Here come the UK's own credit crunch and with our interest rate more than double the US's I'd say we're in for a spectacular property crash...

cww, suffolk,

Is it time for the begging bowl to be passed around again after £25 b for northern rock and £50 billion to (well we still haven,t been told yet,hush hush).
looks like some of that is winging it,s way to propping up b&bingley.
perhaps we,ll be seeing vince cable back on tv again soon.

robert, hants,

Is this northern rock all over again.
This credit crunch is real and all the experts are saying it will be long lasting and a deep recession is going to happen.
The fear that prices will fall is making matters worse
The profit margin in BTL is all but gone and with higher rates B&B profits will fall

Jay, Manchester , uk

Will be a take over?
Yes by who the uk tax payer again ?
Self cert is the main problem and the PLC status was meant to make the companies bigger and better have a look at the deals that the smaller building societies can do and will building societies merge again.

Jay, Manchester , uk

Part of the problem lies with the stock market. Irrational lending was the consequence of the pressures to increase profits. When the funding crunch began, hedge funds shorted the bank sector, collapsing the shares. A rights issue 46% below its then price, allowing those participating to short too.

Jane, eastbourne,

Although house prices are falling, rents are rising (just as one should expect when fewer people can afford to buy – thay have tto rent). I suspect that mortgage defaults will be relatively localised to speculative new build apartments that are in oversupply. Was B&B over-exposed to them?

chazza, canterbury,

One is forced to assume that revenues from 'Buy to Let', have reached critical mass. The overall position seems dire, and B&B shares may go lower than the rights issue asking price. This nightmare affecting all banks may have just begun, and it may seem sensible to put your cash under the mattress.

N.Metcalf, Lincoln,

They deserve it! Like most of the banks they brought this on themselves. Unfortunately many others are going to have to help pay for it all!

The banks and their shareholders were greedy and happy to take the money when it was all 'rosey in the garden'! Surely they should have seen it all coming!

Jeremy, Winchester, Hampshire

Some 59% of B&B's mortgages are BTL. Worse still, 22% are self-certified. Nearly a quarter! The article doesn't touch on these. What is the City's view of this risk? What was the role of government deregulation? Was there fraud; is this being investigated and will perpetrators be punished?

A Solovine, Bracknell, Berkshire

Are we the tax payers getting sucked in more and more to support this ailing industry. NR aint going to pay back, and the bail out money is as safe as my company pension.
The banking industry has to sort itself out, and the BoE and this crazy gov't should not risk tax payers funds.

Np, England, UK

Not sure why you think this is the final curtain on BTL? The article is saying that the bad debt provision will increase (reducing short-term profits), that provision may/may not become realised losses long-term. B&B BTL lending needed a 15% deposit, and rent covering 100% of the monthly mortgage.

Paul Williams, Brighton,

looks like the brits are about to discover, as the americans are already doing, that the problem isn't rates, it's the price of the underlying collateral. lowering rates will only stoke inflation, but it won't resolve the underlying problem that prices of some assets are too high.

dcm, Washington, DC, USA

B&B is following the path troden by Northern Rock

As the property markets falls to pieces, BTL investors will be in the vanguard of defaulters.

Who will rescue B&B?

We will go through the same pantomine then the tax-payers will foot the bill.

Singh, Cardiff, UK

This is very good news, the final curtain on BTL

Mervyn, London,

B&B have never let on about any problems even though it has always been clear they would be hit hard, have of their mortgage business is BTL!!!

The wonderful light touch regulation that helped us in to this mess!!!

Thanks Brown

Richard Cooke, Ipswich,

What it surprising is that people are surprised.Afterall,they're the UK biggest BTL landlord with many outstanding mortgages in negative equity because they only damanded very small deposits.Would you buy shares in this company?I sold mine in 2000 for £2.40 a share a wise move I think.NR N°2 I think

stephen hulton, eure , france

The stupidity/incompetence of the Government/BoE in not easing the liquidity crisis earlier and lowering interest rates thereby stopping the downward spiral when they could have is now coming home to roost. Expect big job losses as this spreads. Labour will be unelectible for a generation.

David, London,

Great companies stick to their brand values. Mercedes still make great cars, coke still tastes good, cadbury's is wholesome. But B&B tried to reinvent themselves with a new brand of "don't work just buy to let" . Shame - their old idea of "save and we will together avoid a rainy day" was better.

roger, tunbridge wells, Kent