17/08/2009 - Fewer buy-to-let mortgagee arrears
There has been a sharp fall in the number of buy-to-let landlords in mortgage arrears, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).
It reports that 29,400 were at least three months behind at the end of the second quarter, 17% down on the previous three months. Repossessions remained at 1,400, while 2,500 receivers of rent were appointed, down from 2,900.
Receivers enable tenants to remain in the property while paying rent to the lender, and their use has jumped tenfold from 1,000 in the second quarter of last year to 10,800 at the end of June.
Says senior policy adviser Rob Thomas: "So long as properties have paying tenants, landlords now have much greater ability to service mortgage payments and we expect arrears to continue to fall as landlords are helped by lower interest rates."
The good news is a 5% rise to 12,950 in the number of buy-to-let mortgages taken out during the three months, the first increase for five quarters.
Copyright © Press Association 2009
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