We’re constantly being reminded that investments go down as well as up, but how many buy-to-let investors could have predicted the market would be this volatile?

Laura Howard, The Independent on Sunday – 14 Dec 2008

After seeing at least 15 per cent wiped off the value of their property investments in the past year, it seemed that landlords on variable-rate mortgages could at last breathe a sigh of relief thanks to the recent dramatic cuts in the base rate. But already they are faced with a still graver problem: the growing prospect of rent arrears.

According to research published last week by the National Landlords Association (NLA), 71 per cent of landlords expect tenants to fall behind on their rent during the course of next year as unemployment shoots up and the credit crunch bites harder.

Richard Price, the director of operations at the NLA, says: “Regardless of how reliable your tenants are, things will always go wrong. The usual triggers are a change in relationship or, most likely in the coming months, loss of income through unemployment.” Full Article