Mortgage arrears

If you can't meet your mortgage repayments, or you are worried you might fall behind, it is important to get help as soon as possible.

Get help now! Your Housing Options officer may be able to help you avoid losing your home.

I'm struggling to make the payments

• Always pay as much as you can manage every month
• Keep making regular payments (even if you can't always pay the same amount)

By doing this, your lender is more likely to treat you sympathetically and you will keep the charges for being in arrears to a minimum.

What help can I get from my lender?

Depending on your payment history and whether your difficulties are likely to be long term or short term, your lender might agree to:

• Reduce your payments for a set length of time
• Change your mortgage to an ‘interest only' mortgage
• Give you a ‘payment holiday' (this is where your lender will allow you to stop making payments for a while, however you will still be charged interest)
• Extend the length of your mortgage to reduce your payments
• Postpone your payments
• Help you to claim on any mortgage payment protection insurance

What help can I get from my council?

There is a range of practical help available from Salford Housing Options Point, which includes:

• Negotiating with lenders
• The government mortgage rescue scheme
• Interest-free loans
• Advice on welfare and debt

You could also get help from the government if you are facing losing your home, visit our repossession page for further information.

Government mortgage rescue scheme

The mortgage rescue scheme may help if you are having serious problems making your mortgage repayments and are in danger of losing your home.

The scheme could:

• Allow a housing association to buy your property and rent it back to you
• Provide you with a loan to reduce your monthly mortgage payments

In both cases your property would either be partly or entirely owned by the housing association.

Support for mortgage interest

If you are on any of the following benefits, you can apply for help with paying the interest on your mortgage.

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Pension Credit

Confused about your options?

Dealing with finances can be daunting. If you struggle with reading or maths your Housing Options officer can put you in contact with specialist agencies that can support you and offer you independent advice and help.

Getting help and support can prevent you from getting into financial trouble, contact Salford Housing Options Point for more information.

Who to contact

Remember you can contact us quicker, easier, better online.

Contact us online

This page was last updated on 18 May 2017