Alternative Repayment Arrangement (ARA) options include:
- Reduced monthly repayments to match your affordability for an agreed period.
- Deferral of repayments – where you take a break from making any repayment on your mortgage for an agreed period.
- Term extension – where you pay the mortgage over a longer period in order to pay off your arrears or to lower your monthly repayments.
- Capitalising arrears – where outstanding arrears are added to the principal amount due so the mortgage is no longer in arrears. This generally means either the repayment amount is increased or the term is extended.An interest rate reduction – this results in lower monthly repayments and can either be for a specific period or permanent.
- An interest rate reduction – this results in lower monthly repayments and can either be for a specific period or permanent
- Interest-only repayments on your mortgage for an agreed period.
- A combination of the above options may be agreed. For example, if a reduced payment period is agreed, the mortgage will not be paid off as quickly as initially intended. Thus, the term might be extended or the monthly repayment amount increased after the reduced payment period to ensure the mortgage is subsequently paid off.
In some circumstances, we might be unable to offer you an alternative repayment arrangement (ARA), for example, where we conclude that an ARA is not appropriate because the mortgage is not sustainable or where you choose to reject our offer. If this happens, there are other options we may be able to explore with you.
Other options include:
- Mortgage to Rent (MTR) – where you agree to sell the mortgaged property to a housing association and the proceeds are used to pay off some or all of the balance owing on your mortgage. You and your family remain in the property as a tenant of the housing association, paying an affordable rent.
- Assisted Voluntary Sale (AVS) – where you are provided with the support and assistance you need to sell your property at the best price while keeping the cost to you as low as possible.
- Voluntary Sale – where you agree to sell the property yourself and the proceeds from the sale are used to pay off your arrears and to reduce or clear your remaining mortgage balance.
- Voluntary Surrender – where you agree to voluntarily hand over ownership of your property to Pepper or the third party that owns your mortgage, as the case may be.
- Trade down – this may be available where the owner of your loan is in a position to offer a new mortgage on another property.
Every situation is assessed on a case-by-case basis. For the other options listed above, you need to meet certain criteria. It is important to take independent legal or financial advice if you are availing of any of these options.
We will ask you to fill in a Standard Financial Statement (SFS) in order to assess your situation. Go to Understanding Your Finances for information on the SFS.
Please talk to us as soon as possible if you are experiencing repayment difficulties. Visit contact us to get in touch with the Arrears Support Unit (ASU) responsible for your mortgage.