Rented normally, it costs you £616 a month. That is £7,393 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

The mortgage alone costs more than the whole rent — you top up £616 a month

It is £616 a month short. Borrowing £113,738 less would close that shortfall — which is £113,738 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

£1,138 mortgage

£1,126 rent in£616 short

£175 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

£95,725 + refurb costs

And about £36,965 more over five years, because it loses £616 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£95,725 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£1,425, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The search

No offer makes this pay

Even at £168,000 — well below the £280,000 asked — the rent still does not cover the costs. The gap is the rent against the running costs, not the price, so negotiating does not close it.

◧ worked back from the rent■ stamp duty re-bandedtested down to £168,000

Is the price right?Comparables

Nothing nearby is comparable — it is asking about what it fetched in 2026

The dearest sold for 4.4× the cheapest, so the rent has to justify this price on its own.

you'd pay £280,000

£80,000

£105,000

£105,000

£146,000

£160,000

£180,000

£220,000

£223,000

£265,000

£270,000

£300,000

£350,000

£80k£215k£350k

£80,000 cheapest£350,000 dearest

12 completed sales, same property type, last 3 years

□ 12 sold nearby, not matched on sizeHM Land Registry Price Paid Data

Can we trust the rent?Rent evidence

Nearby lettings back this rent

They are advertised rents rather than signed tenancies, so a slow month is still possible.

+204 more

our bar: 10 within 500 m

what 20 nearby lettings ask£850–£2,300/mo

our own middle half£1,005–£1,262/mo

■ 214 lettings within 500 mAdvertised rents, not signed tenancies

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £119,469 of the £210,000 loan

That £90,531 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 £71,415. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£1,903 needed

more than the £1,083 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £1,083PRA-style test

How big is it, really?The plan

The rooms are on the plan; the total is not

The plan is on file; the floor area is not.

□ no floor area published

Is it a good location?Open the map

Liverpool, L3 4BW

No schools in this postcode area 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 · 4 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

Every way loses money — Short-stay let loses least, at £207 a month

Let it to the council: £4,044 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Short-stay let−£207 · £97,150 in

82 nearby short-lets within 5.5 km · medium confidence

Standard rental−£616 · £97,150 in

Guaranteed council rent−£953 · £97,150 in

Housing-benefit rent−£1,086 · £97,150 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

−£44,782 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 23% in the price would leave nothing from a sale after selling costs, and you would still owe the lender any shortfall. That is the £97,150 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