If you need financial advice and qualify for Abhaile, you can get a free in-person or online meeting with a financial adviser. The adviser will explain your options and help you work through your mortgage arrears situation. Where possible, the adviser will help you find a way to keep you in your home.
You can get more information from the MABS helpline on 0818 07 2000, Monday to Friday, 9am to 8pm.
Dedicated Mortgage Arrears Advisers
The first person you talk to will be one of MABS’s dedicated mortgage arrears advisers (DMA advisers). Our DMA advisers are based all over the country and provide independent expert advice to people in difficulty with mortgage arrears. Working with you, a DMA adviser will see what type of financial, insolvency or legal services you need. If you qualify, they will give you a voucher that you should use as soon as possible.
If your DMA adviser thinks you may need personal insolvency, they will give you a voucher for a consultation with a personal insolvency practitioner (PIP).
If your case involves complicated financial issues but is not suited to personal insolvency, your DMA adviser will give you a voucher for free financial advice from an accountant.
If you do not qualify for a PIP consultation or you decide not to use the PIP service, your DMA adviser will work with you and your lender to agree on an informal resolution to your mortgage arrears. They will discuss other possible solutions to mortgage arrears with you. This informal solution is often known as an alternative repayment arrangement (ARA).
If your DMA adviser thinks you need legal advice, they will give you a voucher for a free consultation with a solicitor.
| Your situation | What voucher/help you can receive |
| Don’t qualify for or want a personal insolvency practitioner consultation but want a resolution to mortgage arrears | Consultation with your DMA advisers to discuss potential solutions like: Reduced payments Mortgage to Rent Term extension to mortgage |
| Personal insolvency | Consultation with a personal insolvency practitioner (PIP) |
| Financial issues but not personal insolvency | Consultation with an accountant |
Personal Insolvency Practitioner service
Abhaile’s panel of personal insolvency practitioners (PIP) can offer debt advice and personal insolvency solutions for people in mortgage arrears.
The PIP will:
- Assess your financial situation
- Explain the options available to you
- Highlight the best option for you
- Confirm the advice to you in writing
The PIP will also prepare a prescribed financial statement (PFS) with you. A PFS is a detailed written analysis of your financial situation. This statement is required by law under the personal insolvency legislation.
If the PIP advises that your best option is personal insolvency, they will help you to take the next steps. This may involve creating a personal insolvency arrangement (PIA) to enable you to pay your bills again (become solvent). A personal insolvency arrangement is sometimes referred to as a statutory solution.
When you and your DMA adviser negotiate with your lender to reach a compromise known as an alternative repayment arrangement (ARA), it is known as a non-statutory or informal solution.
If your PIP advises that your best option is bankruptcy, they will also give you the certificate the court needs when you apply for bankruptcy. This certificate confirms that a regulated PIP has advised you about your options under personal insolvency law.
Accountant service
Before you can speak with an accountant, you need to work with a DMA adviser to complete a standard financial statement (SFS). An SFS is a document that allows you to provide full and clear details of your financial circumstances, so the accountant can give you helpful financial advice when you are filling it in.
You need an SFS for the Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process (MARP). The MARP protects customers who are having difficulties repaying their mortgage loan.
The accountant will advise you on any financial issues relating to the resolution of your mortgage arrears. They will also advise you on possible solutions when you talk with them and after in writing.
You can choose your accountant from the Abhaile accountants panel depending on who is available.
The Abhaile accountancy panel differs from the mortgage arrears information and advice service (MAIAS) accountancy panel. Your DMA adviser will be able to explain the difference to you – and why it matters.
Mortgage Arrears Information and Advice Service (MAIAS): Panel of Accountants
The Mortgage Arrears Information and Advice Service provide a panel of accountants who can help you. They will give you advice on mortgage arrears and resolution proposals from lenders. Lenders fund consultations with accountants on this panel.
Find out more about the Mortgage Arrears Information and Advice Service: Panel of Accountants.
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