Landlord possession claims on the up, says Government

The Ministry of Justice has published the latest landlord possession statistics which show more landlords are going to court to regain possession of their property.

It shows that the number of landlord possession claims in County Courts fell from 194,645 in 2002 to 134,961 in 2010, but has since increased by 26% to 170,451 in 2013.

It says this increase has been in stark contrast to the 29% decline in the number of mortgage possession claims over the same period. The second quarter of 2014 recorded 38,509 claims, a number which is both the second highest quarter 2 figure since 2009 and the lowest quarterly figure for two years.

The estimated proportion of landlord claims which have progressed to an order, warrant or repossession by county court bailiffs has also been increasing slightly since 2010.

Whereas the estimated percentage of claims leading to an order, warrant or repossession in 2010 stood at around 68%, 36% and 21% respectively, the Q2 2014 figures are 72%, 38% and 21% respectively.