Rented normally, it costs you £217 a month. That is £2,605 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £217 a month — the mortgage takes 81p of every pound of rent

Borrowing £40,078 less would close that shortfall — which is £40,078 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

+£2,630−£2,133−£714−£217

Rent inMortgageRunning costsShort by

The rent covers £2,630 of that — you cover £217

◧ market rent £2,630 · 10 comps2 empty weeks a year assumed

What if I change my assumptions?The dials

At the asking price, 25% deposit, 6.50% charged

Try your own numbersLive

You keep-£217/mo

All-in cash£204,983

PaybackNever

Offer−+

Deposit−+

Mortgage rate−+

Rent−+

Worked at 6.50% — 5.75% quoted plus a company premium.

◧ worked out from local rents

What will it cost me to buy?Breakdown

£185,525 + refurb costs

And about £13,025 more over five years, because it loses £217 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£185,525 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£19,458, 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 £217 a month. At £471,526 the rent covers everything — leaving stamp duty of £37,153 at that price.

offer £471,526

asked £525,000

◧ 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 £560,000 in 2026

Nothing nearby is comparable, but asking is 6% less than the £560,000 paid for it in 2026.

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

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £279,045 of the £393,750 loan

That £114,705 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 £70,058. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£3,568 needed

more than the £2,529 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £2,529PRA-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

Watford, WD19 6XL

2 of 2 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 to know before you offerThe checks

Every tenancy here is periodic, with no Section 21 to end it

Tenancies are now periodic, with no Section 21 — budget a longer void.

1 problem found · 2 came back clear · 5 we could not check · 1 does not apply to this property

■ from the Renters’ Rights Act 2025listing last seen 22 Aug 2026

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Standard rental loses least, at £217 a month

Standard rental also ties up the least cash, £204,983.

Standard rental−£217 · £204,983 in

Rent by the room−£418 · £231,025 in

Housing-benefit rent−£857 · £204,983 in

Short-stay let−£1,986 · £204,983 in

121 nearby short-lets within 20 km · low confidence

Each row: money kept a month, then the cash it ties up. Not compared: Do it up, then remortgage (pays back at the remortgage) · Guaranteed council rent (no scheme in this borough) · 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

−£34,077 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 25% in the price would leave nothing from a sale after selling costs, and you would still owe the lender any shortfall. That is the £204,983 you put in. The 5-year fix runs past this 5-year hold, so the rate reset comes after it.

−£204,983+£593,607−£14,840−£393,750−£14,110−£34,077

Cash you put inSale valueSelling costsMortgageRent lossesYou are down

◧ 2.0%/yr growth assumed