Rented normally, it costs you £164 a month. That is £1,967 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £164 a month — the mortgage takes 77p of every pound of rent

Borrowing £30,256 less would close that shortfall — which is £30,256 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

+£1,375−£1,056−£483−£164

Rent inMortgageRunning costsShort by

The rent covers £1,375 of that — you cover £164

◧ market rent £1,375 · 65 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-£164/mo

All-in cash£101,804

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

£88,050 + refurb costs

And about £9,833 more over five years, because it loses £164 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£88,050 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£13,754, 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 £164 a month. At £219,654 the rent covers everything — leaving stamp duty of £12,876 at that price.

offer £219,654

asked £260,000

◧ 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 £141,995 in 2009

Nothing nearby is comparable, but asking is 83% more than the £141,995 paid for it in 2009.

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

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £145,889 of the £195,000 loan

That £49,111 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 £25,769. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£1,767 needed

more than the £1,322 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £1,322PRA-style test

Who has to say yes?Council record

Bristol, City of approves 78% — 74% on a cautious reading

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

78%

0%50%100%

never approvesalways approves

the band is the cautious reading of the same 409 decisions — as low as 74%

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

How big is it, really?The plan

Measured off the plan, not by a surveyor 787 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

Bristol, BS7 0EE

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 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.

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 18 Sep 2026

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Short-stay let loses least, at £69 a month

Your controls are set to Standard rental — £95 a month behind Short-stay let.

Short-stay let−£69 · £101,804 in

3 nearby short-lets within 5.5 km · low confidence

Guaranteed council rent−£149 · £101,804 in

Standard rental−£164 · £101,804 in

Housing-benefit rent−£461 · £101,804 in

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

−£17,948 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 £101,804 you put in. The 5-year fix runs past this 5-year hold, so the rate reset comes after it.

−£101,804+£296,932−£7,423−£195,000−£10,652−£17,948

Cash you put inSale valueSelling costsMortgageRent lossesYou are down

◧ 2.0%/yr growth assumed