Investing in Buy-To-Let properties has undergone a slump in the last two years as property prices have plummeted in many markets across the globe, with many amateur investors seeing their dreams of making substantial profits slip away.

But it hasn’t been all bad news. Just as property prices have crashed, so have interest rates similarly fallen, so investors who secured property mortgages on variable interest rates have seen their key outgoing fall. Assuming that BTL properties are still being rented out, albeit at lower rental prices, then many investors with BTL portfolios are still making profits on an ongoing basis - or at least keeping monthly losses to a minimum.

Of course problems arise if investors have to liquidate some or all of their BTL portfolio in the current market, since the price they’ll get for their properties may be less (or in some cases much less) than that originally paid. 

On the other hand, if you’re thinking of entering the BTL market this may be the best time in the economic cycle to take the plunge, as property prices - though recovering - are below their highs of a few years ago, and interest rates are still at rock bottom. 

Nevertheless, even in the current environment making a BTL investment is a risky process, and particularly if you are completely new to the market and are tempted to rush in without doing the required research. 

Buyto.com is a guide to Buy-To-Let property investments. It includes a walkthrough of the Buy-To-Let Process and our views on the key steps you should undertake in Planning a Buy-To-Let Strategy. 

This guide is completely free to access and use, and we will keep updating the site on a regular. We have no association with any company in the BTL, property or finance industries and, naturally, we can’t give advice on any specific BTL investment. 

Our site is a general guide only and we strongly you to seek professional advice on mortgages and other sources of finance for But-To-Let investments.

Buy-To-Let Market snapshot

The latest monthly Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) UK Housing Market Survey, published in November 2009, provides further evidence for the recovery in property prices. Importantly, while prices rose the fastest in London, the South East and the South West regions, RICS says that: “Price expectations are positive in every region of England and Wales as well as in Scotland, while broadly flat in Northern Ireland.”

Perhaps the most interesting aspects about this (and every) RICS monthly survey are the quotes from surveyors, one of whom is quoted in the November report as saying: “Speaking out loud to say anything that is simply positive or confident for fear of being proved wrong. The market is improving, and improving confidence will accelerate that trend in the final quarter.” 

It is obviously true that many experts (in any field) are reluctant to stake their reputations on forecasts that could prove to be misleading, but the point about the RICS survey is that it aggregates responses, so  the upbeat message of the November report is good news for the BTL market.