Rented normally, it costs you £2,033 a month. That is £24,399 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

The mortgage alone costs more than the whole rent — you top up £2,033 a month

It is £2,033 a month short. Borrowing £375,368 less would close that shortfall — which is £375,368 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

£3,352 mortgage

£2,136 rent in£2,033 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

£296,200 + refurb costs

And about £121,994 more over five years, because it loses £2,033 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£296,200 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£20,988, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The search

No offer makes this pay

Even at £495,000 — well below the £825,000 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 £495,000

Is the price right?The deeds

Last sold for £295,000 in 2002

Nothing nearby is comparable, but asking is 180% more than the £295,000 paid for it in 2002.

□ this address’s own deeds, no comparable saleHM Land Registry Price Paid Data

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £226,631 of the £618,750 loan

That £392,119 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 £355,858. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£5,607 needed

more than the £2,054 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £2,054PRA-style test

Who has to say yes?Council record

Brighton and Hove council approves 67% — 62% on a cautious reading

A council-wide rate, not a forecast — and Brighton and Hove council refuses schemes that sandwich a family home. Check both neighbours.

67%

0%50%100%

never approvesalways approves

the band is the cautious reading of the same 342 decisions — as low as 62%

■ Article 4 — planning permission requireddecision record held for this authority

How big is it, really?The plan

One figure, and nothing checking it 1,238 sq ft

The advert and the survey disagree — open for both figures and the gap.

■ area measured on site

Is it a good location?Open the map

Brighton, BN2 1GB

No schools in this postcode area and flood risk checking… — open for the map, the schools and the rest.

Article 4Planning permission required to let by the room

■ 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.

3 problems found · 2 came back clear · 3 we could not check · 1 does not apply to this property

■ from council licensing registerlisting last seen 15 Sep 2026

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Standard rental loses least, at £2,033 a month

Let it to the council: £3,144 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Standard rental−£2,033 · £317,188 in

Guaranteed council rent−£2,295 · £317,188 in

Housing-benefit rent−£2,680 · £317,188 in

Short-stay let−£2,974 · £317,188 in

114 nearby short-lets within 5.5 km · low confidence

Rent by the room−£3,056 · £343,188 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

−£165,310 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 24% in the price would leave nothing from a sale after selling costs, and you would still owe the lender any shortfall. That is the £317,188 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