A new report is warning that plans to solve the mortgage crisis will not work.

The Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS) is casting doubt on the official split mortgage plan to tackle the crisis. This is because it says the typical struggling homeowner in arrears is older than many experts previously thought.

It finds that the majority of people in mortgage distress are aged between 41 and 65 which contradicts the belief that most of those in arrears are in their 30s. Regulators and the Department of Finance are hoping that most of the almost 100,000 distressed borrowers will be offered split mortgages.

This is where part of the mortgage is set to one side for up to 20 years until people get back on their feet.

Calls for action over delays

But the report on mortgage arrears which has been seen by the Irish Independent casts serious doubts on whether this will work.

This is because most of the people who go to MABS because of difficulties are at an age when they should be nearing the end of their mortgage. But they topped up their loans during the boom which has left them in debt.

The report also finds it is taking banks 2 months to reply to distressed borrowers with offers to deal with their situation. It calls on the Central Bank to take action to deal with these delays.

Finance Minister Michael Noonan last month told the main banks to meet targets for the number of mortgages that are more than 90 days in arrears.

Personal Finance Editor with the Irish Independent is Charlie Weston. He told Breakfast here on Newstalk that many people will be retired by the time it comes to deal with the part that has been set aside.