Research published by the Building Societies Association (BSA) found that 97% of borrowers that went into arrears during the last two years have not faced repossession and remain in their homes.
Borrowers that spoke to their lender promptly were more likely to repay their arrears than those who waited to make contact.
Paul Broadhead, head of mortgage policy at the BSA, said: "While falling into mortgage arrears is always a worrying experience for the individuals involved, most borrowers do manage to repay their arrears and stay in their homes.
"The results highlight the importance of borrowers contacting their lender as soon as they face potential payment difficulties, and seeking independent advice. Doing so enables the lender to consider all reasonable options to assist the borrower.
"Borrowers that have been in arrears believe that their lender has been helpful and has treated them fairly. Those that face payment problems should therefore not be daunted by their arrears, but should take control of the situation by seeking help as soon as they can."
Joanna Elson, chief executive of the Money Advice Trust which runs National Debtline, added, "I welcome the BSA's research findings. At National Debtline we assist many people with mortgage arrears, and we know that those who seek early independent advice often have more options.
"This is supported by today's research which found that of the borrowers surveyed; those that had received independent money advice were more likely to have either repaid their mortgage arrears or to be in the process of doing so.
"We also know from our own independent evaluations that those who seek independent advice feel more empowered to deal with their finances going forward."
The findings are the result of a survey of 451 borrowers who had missed two or more consecutive payments on their mortgage over the last two years. Of these, 33% of borrowers have repaid their arrears in full, 41% are currently repaying their arrears, and 12% have come to an arrangement with their lender but are not yet repaying their arrears. Just 3% had their property taken into possession by their lender.
Borrowers that spoke to their lender promptly were more likely to repay their arrears. 46% of borrowers that spoke to their lender before they actually got into financial difficulty had repaid their arrears. This is significantly more than the 19% of borrowers that spoke to their lender a number of weeks or more after getting into problems who had fully repaid their arrears.
