The number of house repossessions in the UK fell in 2013, marking their lowest annual rate since 2009.
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said 28,900 people had a property repossessed in 2013. This was as fall of 5,000 fewer than in 2012.
Low interest rates and relatively high employment have helped drive the number down.
The annual repossession figures have been coming down since a peak of 48,900 in 2009.
The CML forecast that the number will remain around 28,000 for 2014.
Mortgage arrears have also been reducing. At the end of last year, 144,700 home loans, representing 1.3% of all mortgages, were in arrears of at least 2.5% of the loan balance.
At the end of 2012, 157,900 mortgages (1.4% of the total number) were in arrears at this level.
The historic interest rate of 0.5% has been in place for five years, helping borrowers. But with the improvement in the British economy, many believe that interest rates will start to rise.
