Property investing guides
Practical, plain-English guides on analysing UK property deals: how to work out GDV, how to estimate refurb costs, what makes a below-market-value deal actually stack, and how to source and package a deal.
How to estimate rent before you buy
Bed and type matched lettings comparables, why let agreed beats asking, and how many matched comps a confident figure needs.
Read the guideWhat is a good ROI for a UK buy to let
ROI, yield and cash on cash untangled, and a framework for judging your own number instead of chasing a universal one.
Read the guideArticle 4 directions explained
How an Article 4 direction removes permitted development rights, what that does to HMO conversion, and why it must be checked per address.
Read the guideHow to judge a property comparable
The six tests of a comparable, why blended medians mislead, and the honest limits of portal evidence.
Read the guideWhat should a deal pack contain
The full contents of a deal pack an investor can trust, and the evidence that separates a pack from a pitch.
Read the guideGDV vs market value
Post-works value from done-up comparables against as-is value today, and the appraisal mistakes that come from mixing them.
Read the guideHow long does property analysis take
The honest manual timeline per stage of a full appraisal, and what changes when the evidence gathering is automated.
Read the guideCan AI value a property accurately
What AI valuation genuinely does well, where it fails, and why shown comparables and honest confidence matter more than the point estimate.
Read the guideRefurb cost per room in the UK
Why no single per-room number is honest, the element by element method that works, and measured whole-property figures by size and region.
Read the guideHow sourcers analyse deals at volume
The three-stage funnel behind professional sourcing: screen everything fast, appraise the shortlist properly, package with evidence. Where automation helps and where it cannot.
Read the guideWhat to offer when a deal does not stack
Working backwards from end value, refurb and finance to the maximum price at which a deal works, and how to put that number to an agent.
Read the guideWhat is property sourcing? (And how to become a sourcer)
What sourcers actually do, what they charge, the compliance the law requires, and the setup order for starting in the UK.
Read the guideProperty sourcing compliance: the UK legal setup
HMRC AML registration, redress schemes, ICO, insurance and sourcing agreements: what a sourcer legally needs before the first fee.
Read the guideHow to work out rental yield
The gross and net formulas, a worked example, what counts as a good yield across UK regions, and the traps that flatter bad deals.
Read the guideHow much below market value should I offer?
Size a BMV offer from sold comparables and your deal numbers, and know when 10%, 20% or walking away is the right answer.
Read the guideHow to work out GDV on a UK property
What gross development value means, how to calculate it from comparable sales, and the mistakes that inflate it.
Read the guideHow to estimate refurb costs on a property deal
A room-by-room method for pricing a refurbishment, the rates to use, and where to add contingency and VAT.
Read the guideHow to analyse a Rightmove listing
The eight-step method from listing to offer: facts, condition from photos, refurb budget, sold comparables, GDV, rent and the deal maths, on worked numbers.
Read the guideWhat makes a BMV deal actually stack
How to tell a genuine below-market-value deal from a cheap listing, and the numbers that decide if it works.
Read the guideProperty deal sourcing: how to analyse and package a deal
The end-to-end workflow for sourcers: find, analyse, stack the strategy and package a deal for an investor.
Read the guideBRRR explained: buy, refurbish, rent, refinance
How the BRRR strategy recycles your cash across deals, the four steps, and the money-left-in figure that decides whether a deal works.
Read the guideHow to analyse an HMO deal
Per-room income, licensing and Article 4, the running costs that catch people out, and judging an HMO on yield on cost.
Read the guideScottish Home Report explained
What a Scottish Home Report contains and how to read the surveyor valuation, condition scores and EPC when analysing a deal.
Read the guideBridging finance explained for investors
How bridging works, what it really costs once fees are in, and when speed or access is worth paying for over a mortgage.
Read the guidePut it into practice
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