The number of BTL mortgages in arrears greater than 2.5% of the outstanding balance at the end of Q4 2023 reached 13,570 — almost 124% higher than the same quarter last year, revealed the latest UK Finance data.
This is also an increase from the previous quarter, when 11,540 BTL mortgages in arrears were registered.
In addition, there were 500 BTL mortgage possessions taken during Q4 2023, up 56.3% on the same period a year previously.
The value of new BTL lending for the UK during this period dropped by 55.4% to £6.3bn, while the average BTL interest rate across new loans rose to 5.7%.
The average gross BTL rental yield for the UK in Q4 2023 was 6.74%, compared with 5.85% in the same quarter in 2022.
As a result, the average BTL ICR for the UK in Q4 2023 fell to 180%, compared with 238% a year previously.
The UK Finance data also revealed that the number of BTL fixed rate mortgages outstanding in Q4 2023 was 1.37 million, 1.7% up on a year previously.
In contrast, the number of variable rate loans outstanding fell by 12.7% to 620,000.
