Up to one million households have borrowed money on a credit card to pay their mortgage or  rent over the past year, a charity's study suggests.

Housing charity Shelter expresses concern at 1 million households using a credit card to  pay mortgage or rent last year.

 Advice: For help with Mis Sold Mortgages and Buy to Let or Sub Prime Mortgage Compensation please call 0800 043 1683.

About 1 million families have resorted to using credit cards to pay their mortgage or rent  during the past year, the housing charity Shelter claimed today.

A survey by the organisation found around 6% of households had used their plastic during  the past 12 months, in order to keep up with their housing costs.

People in working class professions were most likely to use debt to cover their mortgage or  rent at 8%, but 4% of ABC1s also admitted they had used their credit card in this way.

"If people are already struggling to the extent that they fear losing their home,  increasing credit card debt cannot be the answer," said Kay Boycott, director of policy and  campaigns at Shelter.

The homelessness charity said earlier today that the government and financial organisations  need to help homeowners as the number of people seeking help with paying their mortgages  has significantly increased over the last year.

Advice: For help with Mis Sold Mortgages and Buy to Let or Sub Prime Mortgage Compensation please call 0800 043 1683. 

The charity said they could hardly believe the number of homeowners that had contacted them  last year worried about not being able to keep up with repayments. Homeowners were faced  with no other option but to take out further loans and maxing out credit cards in order to  make ends meet according to Shelter. 

As a result of these shocking facts Shelter has asked for help from mortgage lenders and  the government to join forces and set up some sort of advice scheme  and a proposed  “National Mortgage rescue scheme” which would be totally confidential and help those in  need with advice and try and keep them in their homes.