Before accepting mortgage payment relief: a written-offer checklist

Establish what is being offered

FCAC's financial-difficulties guidance addresses existing residential mortgages on principal residences where borrowers are at risk of missing regular payments. It describes expectations for tailored support by banks and other federally regulated mortgage providers. Ask your provider which options it will assess for your circumstances.

Start a separate worksheet for each proposal. Give it the lender's reference and a date so a revised proposal does not get confused with an earlier conversation. The worksheet is your organisation tool, not the lender's approval document.

• Lender and contact: ______
• Offer reference and date: ______
• Relief measure being considered: ______
• Information still needed for an assessment: ______
• Conditions still awaiting approval: ______
• Written offer location and response deadline: ______

Put the before-and-after figures beside each other

FCAC's financial-difficulties guidance says information before consent should cover the outstanding amount, dollar cost impact, amortization impact, revised payment schedule, interest rate and type, and effective date. Use those categories to request a comparison you can understand.

Ask the lender to date each figure and identify its assumptions. Keep a separate line for money paid immediately and money added to the loan. If two figures do not reconcile, write down the difference as a question rather than supplying your own explanation.

Planning estimates do not determine lender-specific relief terms or approval. Ask your lender for the arrangement that applies to your mortgage.

• Balance before relief, CAD, as of date: ______
• Balance when relief starts, CAD, with explanation of changes: ______
• Projected balance when relief ends, CAD, and assumptions: ______
• Current payment, CAD, frequency and next due date: ______
• Relief-period payment, CAD, frequency and first due date: ______
• Payment after relief, CAD, or how and when it will be determined: ______
• Current and proposed annual interest rate and fixed or variable type: ______
• Remaining amortization before and after, in years and months: ______
• Total mortgage cost impact, CAD, and calculation assumptions: ______
• Upfront charges, amounts added to the loan and any confirmed waivers: ______

• If renewal is relevant, compare mortgage renewal scenarios
• How our planning estimates work

Ask what happens when temporary relief ends

FCAC's relief-options page explains that a deferral is an agreement to delay payments, not erase them. Deferred payments must be repaid. Relief can increase overall mortgage costs. An amortization extension can reduce payments while increasing interest paid over time. These tradeoffs deserve their own questions, separate from the immediate payment amount.

Ask for a written sequence from the first changed payment to the review or end date. Do not assume that an end date automatically returns every part of the mortgage to its previous position. Request the lender's explanation of the next step and who will contact whom.

• Relief start and end dates: ______
• First payment after relief and its due date: ______
• Treatment and repayment schedule for amounts delayed: ______
• Proposed remaining amortization after relief: ______
• If amortization is extended, plan and review date for returning towards the original schedule: ______
• What happens if circumstances have not improved: ______

Confirm the arrangement before changing payments

Do not skip a payment or cancel an automatic withdrawal because you have asked about relief. Request confirmation of what has actually been agreed, when it takes effect and what you must pay while the request is being assessed. If the next due date is approaching, contact the lender rather than assuming the proposal already applies.

Keep the final written terms beside your worksheet and check that they answer the same questions. Ask your lender how the agreed arrangement will be recorded and reported. This checklist does not promise a credit-reporting outcome. If the explanation remains unclear, seek help from a trustworthy qualified adviser before deciding.

• Agreement confirmed and copy received: ______
• Payment instructions while assessment is pending: ______
• Automatic withdrawal instructions confirmed by lender: ______
• How the arrangement will be recorded and reported: ______
• Open question, responsible contact and answer needed by: ______
• Follow-up date and documents to retain: ______

Frequently asked questions