Rented normally, it costs you £283 a month. That is £3,395 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £283 a month — the mortgage takes 72p of every pound of rent

Borrowing £52,238 less would close that shortfall — which is £52,238 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

+£1,213−£873−£623−£283

Rent inMortgageRunning costsShort by

The rent covers £1,213 of that — you cover £283

□ service charge not published2 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

£72,525 + refurb costs

And about £16,977 more over five years, because it loses £283 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£72,525 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£2,100, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The working

£65,000 off and it stops losing money

At the asking price you feed it £283 a month. At £145,335 the rent covers everything — leaving stamp duty of £7,673 at that price.

offer £145,335

asked £215,000

◧ 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 £195,000 in 2016

Nothing nearby is comparable, but asking is 10% more than the £195,000 paid for it in 2016.

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

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £128,700 of the £161,250 loan

That £32,550 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 £11,958. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£1,461 needed

more than the £1,166 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £1,166PRA-style test

How big is it, really?The working

One figure, and nothing checking it 485 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

Harrow, HA3 5FD

1 of 3 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.

3 problems found · 1 came back clear · 3 we could not check · 2 do not apply to this property

■ 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 £283 a month

Let it to the council: £516 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Standard rental−£283 · £74,625 in

Guaranteed council rent−£326 · £74,625 in

Housing-benefit rent−£448 · £74,625 in

Each row: money kept a month, then the cash it ties up. Not compared: Rent by the room (only 0 bedrooms) · Do it up, then remortgage (pays back at the remortgage) · Short-stay let (no local short-let data) · Buy, improve & sell (pays out on sale)

◧ 3 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

−£21,354 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 £74,625 you put in. The 5-year fix runs past this 5-year hold, so the rate reset comes after it.

−£74,625+£238,884−£5,972−£161,250−£18,391−£21,354

Cash you put inSale valueSelling costsMortgageRent lossesYou are down

◧ 2.0%/yr growth assumed