The Financial Services Authority warned on Monday that 2.5 million UK property owners could face negative equity as house prices decline.
Of those 2.5 million, 500,000 are thought to be buy-to-let mortgage holders, whom the FSA have highlighted with particular concern.
Property prices, the FSA said, are expected to fall further until 2010, meaning that the worst [...]

Buy-to-let mortgage holders could stand to make greater profits this year, according to a study by Paragon Mortgages.
The study claims that average quarterly yield from a landlord’s portfolio is now 6.1%, up from 5.7% in Q3 of last year.
This figure is expected to rise by a further 0.2% as rents increase and property prices fall.

The Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association has warned that the government must support buy-to-let borrowers.
The IMLA warned that buy-to-let mortgage holders will be hardest hit in the housing price crash.
Executive director of the IMLA Peter Williams said:
“Currently, broker-facing lenders who traditionally serve the buy-to-let market are being frozen out by the government.
“Without support helping lenders to free up [...]

Research from buy-to-let mortgage expert the Money Centre claims that 75% of landlors are “turning a profit” despite the recession.
The figures show that roughly the same amount of buy-to-let landlords are making a profit from their property as were in 2007 at the height of the housing boom.
In fact, in the last few months of [...]

In a poll of 1,000 landlords, many with buy-to-let mortgages, it was revealed that the optimum tenant is female.
Landlords were specific in their preferences, stating that the ideal tenant would also be aged between 36 and 45, earning between £20,000 and £30,000, and working in the health sector.
25% of landlords would prefer a tenant [...]

Whilst other house prices have plummeted, the price of buy-to-let properties has remained largely constant over the last year, the Financial Times reports.
This means that buy-to-let mortgage seekers will not be able to take advantage of low housing prices and buy up properties when they are cheapest.
Investment, however, has been flourishing in early [...]

A report in The Guardian today claims that the government will focus more sharply on buy-to-let mortgage holders’ tax returns this year.
HM Revenue and Customs has been motivated to examine the tax returns and self assessments of landlords by the increase in buy-to-let property owners in 2008.
Recent figures state that there are currently 800,000 rental [...]

British landlords will not sell off properties in 2009 as long as they can keep up mortgage repayments, a research analyst has predicted.
Yolande Barnes, of Savills, said that it would be nonsensical for landlords to sell their properties as the market hits its lowest trough.
In fact, Barnes said, now may be the time that landlords [...]

A group of MPs are investigating possible legislation that would allow buy to let landlords pay back evaded taxes through an amnesty.
This would mean that landlords would not face financial penalties or legal action from HM Revenue and Customs.
The amnesty would coincide with a major campaign to inform landlords, business-owners and other self-employed or “high [...]

Fund manager Managing Partners Ltd’s latest research claims that buy to let landlords lost £52.8 billion in equity in the year up to October 2008.
This makes a loss of £144.77 million per day or £6 million per hour.
Despite this more investors have joined the buy to let mortgage market.
Buy to let mortgagees have increased since [...]