Rented normally, it costs you £209 a month. That is £2,510 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £209 a month — the mortgage takes 81p of every pound of rent

Borrowing £38,618 less would close that shortfall — which is £38,618 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

+£1,899−£1,544−£564−£209

Rent inMortgageRunning costsShort by

The rent covers £1,899 of that — you cover £209

◧ market rent £1,899 · 135 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

£131,850 + refurb costs

And about £12,551 more over five years, because it loses £209 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£131,850 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£3,777, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The working

£50,000 off and it stops losing money

At the asking price you feed it £209 a month. At £328,492 the rent covers everything — leaving stamp duty of £22,849 at that price.

offer £328,492

asked £380,000

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

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £201,485 of the £285,000 loan

That £83,515 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 £51,277. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£2,583 needed

more than the £1,826 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £1,826PRA-style test

Who has to say yes?Council record

Birmingham council approves 50% — 45% on a cautious reading

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

50%

0%50%100%

never approvesalways approves

the band is the cautious reading of the same 393 decisions — as low as 45%

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

How big is it, really?The plan

One figure, and nothing checking it 94 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

Birmingham, B12 9AP

1 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.

3 problems found · 2 came back clear · 4 we could not check

■ from council licensing registerlisting last seen 19 Sep 2026

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Standard rental loses least, at £209 a month

Let it to the council: £7,980 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Standard rental−£209 · £135,627 in

Rent by the room−£563 · £161,627 in

Guaranteed council rent−£874 · £135,627 in

Short-stay let−£1,038 · £135,627 in

98 nearby short-lets within 5.5 km · low confidence

Housing-benefit rent−£1,127 · £135,627 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, after 5 years?The five-year sums

−£22,518 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 £135,627 you put in. The 5-year fix runs past this 5-year hold, so the rate reset comes after it.

−£135,627+£422,261−£10,557−£285,000−£13,596−£22,518

Cash you put inSale valueSelling costsMortgageRent lossesYou are down

◧ 2.0%/yr growth assumed