Rented normally, it costs you £141 a month. That is £1,690 a year, every year you hold it.

What could kill thisThe checks

Cash buyers only — there is no mortgage on this one

The listing says no mortgage, and every figure on this page is worked with one.

2 problems found · 4 we could not check · 3 do not apply to this property

■ from the listinglisting last seen 17 Sep 2026

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £141 a month — the mortgage takes 33p of every pound of rent

Borrowing £25,996 less would close that shortfall — which is £25,996 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

£443 running

£475 rent in£141 short

£175 of that is a guess — no service charge published.

□ service charge not published2 empty weeks a year assumed

What if I change my assumptions?The dials

At the asking price, 25% deposit, 6.50% charged

Change any of these 16 and every card on this page changes with it. The 6.50% is the 5.75% quoted plus a company premium.

◧ worked out from local rents

What will it cost me to buy?Breakdown

£14,970 + refurb costs

And about £8,449 more over five years, because it loses £141 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

~£22,800

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · feeswe haven’t been inside

£14,970 to buy it

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The search

No offer makes this pay

Even at £22,800 — well below the £38,000 asked — the rent still does not cover the costs. The gap is the rent against the running costs, not the price, so negotiating does not close it.

◧ worked back from the rent■ stamp duty re-bandedtested down to £22,800

How big is it, really?The plan

One figure, and nothing checking it 581 sq ft

Only the agent’s figure exists for this house. Open for what that means.

□ area unchecked — agent’s own

Is it a good location?Open the map

No school rated Good or better in this postcode area

3 schools in this postcode area, none rated Good or better and flood risk checking… — open for the map, the schools and the rest.

Article 4Not assessed for this address

■ postcode area, not this address

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Standard rental loses least, at £141 a month

Standard rental also ties up the least cash, £37,770.

Standard rental−£141 · £37,770 in

Housing-benefit rent−£235 · £37,770 in

Each row: money kept a month, then the cash it ties up. Not compared: Rent by the room (only 1 bedroom) · Do it up, then remortgage (pays back at the remortgage) · Short-stay let (no local short-let data) · Guaranteed council rent (no scheme in this borough) · Buy, improve & sell (pays out on sale)

◧ 2 ways, one measureranked on money kept each month, at the asking price

What would you walk away with?The five-year sums

−£18,563 after five years on the cash you put in, before tax on the sale

Less than the same cash would have made in a savings account, after tax on the interest. The savings account’s capital is not at risk; the property’s is. A fall of about 45% in the price would leave nothing from a sale after selling costs, and you would still owe the lender any shortfall. That is the £37,770 you put in. The 5-year fix runs past this 5-year hold, so the rate reset comes after it.

◧ 2.0%/yr growth assumed