Rented normally, it costs you £1,471 a month. That is £17,651 a year, every year you hold it.

Will it pay?Calculator

The mortgage alone costs more than the whole rent — you top up £1,471 a month

It is £1,471 a month short. Borrowing £271,554 less would close that shortfall — which is £271,554 more cash at the start, on top of the deposit.

£2,234 mortgage

£1,235 rent in£1,471 short

◧ market rent £1,235 · 6 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

£194,650 + refurb costs

And about £88,255 more over five years, because it loses £1,471 every month you hold it — before any repair. That already assumes the rent never falls.

£194,650 to buy it

deposit · stamp duty · solicitor · fees~£43,953, unseen

□ works not inspected

What would have to be true?The search

No offer makes this pay

Even at £330,000 — well below the £550,000 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 £330,000

Is the price right?Comparables

Nothing nearby is comparable — but it is 22% over its 2021 price

The dearest sold for 2.7× the cheapest, so the rent has to justify this price on its own.

you'd pay £550,000

£120,000

£125,000

£200,000

£210,000

£217,500

£230,000

£241,000

£243,000

£263,000

£310,000

£315,000

£319,500

£120k£219.8k£319.5k

£120,000 cheapest£319,500 dearest

12 completed sales, same property type, last 3 years

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

What will the rent borrow?Lender test

The rent carries £131,034 of the £412,500 loan

That £281,466 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 £260,500. Lenders test the rent at 7.5% and need it to cover 145% of the payment.

£3,738 needed

more than the £1,188 rent

stressed at 7.5%, 145% cover

◧ rent after empty weeks £1,188PRA-style test

How big is it, really?The plan

One figure, and nothing checking it 3,186 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

Newcastle, NE16 5AZ

3 of 4 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.

2 problems found · 2 came back clear · 4 we could not check · 1 does not apply to this property

■ from council licensing registerlisting last seen 18 Sep 2026

Which strategy wins?The ways to run it

Every way loses money — Rent by the room loses least, at £1,385 a month

Let it to the council: £1,488 a year less, but they keep paying when it is empty.

Rent by the room−£1,385 · £238,603 in

Standard rental−£1,471 · £238,603 in

Guaranteed council rent−£1,595 · £238,603 in

Housing-benefit rent−£1,788 · £238,603 in

Each row: money kept a month, then the cash it ties up. Not compared: 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)

◧ 4 ways, one measureranked on money kept each month, at the asking price

What would you walk away with?The five-year sums

−£123,889 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 £238,603 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