Rented normally, it costs you £151 a month. That is £1,811 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £151 a month — the mortgage takes 76p of every pound of rent

Borrowing £27,866 less would close that shortfall — which is £27,866 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

+£697−£528−£320−£151

Rent inMortgageRunning costsShort by

The rent covers £697 of that — you cover £151

◧ market rent £697 · 162 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

£43,750 + refurb costs

And about £9,056 more over five years, because it loses £151 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£43,750 to buy it

~£12,634

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · feeswe haven’t been inside

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The working

£35,000 off and it stops losing money

At the asking price you feed it £151 a month. At £92,841 the rent covers everything — leaving stamp duty of £4,642 at that price.

offer £92,841

asked £130,000

◧ 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 £73,952 of the £97,500 loan

That £23,548 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 £11,715. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£884 needed

more than the £670 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £670PRA-style test

How big is it, really?The plan

One figure, and nothing checking it 797 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

Gateshead, NE8 4UD

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 · 2 came back clear · 2 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 £113 a month

Let it to the council: £540 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Short-stay let−£113 · £56,384 in

23 nearby short-lets within 5.5 km · medium confidence

Standard rental−£151 · £56,384 in

Guaranteed council rent−£196 · £56,384 in

Housing-benefit rent−£307 · £56,384 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

−£14,912 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 28% in the price would leave nothing from a sale after selling costs, and you would still owe the lender any shortfall. That is the £56,384 you put in. The 5-year fix runs past this 5-year hold, so the rate reset comes after it.

−£56,384+£152,597−£3,815−£97,500−£9,811−£14,912

Cash you put inSale valueSelling costsMortgageRent lossesYou are down

◧ 2.0%/yr growth assumed