Rented normally, it costs you £97 a month. That is £1,159 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £97 a month — the mortgage takes 68p of every pound of rent

Borrowing £17,826 less would close that shortfall — which is £17,826 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

+£836−£569−£364−£97

Rent inMortgageRunning costsShort by

The rent covers £836 of that — you cover £97

◧ market rent £836 · 10 comps2 empty weeks a year assumed

What if I change my assumptions?The dials

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

Try your own numbersLive

You keep-£97/mo

All-in cash£48,509

PaybackNever

Offer−+

Deposit−+

Mortgage rate−+

Rent−+

Worked at 6.50% — 5.75% quoted plus a company premium.

◧ worked out from local rents

What will it cost me to buy?Breakdown

£47,084 + refurb costs

And about £5,794 more over five years, because it loses £97 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£47,084 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£1,425, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The working

£20,000 off and it stops losing money

At the asking price you feed it £97 a month. At £116,169 the rent covers everything — leaving stamp duty of £5,808 at that price.

offer £116,169

asked £139,950

◧ 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 £93,000 in 2025

Nothing nearby is comparable, but asking is 50% more than the £93,000 paid for it in 2025.

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

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £88,700 of the £104,963 loan

That £16,262 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 £2,070. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£951 needed

more than the £804 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £804PRA-style test

Is it a good location?Open the map

Gateshead, NE10 0YN

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

■ from council licensing registerlisting last seen 20 Sep 2026

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Standard rental loses least, at £97 a month

Let it to the council: £1,872 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Standard rental−£97 · £48,509 in

Guaranteed council rent−£253 · £48,509 in

Housing-benefit rent−£365 · £48,509 in

Short-stay let−£478 · £48,509 in

3 nearby short-lets within 5.5 km · low confidence

Each row: money kept a month, then the cash it ties up. Not compared: Rent by the room (only 2 bedrooms) · Do it up, then remortgage (pays back at the remortgage) · Buy, improve & sell (pays out on sale)

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

What would you walk away with, after 5 years?The five-year sums

−£8,097 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 £48,509 you put in. The 5-year fix runs past this 5-year hold, so the rate reset comes after it.

−£48,509+£155,539−£3,888−£104,963−£6,276−£8,097

Cash you put inSale valueSelling costsMortgageRent lossesYou are down

◧ 2.0%/yr growth assumed