Landlords and homeowners in some Welsh towns have experienced the worst drop in house prices in England and Wales, according to recent government figures.

Average house prices across the two countries have decreased by 5.6 per cent in the last year, data from the Land Registry report for September showed.

The number of homeowners reluctantly letting out properties has fallen for the third quarter in a row, according to figures from the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA).

Six in ten of the organisation's members reported property being rented out rather than sold between July and September.

Landlords are likely to face "challenging conditions" next year, amid the "slow process" of exiting recession, advice specialist Landlord Assist has warned.

Growing rental arrears are likely to be the cause of difficulties as tenants may find it difficult to meet their rent obligations if unemployment remains high, the organisation claimed.

First impressions are vitally important for landlords when trying to let properties, it was advised today.

Although potential tenants are likely only to view properties they have already deemed as desirable, there is no room for complacency, warned letting agent Belvoir Cheadle.

First-time buyers are beginning to return to the market or are at least contemplating making purchases, according to reports from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

The RICS Housing Market Survey, which questions surveyors on enquiry trends, found that 13 per cent of enquiries were coming from first-time buyers, with a net balance of 28 per cent reporting that this represented an increase over the past three months.

Complaints about estate agents to the Property Ombudsman Scheme (TPOS) are on the rise and are expected to increase further by the end of the year.

Calls to complain about agents rose to 129 a week, which equals to around four an hour in the three months to the end of September, the property ombudsman Christopher Harmer said.

Mortgage lending for house purchases continued to grow in September. However, at the same time remortgages continued to plummet, according to British Banking Association (BBA) figures.

Monthly mortgage approvals for house purchases reached over 40,000 in September for the first time in two years, but remortgages continued to fall to around 20,000 after reaching nearly 80,000 in early 2008.

Building applications for new houses are on the rise and have increased by four per cent in the last quarter, according to a new report.

There were over 24,000 applications made in the third quarter of the year, according to figures from the National House-Building Council (NHBC).

Exeter City Council is to re-launch it Extralet scheme next week as it turns to private landlords to ease a housing shortage in the area.

Under the scheme, landlords can receive a guaranteed rental income in return for making properties available to people on the council's waiting list.

Parents are planning to take advantage of lower house prices with 70 per cent believing now is the right time to assist their offspring with property purchases.

Almost a quarter of parents with children over the age of 18 plan to use their savings to help them buy their first home, say Lloyds TSB, who conducted the survey.

The average number of properties owned by residential landlords has risen from 6.3 to seven in the past year, according to figures released today (Friday 23rd October).

Lower interest rates and higher rental yields are behind the 11 per cent rise, claim the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA).

Enquiries about repossessions have increased by over a quarter in the last 12 months, a new report has shown.

The Property Portfolio Rescue (PPR) distress index reported a rise of 25.7 per cent in enquiries from concerned property owners.

The National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) has insisted that more needs to be done to aid the recovery of the housing market, despite reports that the mortgage industry is seeing a modest growth.

Following £12.5 billion being made available in September, mortgage lending increased by 18 per cent to an estimated £38.9 billion between the second and third quarters of this year, Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) figures revealed yesterday.

House prices will return to their peak within 18 months if the market continues to grow at the rate seen in the last two quarters, according to property investment advisors Assetz.

The claim follows a Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) report released yesterday, which revealed that there was a two per cent increase in mortgage lending in September over August, bringing the total lent last month to £12.5 billion.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) yesterday announced proposals for increased regulation of the buy-to-let mortgage market.

Plans under the Mortgage Market Review include tighter scrutiny of buy-to-let lenders by the FSA who currently only oversee the residential mortgage market.

Proposals outlined by the Financial Services Authority's (FSA) Mortgage Market Review yesterday have been met with apprehension from the National Landlords Association (NLA).

The organisation, which represents the interests of landlords across the country, has expressed concerns that plans to place a ban on self-certification mortgages and more stringent affordability checks by lenders could mean increases in the costs of borrowing for landlords.

The insurance industry has taken positive steps in improving customer focus but still has more to do, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI).

Stephen Haddrill, director general of the organisation, told the Insurance Times Forum: "We have come a long way in improving customer outcomes. We have been competitive and innovative to the customers' great advantage. But we have further to go."

A property coalition formed by the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) and the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) has called for stamp duty to be abolished.

Named after the year the tax was extended to property sales in Great Britain, the 1808 coalition slammed the charge as a "relic", saying it no longer reflects the modern UK housing market.

Landlords could be forced to pay tenants' unpaid water bills to the tune of £500 million per year under plans outlined in a new government review.

The Walker Review on Water Charging includes a proposal from water companies asking the government to consider legislation allowing them to pass unpaid bills to landlords.

Rents in the UK have risen by almost three percentage points in the last two months following an increase of 1.2 per cent in September, a new report has shown.

London and the south-east proved to have the strongest growth with increases of 4.5 and 6.5 per cent respectively.

Residential landlords are beginning to feel optimistic about house prices for the first time in more than two years, according to a report from Paragon Mortgages.

An increase of 0.8 per cent on the value of properties is now expected over the next 12 months, after what the Residential Landlords Association described as "two years of relative pessimism".

Residential landlords on the south coast will be able to learn about their expectations and responsibilities during a meeting later this month.

Gosport Borough Council is hosting its Landlord's Forum on October 22nd, which will allow those involved in residential lettings to ask questions about any issues they are unsure of, the Southern Daily Echo reports.

Residential property owners in Loughborough wanting to know more about landlords insurance can attend a free advisory surgery later this month.

Charnwood Borough Council is hosting the event at its offices in Southfields Road on October 26th between 16:00 and 18:00, inloughborough.com reports.

The importance of taking out appropriate landlord insurance has been highlighted by one property expert.

Speaking to the Liverpool Echo, Zoomf's Katie McLoughlin said that property-related problems, albeit small ones, are inevitable "regardless of the size of their property portfolio".

More than half of property experts have seen a "significant improvement" in the way in which investors view UK property investment conditions over the past three months.

This is according to Reita's Property Investment Perspective, which showed that this is true among 54 per cent of those surveyed.

Being a homeowner for increasing numbers of younger people has become an unrealistic expectation.

This is according to Steven Hilton, spokesperson for the National Landlords Association, who was responding to new research revealing that the average age of those renting accommodation has risen.

Portfolio values are expected to increase over the next 12 months for landlords, a development that could see demand for landlord insurance to increase.

Paragon Mortgages latest quarterly survey has revealed that landlords expect, on average, a 0.8 per cent increase in the value of their portfolios during the next year.

Increasing numbers of landlords could experience a rise in property activity following the publication of new research.

Abbey Mortgages has found that those looking at buying a property in the capital would be better off renting.

It was revealed that the 187,000 people looking to get on the property ladder in London would be £466.19 worse off each month if they chose to buy as opposed to rent because of continued high prices in the capital.

Individuals letting a property have seen the average age of tenants increase during the past three years.

According to research by Spareroom.co.uk, the average age of a tenant is now 28-years-old, which is up from 2006's average of 25-years-old, the Press Association reports.

Landlords have been warned that they need to make sure their properties meet health and safety regulations.

Southend Council has called for more investigations into landlords who allow tenants to live in poor conditions.

This follows the case of a landlord in the region found to be renting out bedsits that were unfit to house people.

Property investors are expecting the base rate to be increased over the next year, new research has shown.

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held the base rate at its current level of 0.5 per cent this month.

A study from Young Group indicated that landlords and other investors are preparing themselves for rises in the next few months though.

Landlords looking to secure new mortgage deals are likely to find the market "pretty unchanged" over the next few months.

That is the view of Alexander Hall, which has met recent lending increases with scepticism.

The property firm indicated that there is likely to be a period of consolidation from lenders before better options for investors become available.

There is currently less desire among people in the UK to climb the property ladder than in the past, a housing expert has claimed.

George Clarke believes that the credit crunch is behind this new reluctance to buy new homes as people have less spare money to invest.

Landlords with buy-to-let mortgages are increasingly choosing tracker rates, new research has found.

A study from Legal & General indicated that variable rates are also rising in popularity for property investors.

The firm's seventh quarterly Mortgage Purchases Index indicated that 30 per cent of buy-to-let mortgages over the past three months were variable rates.

New proposals from the European Union could have an impact upon landlords in the buy-to-let sector, property experts have insisted.

The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) has suggested that new legislation from the EU may result in expensive changes having to be made by landlords in the UK.

Landlords trying to make improvements to their properties need to recognise the limitations of their ability, experts have pointed out.

Rather than bringing in professionals, many people may try to carry out work on homes themselves.

However, Build It has urged landlords and other property investors not to complete dangerous activities themselves.

Property values in the UK increased lat month, the new Halifax House Price Index has shown.

The study indicated that home values rose by 1.6 per cent during September, marking the third month in a row when property prices have gone up.

September was also the fifth month overall in 2009 that has seen a positive change in house prices, while there was a 2.8 per cent jump in prices during the third quarter of the year.

New life is being breathed into the property market across the country, experts have suggested.

According to iammoving.com, a trend for house price rises in the south and in London will be repeated in other areas of the UK.

The website noted that once property markets in some areas become livelier, this will have a knock-on effect.

Landlords need to get their finances in order to make sure that their property investment are a success.

That is the view of Mortgages for Business, which has called for more professionalism within the sector.

Financial considerations for landlords include arranging let property insurance, sorting out mortgages and deciding whether or not to look for and purchase new homes.

All buy-to-let mortgages should be regulated, according to the British Property Foundation (BPF).

The organisation has called for the Financial Services Authority (FSA) to take control of the issue and introduce new regulations.

At the moment, the BPF thinks that buy-to-let mortgages are thought of in the same manner as business loans and are treated differently to other mortgages.

Landlords in the buy-to-let market are being left jaded by the state of the mortgage market, a report has claimed.

New research from the Young Group suggested that many landlords are happy to keep hold of their existing property portfolios rather than pursue new investment opportunities.

House prices increased by 0.9 per cent in the UK last month, new statistics have shown.

Research from the Nationwide Building Society revealed that during September property rose in value for the fifth month in a row.

The organisation claimed that home prices have increased by 4.1 per cent in 2009 so far, though they are still 13.5 per cent lower than at the peak of October 2007.

A substantial amount of British people do not want to own their own houses, a new study has found.

Research from the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) indicated that more than one in four adults in UK cities has no wish to be a homeowner.

More housing needs to be available in the rented sector, a property website has claimed.

According to upad.co.uk, there needs to be action from the government to help stimulate growth in the marketplace.

A combination of economic factors and social issues has resulted in more potential tenants, which in turn provide more opportunities for landlords.

Landlords can afford to be more 'bullish' with rent pricing in the current market due to more favourable conditions.

That is the opinion of email4property.co.uk, which has urged people unsure whether to stay in the rental market to hold tight.