Landlord Assist said rental arrears will continue to be the main problem facing landlords as unemployment numbers have shown no signs of abating.

Graham Kinnear, managing director of Landlord Assist, said: “A rise in unemployment has meant that more tenants have struggled to meet their monthly commitments. This has had a knock-on effect on some landlords, who have already seen the value of their assets decrease.”

He added: “Landlords are less equipped to sustain non paying tenants than they were a year ago and need to take precautionary measures to minimise the risk of being exposed to rent arrears.”

However, while challenging times remain on the horizon for landlords, optimism can be seen in the potential increase in rental yields, which has been driven by a drop in rental stock.

Stephen Parry, commercial director of Landlord Assist, explained: “Over the past year, the market has been characterised by an oversupply of properties caused by a rise in so-called ‘accidental landlords’ who opted to rent out their properties instead of selling them at a loss.

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“However, this has since tailed off as evidence of improvement in the housing market has encouraged some owners to sell up. This reduction in supply is likely to lead to upwards pressure on rents in popular areas.”