Rented normally, it costs you £1,145 a month. That is £13,740 a year, every year you hold it.

What could kill thisThe checks

It is sold as a retirement-only home, not on ordinary terms

This is not an ordinary purchase, so none of the figures on this page describe it.

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

■ from the listinglisting last seen 18 Sep 2026

Will it pay?Calculator

You top up £1,145 a month — the mortgage takes 94p of every pound of rent

Bought outright, with no mortgage at all, it would still lose £495 a month. This is not a financing problem — more deposit does not fix it.

+£695−£650−£1,190−£1,145

Rent inMortgageRunning costsShort by

The rent covers £695 of that — you cover £1,145

◧ market rent £695 · 10 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

£54,100 + refurb costs

And about £68,699 more over five years, because it loses £1,145 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£54,100 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£11,616, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?

No recorded basis for the rent to work from

Every price on this card is that rent inverted, and this row records no basis for its rent — not that the rent is wrong, but that we cannot show it was measured against nearby lettings. A price quoted to the £5,000 needs evidence we can point at.

□ rent basis not recorded

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £73,740 of the £120,000 loan

That £46,260 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 £34,462. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£1,088 needed

more than the £668 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £668PRA-style test

How big is it, really?The plan

One figure, and nothing checking it 635 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

Wolverhampton, WV6 8PR

1 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 4Planning permission required to let by the room

■ postcode area, not this address

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Standard rental loses least, at £1,145 a month

Let it to the council: £468 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Standard rental−£1,145 · £65,716 in

Guaranteed council rent−£1,184 · £65,716 in

Housing-benefit rent−£1,346 · £65,716 in

Each row: money kept a month, then the cash it ties up. Not compared: Rent by the room (only 1 bedroom) · 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

−£79,771 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 27% in the price would leave nothing from a sale after selling costs, and you would still owe the lender any shortfall. That is the £65,716 you put in. The 5-year fix runs past this 5-year hold, so the rate reset comes after it.

−£65,716+£184,989−£4,625−£120,000−£74,419−£79,771

Cash you put inSale valueSelling costsMortgageRent lossesYou are down

◧ 2.0%/yr growth assumed