Rented normally, it costs you £54 a month. That is £647 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £54 a month — the mortgage takes 57p of every pound of rent

Borrowing £9,955 less would close that shortfall — which is £9,955 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

£691 mortgage

£536 running

£1,220 rent in£54 short

£25 of that is a guess — no service charge published.

□ 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

£57,450 + refurb costs

And about £3,235 more over five years, because it loses £54 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£57,450 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£11,362, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The working

£10,000 off and it stops losing money

At the asking price you feed it £54 a month. At £156,719 the rent covers everything — leaving stamp duty of £8,470 at that price.

offer £156,719

asked £170,000

◧ 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 £193,000 in 2005

Nothing nearby is comparable, but asking is 12% less than the £193,000 paid for it in 2005.

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

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries the whole loan — it could fall 2% and still cover it

Your deposit is what limits this one, not the rent. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£1,155 needed

of £1,173 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £1,173PRA-style test

How big is it, really?The plan

One figure, and nothing checking it 678 sq ft

The advert and the survey disagree — open for both figures and the gap.

■ area measured on site

Is it a good location?Open the map

Liverpool, L1 5BU

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

■ from council licensing registerlisting last seen 12 Sep 2026

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Short-stay let beats Standard rental by £307 a month

Let it to the council: £4,956 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Short-stay let+£253 · £68,812 in

82 nearby short-lets within 5.5 km · medium confidence

Standard rental−£54 · £68,812 in

Guaranteed council rent−£467 · £68,812 in

Housing-benefit rent−£600 · £68,812 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?The five-year sums

−£8,865 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 £68,812 you put in. The 5-year fix runs past this 5-year hold, so the rate reset comes after it.

◧ 2.0%/yr growth assumed