was also granted by Judge Meaghan
The court heard the man was left with debts of almost € 2.3 million following the collapse of the man’s stone products business which went into liquidation last year.
Judge Meaghan said he recalled the case because the size of the debts involved. He complimented all sides for finalizing the agreement.
He said this represented “quite a feat” given the difficulties surrounding the titles of some of the man’s properties.
Earlier this year the man was granted court protection to allow his Personal Insolvency Practitioner (PIP), Jim Stafford, time to negotiate with secured and unsecured creditors.
Judge Meaghan said all creditors voted 100 percent in favour of the PIA at a creditors’ meeting.
The Judge said that because of the man’s low income he was unable to engage in a multi-year payment plan to his creditors.
Judge Meaghan said the man did not have to sell his home. He explained that KBC Bank have agreed to reduce the mortgage on the family home from € 346,000 to € 123,000 subject to a dividend of € 15,000 being paid to the bank as an unsecured creditor.
There is a reduction in the term of the mortgage of three years and three months.
The man is to pay a revised monthly mortgage payment of € 1,200 on the family home for 10 years and three months up to his 70th birthday.
In order to pay a dividend to his creditors the man is to sell the following assets; a farm and stables totaling 31.86 hectares; a residential buy-to-let property; a residential buy-to-let apartment; a commercial buy-to-let property and several other plots of land.
The man will also make available a lump sum to pay the PIP’s fees.
According to the arrangement no other assets of the debtor will be sold pursuant to the PIA.
Judge Meaghan said, “I am pleased to approve this arrangement.
“It was a particularly difficult case given both the size of the debts and the complexity with regards the security in respect of the assets”.
Judge Meaghan said the debtor’s banks may have legal claims against the debtor’s former solicitor for breaches of undertakings provided to the banks.
He said it is accepted this arrangement does not prejudice these potential proceedings
The unsecured creditors are listed as KBC € 333,683; EBS € 423,428; Ulster Bank € 829,982; Bank of Ireland € 8,926; Bank of Scotland € 85, 536; Emberon Finance Ltd € 29,928; Vanguard Auto Finance € 195,343 and Niamh Perrotta € 75,000.