u/alexKasp

Curious what people actually use to calculate an investment rating on a property. I tried the AI assistant on Rightmove, but either it can't do this or I just didn't work out how to use it properly.

Do you have a spreadsheet you've built up over the years, a paid tool, or do you just do it in your head at this point?

What's the number you always end up recalculating by hand after a auto tool gives you an investment score?

I mean, any agent can write down whatever cap rate, IRR, or cash on cash they want. What tips you off that the numbers are wrong? Or do you go back and check the market yourself afterward, or have you developed enough of an instinct that you can just tell on the spot when the numbers are fake?

Where do you get your rental data from? Just listing sites? ... and if a unit is still listed, doesn't that mean nobody's taken it yet? So the asking rent might be inflated.

I started looking into the UK property market about six months ago and I've got a question for the agents here.

When an investor buyer comes to you, how specific are they? Is it "I've got £500k and I need it to bring in £2,500 a month" or is it usually much vaguer than that and the numbers only get worked out later?

And roughly what share of your buyers are investors at all, versus people buying somewhere to live in themselves?

Would you like to work more with investors or with ordinary buyers?