Rented normally, it costs you £847 a month. That is £10,158 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

The mortgage alone costs more than the whole rent — you top up £847 a month

It is £847 a month short. Borrowing £156,281 less would close that shortfall — which is £156,281 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

£1,523 mortgage

£1,109 rent in£847 short

◧ market rent £1,109 · 6 comps2 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

£130,025 + refurb costs

And about £50,791 more over five years, because it loses £847 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£130,025 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£16,790, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The search

No offer makes this pay

Even at £225,000 — well below the £375,000 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 £225,000

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £117,666 of the £281,250 loan

That £163,584 is yours to find on top of the deposit. Tested at 125% instead of 145% — a company or a basic-rate taxpayer usually is — the gap is £144,758. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£2,549 needed

more than the £1,066 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £1,066PRA-style test

How big is it, really?The plan

Measured off the plan, not by a surveyor 1,391 sq ft

The area comes off the plan, not a survey. Open for what that means.

□ area off the floorplan — not a survey

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

What could kill thisThe checks

You would need a licence from the council first

Letting without the council’s licence is an offence, and the fee is in no figure here.

2 problems found · 1 came back clear · 5 we could not check · 1 does not apply to this property

■ from council licensing registerlisting last seen 18 Sep 2026

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Short-stay let loses least, at £519 a month

Your controls are set to Standard rental — £328 a month behind Short-stay let.

Short-stay let−£519 · £146,815 in

7 nearby short-lets within 11.1 km · low confidence

Rent by the room−£600 · £172,815 in

Standard rental−£847 · £146,815 in

Guaranteed council rent−£957 · £146,815 in

Housing-benefit rent−£1,112 · £146,815 in

Each row: money kept a month, then the cash it ties up. Not compared: Do it up, then remortgage (pays back at the remortgage) · Buy, improve & sell (pays out on sale)

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

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

−£67,658 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 25% in the price would leave nothing from a sale after selling costs, and you would still owe the lender any shortfall. That is the £146,815 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