House prices at historical highs. Recent buyers stretched to afford deposit and mortgage payments. 1.4 million re-set morgages higher. Banks cutting back their risk profiles and refusing to lend money. Looks like a recipe for disaster to me. I don't like the smell and I certainly do not want a taste. I have been renting for two years now, paying 50% of the cost of capital to buy ( and no other costs)......yippee! Most people are of course still optimistic; they will be sadly disapointed as most eternal optimists are.

nigel isherwood, Adelaide, Australia

The state have been helping the but-to-let fraternity with taxpayers money since 1989 largely in the form of housing benefit and the unfair conundrum of allowing tax relief on their loans.

Has anyone ever considered the cost of housing benefit to the taxpayer? Would £12 billion be near the mark?

Why have'nt these resources gone into providing real help for fist time buyers, and incresing the supply of adequate social housing, instead of lining the pockets of those assigned to the greed culture of rip off Britain.

The hyped up unsustainable buy-to-let market in this country has had a destablising effect on the housing market, by the taking of what would be first time buyer properties, and the principle idea behind it which lacks total economic sense i.e. I purchase a house and rent it for more than the mortgage!

The government should wake up to this and provide sustainable homes to people with reasonable long term occupation options with security and better value.

Dorothy , Northwich, UK

The moral of the story: don't borrow what you can't afford to pay back. When I took out a mortgage I borrowed significantly less than I could have done, as I wisely costed in the possibility that interest rates could rise (or my income could fall). Sadly too many people in this country lack the common sense to do this and expect the rest of us to bail them out.

Paul, Coventry,

CML demand bailout for lenders who aren't getting their money back. Do they really want to look a laughing stock.

David, Guildford,

Why not give the readers the details of the repossessions? such as how long did they own their house - are they buy-to-let owners vs 1st time owners?
And what part of UK is the most dominant repossessions occurring? London? North East, Wales, or Scotland? Come on, do a better than average report or don't do it at all. Scare mongering is sloppy reporting.
Susan, North London

susan , London, UK

The way out of this is to get pregnant, have a baby and loose your job. The Benefits agency automatically pays the mortgage arrears and interest.
People need to accept they are in a merciless system and learn to counter it.

Keith, Wigan, UK

The tax payer will foot the bill if a defaulting home owner has to be rehoused, better if the government took on a part share in the house. However the buy to let buyers should be left to sink as they caused the stupid overpricing of houses in the first place!

pete, poole, dorset

Poor money borrowers with poor credit history! Maybe CML needs to get into the money lending business directly, and then see how it responds when people start defaulting. That's right, ask the govt. to bail it out of its folly.
Reap what you sow.

Roger Davies, Christchurch, New Zealand

Why does the state have to help? People take out home loans not so much to have a home (they can rent) as to make a profit. The state doesn't get any share when it goes up (no CGT on gains) so why do the rest of us taxpayers have to bail out their greed when prices fall and they don't make the profit they wanted? Great deal eh! prices go up the profit is yours. Prices go down the taxpayer bails you out!1 This country has gone mad.

James, Blackpool,

If Mortgage lenders aren't going to lend money for mortgages, what will they do? Just borrow money from Dubai and Prince Thingy bin Wadsadough from Saudi Arabia to buy country estates for themselves, like Northern Rock?

eric campbell, harrogate, uk