More legislation to regulate vulture funds is urgently needed, according to a mortgage holders organisation.
The code of conduct for banks and vulture funds has also been described as a "spectacular failure and a fudge".
Politicians are considering a bill that would block the sale of a home if the occupants object.
David Hall from the Irish Mortgage Holders Organisation addressed the Oireachtas Finance Committee this afternoon.
He said there needs to be more protections for those who have trouble paying their mortgages.
Mr Hall told the committee: "We're at a critical stage in families being fed to vultures.
"Deputies and senators, you can note I did say fed to vultures - because it's not just loans that are being sold, but real families, real people and real lives that are being fed to vultures."
He said the code of conduct "is an abject failure of consumer protection", and warned there could be an avalanche of mortgages sold to vulture funds over the summer.
Long-term arrears
Representatives of legal rights group FLAC also attended today's hearing, and echoed calls for legal protections to be enhanced for consumers.
Chief executive Eilis Barry suggested there's very little information about the circumstances of people in long-term arrears.
She said: "Can the Central Bank and the Department of Finance state with accuracy, based on qualitative and quantitative disaggregated data, what is the likely effect on borrowers of allowing creditors to sell to vulture funds without further regulation?
"Has there been any assessment as to the likelihood of borrowers being exposed to acute deprivation such as homelessness or extreme poverty?"
Today's hearing came as politicians continue scrutinising Sinn Féin's 'No Consent, No Sale' bill, which proposes that lenders would not be able to transfer mortgages on residential properties without the consent of the borrower.
