ANYONE who thinks renting out property is all profit and problem-free knows nothing.

It costs money to buy houses and flats to let. That money has to be paid back.

A cap on rents often means repayment cannot be made, so the tenant has to leave in order for the property to be sold to clear the debt.

Not all tenants are problematic by any means, but if my experience is anything to go by, it is not uncommon.

We owned flats in Scarborough, which were wasted by abusive tenants who didn’t care. Every month I had to replace furniture, fridges and cookers. It was a neverending stream of losses.

One tenant started demolishing a wall. The police took him away but then released him. He returned to finish the job. Damages ran into thousands of pounds. The insurance company wasn’t interested. The authorities less than helpful. I was threatened with court action by the local authority for refusing to take him back.

David Wardell, Malton Road, York.