Although it is widely known in the mortgage industry, most people are not aware of the fact that you can re-negotiate the terms of your current mortgage.

The first thing you should do is to make sure that you have all your ducks in a row. You will need to be able to put together updated financial statements, pay slips, and information on your monthly expenses.

In a lot of cases people need to re-negotiate the terms of their home loan because they anticipate that they may soon have difficulty making payments.

Therefore, if you're having trouble keeping up with everything you must be proactive and push your lender to modify your terms so that you will be able to afford your payment.

Just remember, lenders do not want to foreclose on homeowners. In addition to the significant loss of mortgage income, they also have to incur legal fees, estate agent commissions, possible repair cost to the property and countless other fees.

So if you approach them before running into trouble, they will be more than willing to discuss your situation.

There are numerous ways in which you improve the conditions of your loan. For example, your lender may be willing to extend your loan repayment period and lower your monthly repayments at the same time.

Perhaps your lender will be willing to accept a lower payment over a pre-determined period after which normal payments would resume.

If you have tried everything and your lender is not prepared to help you can always approach other lenders who may be more than willing to refinance your mortgage loan at more favorable terms.

Just make sure that your mortgage is up to date, before you approach them.