CURRENT POSITION
Workable margin
Within a typical flipper target. Costs need to hold and the resale value needs to be defensible — check comparable sales.
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UK property flip ROI calculator — net profit, ROI on cash, profit margin, annualised return, and break-even resale price.
FLIP PROFIT SNAPSHOT
Estimated net profit
£20,663
Workable — typical flipper target
Poor <5% · Tight 5–15% · Workable 15–30% · Strong 30%+
Gross profit
£40,000
Before buying, finance, contingency, and selling costs.
Core costs
Holding and contingency
Shown separately so you can see the deal before and after these allowances.
| Core costs, without holding and contingency | All costs, including holding and contingency | |
|---|---|---|
| Total costs | −£12,400 | −£19,338 |
| Net profit | £27,600 | £20,663 |
Refinance exit — possible cash release(based on resale value / ARV)
Keeps the property and recycles capital instead of selling. Before refinance fees and lender checks. Subject to valuation, rent cover, and lender appetite.
Position
Purchase
£150,000
Renovation
£30,000
Resale
£220,000
Hold
6 mo
Returns
ROI on cash
27.37%
Profit margin
9.39%
Annualised
62.22%
Break-even
£198,916
Gross profit is before buying, finance, contingency, and selling costs. Net profit deducts holding cost at your chosen interest rate × hold period.Bridging or short-term finance can be higher than a standard mortgage — adjust the rate if you're using bridging. SDLT auto-calculated for England/Northern Ireland with the additional-property surcharge.
YOUR NUMBERS
Mortgage type
CURRENT POSITION
Within a typical flipper target. Costs need to hold and the resale value needs to be defensible — check comparable sales.
NEXT BEST MOVE
Confirm comparable sales and get a builder's quote for the renovation cost before committing.
Where to go next
You've covered the affordability snapshot. The Buyer Planner turns it into a tracked plan you can return to.
Open Buyer PlannerHow to read these numbers
You are at 75% LTV or below. This is generally a strong LTV band and often gives access to a wider range of mortgage products.
Higher LTV means more finance cost during the hold period.
This uses loan size × rate × hold months. Short-term or bridging finance can be more expensive than a standard mortgage.
Selling costs reduce real profit. Agent fees, legal fees and time-to-sale can materially change the result.
Lenders may assess experience, exit strategy, credit profile and the works plan. This is a planning guide, not a finance offer.
Flipping numbers depend on more than the mortgage payment. This calculator covers the figures that drive a flip’s projected return — but it doesn’t capture every cost of the project.
Includes
Does not include
Four levers do most of the work on the profit figure. Get these right and the rest follows.
The single biggest input. Over-optimism on ARV is the most common cause of unprofitable flips — back this number with comparable sold prices, not asking prices.
Refurb budget plus a contingency % of refurb (10% is a sensible default; 15–20% for unknowns). Skimping on contingency is how small overruns become unprofitable flips.
Every extra month adds finance interest, utilities, council tax, and insurance to holding cost. A 6-month plan that drifts to 12 months can wipe out the margin.
Estate agent fees, legal fees, and finance exit fees on the way out. Even 1–2% of ARV is material — £4,000–£8,000 on a £400k flip.
ROI on cash compares net profit with the cash you actually deployed. Use these bands as a planning sanity check before committing to the deal:
Returns are before capital gains tax (or income tax if HMRC treats the activity as trading). Real after-tax returns depend on structure and your tax position.
Quick answers to the questions flippers have when running a deal through the numbers.
Projected resale value minus purchase price minus renovation cost. It’s the ‘on paper’ profit before any of the other deal costs (finance, sale fees, surcharge, contingency).
Gross profit minus estimated buying costs, holding cost, renovation contingency and sale costs. This is the figure closest to the projected deal profit before tax.
Net profit divided by the cash you put into the deal (deposit + renovation + buying costs + holding cost). It’s the single best metric for comparing flips of different sizes — a 20% return on £50k cash beats a 5% return on £200k cash.
Loan amount × interest rate × hold months ÷ 12. If you’re using bridging or short-term finance, set the interest rate to your bridging rate so the figure is realistic — bridging can be 2–3× a standard residential rate.
The sale price at which net profit equals zero, accounting for sale costs scaling with resale value. If your projected ARV is close to break-even, the deal has very little margin for refurb overruns or market softness.
On a repayment mortgage, your monthly payment is based on the loan amount, the interest rate, and the term length. Each payment covers some interest and some of the loan itself, so the balance reduces over time. Switching to interest-only uses a simpler interest × balance calculation — typical for BTL and short-hold flips.
Use a rate close to what’s currently being offered for the loan-to-value you’re aiming at. Compare a few lender rates or speak to a mortgage broker. Trying a slightly higher rate as well shows how sensitive your figures are to rate changes.
No. This is an estimator to help you plan and compare scenarios. An actual mortgage offer comes from a lender after a full affordability check, credit check, and property valuation.
Running a rental too?
If the exit isn’t a sale — or you’re considering a refinance to BTL hold — the mortgage calculator covers the BTL repayment / interest-only side: monthly payment, stress test, full amortisation.
A focused calculator for UK property flippers and refurb investors. Enter the purchase price, refurbishment budget, holding period, interest rate, and expected resale value (ARV). The tool estimates net profit, ROI on cash, profit margin, annualised return, and the break-even resale price — plus a refinance exit projection at 75% / 80% LTV for buy-and-hold (BRRRR-style) strategies.
This is a screening tool for the financial shape of a deal. It does NOT model: capital gains tax (which applies on sale if not your main residence), corporation tax (if buying through a limited company), VAT on refurb works above threshold, planning permission costs or risk, mortgage eligibility (bridging vs. standard varies), or market-shift risk during the hold period. Always pair with a chartered surveyor’s opinion on ARV, three independent builder’s quotes on refurb, and tax advice for your specific structure.
The most-asked questions UK property flippers run into when screening deals through the numbers.
Buying a property, refurbishing it (often quickly), and reselling it for a profit. The financial model depends on accurate ARV (after-repair-value) estimates, refurbishment budgets with contingency, holding costs (mortgage interest, insurance, council tax, utilities while the property is unoccupied), and selling costs. Returns are typically measured as ROI on cash deployed, profit margin on resale, and annualised return.
Net profit divided by total cash invested in the deal (deposit + refurbishment cost + stamp duty + buying costs + holding costs). It's the single best metric for comparing flips of different sizes — a 20% ROI on £50k cash beats a 5% ROI on £200k cash because the smaller deal recycles capital faster.
Below 5% is poor — you're not being paid for the risk. 5-15% is tight; one cost overrun or market shift turns it negative. 15-30% is workable for an experienced flipper with good processes. 30%+ is strong, but check the ARV assumption — flippers most often over-estimate resale and under-estimate refurb. Margin is sensitive to ARV, refurb cost, and holding period.
Profit margin alone doesn't account for the time the capital is tied up. A 20% flip in 6 months gives a 40%+ annualised return; the same 20% over 18 months gives ~13%. Annualised return is the like-for-like number for comparing a flip against a hold strategy, stocks, or another flip — it normalises for project length.
10% of refurb cost is a sensible default on a property in known condition. 15-20% for older properties, properties with structural unknowns, or first-time flippers. Skimping on contingency is the most common cause of unprofitable flips: a £30k refurb with 0% contingency that goes to £35k turns a 20% margin into a 12% margin overnight.
If you already own another property (your residence or another investment), the additional dwelling supplement applies — currently 5% on top of standard SDLT rates across all bands (as of October 2024). On a £170k flip purchase that's £8,500 just in surcharge. Companies pay 5% on properties over £40k regardless of other holdings. First-time buyer relief does NOT apply to flips.
Bridging finance is faster to draw and works for properties that don't currently meet mortgage-lender criteria (unhabitable kitchens, no working bathroom, structural issues). It's typically 6-12% annualised vs. 5-6% for a standard mortgage, so holding costs increase. For a 4-6 month flip the higher rate may be acceptable; for a 12-18 month flip it can eat the margin. Many flippers use bridging for the purchase + refurb, then refinance to a standard BTL mortgage to hold or to fund the next purchase.
The minimum resale price that recovers your full investment (purchase + refurb + SDLT + buying costs + holding cost + selling costs) at zero profit. Anything below break-even is a loss; anything above is profit. The calculator surfaces this so you know how far the ARV would have to fall before the deal becomes unprofitable — useful for stress-testing against market downturns.
Instead of selling, you refinance the refurbished property at its new higher value, pull cash out, and hold it as a long-term rental. The calculator shows possible cash release at 75% LTV and 80% LTV against the post-refurb value (ARV). This is the BRRRR strategy: Buy, Refurbish, Rent, Refinance, Repeat. Each completed flip recycles capital into the next deal without paying selling costs or capital gains tax (though future rental income is taxable).