Rented normally, it costs you £178 a month. That is £2,139 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £178 a month — the mortgage takes 79p of every pound of rent

Borrowing £32,905 less would close that shortfall — which is £32,905 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

£2,031 mortgage

£2,565 rent in£178 short

◧ market rent £2,565 · 45 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

£176,400 + refurb costs

And about £10,694 more over five years, because it loses £178 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£176,400 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£25,419, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The working

£40,000 off and it stops losing money

At the asking price you feed it £178 a month. At £456,104 the rent covers everything — leaving stamp duty of £35,610 at that price.

offer £456,104

asked £500,000

◧ worked back from the rent■ stamp duty re-bandedrounded down to £5,000 — the rent it works back from is an estimate

Is the price right?The deeds

Last sold for £350,000 in 2018

Nothing nearby is comparable, but asking is 43% more than the £350,000 paid for it in 2018.

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

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £272,149 of the £375,000 loan

That £102,851 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 £59,308. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£3,398 needed

more than the £2,466 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £2,466PRA-style test

How big is it, really?The plan

One figure, and nothing checking it 1,149 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

Romford, RM1 4AN

3 of 5 schools in this postcode area rated Good or Outstanding 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 15 Sep 2026

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Standard rental loses least, at £178 a month

Let it to the council: £5,568 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Standard rental−£178 · £201,819 in

Rent by the room−£193 · £235,819 in

Guaranteed council rent−£642 · £201,819 in

Housing-benefit rent−£908 · £201,819 in

Short-stay let−£1,718 · £201,819 in

3 nearby short-lets within 11.1 km · low confidence

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

−£32,378 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 26% in the price would leave nothing from a sale after selling costs, and you would still owe the lender any shortfall. That is the £201,819 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