In the survey by PropertyLetByUs, the issue of late rent payments was cited by 25% of landlords as their biggest concern whereas 20% said tenants from hell were their biggest worry.
Other issues included worries about property damage, the number one cause of stress for 18% of landlords, followed by deposit disputes for 13% while 7% said dealing with tenant evictions was their most stressful problem.
Despite the recent HM Revenue and Customs well publicised crackdown on landlords' undeclared income, just 1% of landlords said they were stressed by 'tax issues'.
2014 was a good year for BTL landlords
The managing director of PropertyLetByUs, Jane Morris, said: “Last year was a good one for landlords who saw increased tenant demand and a rise in rental income as well as asset value growth. However, for many landlords the late payment of rent is a big issue.”
She added that the rental market looks like continuing its growth in 2015 which means that landlords will see less stress with void periods and having to find good new tenants.
The firm’s findings are backed up by a recent survey conducted by the National Landlords’ Association which revealed that a third of all landlords experienced rent arrears – and the housing charity Shelter has also announced that many landlords will see a spike in late rent payments for January as hard-pressed tenants struggle to pay for Christmas.
Landlords opt for short term fixed mortages
Meanwhile, a specialist mortgage broker says that landlords are opting for shorter term fixed-rate mortgage deals because pricing is so low.
Mortgages for Business says that a predicted increase in the bank base rate is being pushed further back this year which is encouraging landlords to take up a raft of impressive mortgage offers.
In the survey, the broker found that the proportion of landlords switching to two-year fixed rates for their BTL mortgage had doubled in 2014 from 12% to 23%.
Alongside that finding, the survey revealed that there's been a steep decline in the number of landlords choosing longer term fixed rates, down from 21% to 15%.
Cheap short-term BTL mortgages tempt landlords
The managing director at Mortgages for Business, David Whittaker, said: “Ultra-competitive mortgage rates are likely to continue for some time as virtually zero inflation is being predicted by the financial world. There's also a cooling of economic growth but rates will rise in time though landlords are not seeing this as happening for a couple of years at least.”
Mr Whitaker is recommending that BTL landlords fix their mortgages for a longer term especially when the difference between the prices for a three and five year fixed mortgage is 'narrow'.
