Co-Living, Redefined?

Case Study: High-Spec Mini HMO – Premium Co-Living, Premium Returns

This project was conceived to challenge the typical HMO model. Instead of maximising room count at the expense of space and tenant quality, the strategy was to create a high-spec, spacious mini-HMO that attracts a more professional tenant profile, drives longer tenancies, and materially reduces voids and management friction.

The result is a 3-bedroom co-living property that feels more like a boutique shared home than a standard HMO. Generous communal space, high-quality finishes, and a design-led refurbishment have repositioned the asset firmly into the premium end of the shared living market.

This approach delivers two critical advantages:

1. Lower tenant turnover – better tenants stay longer, reducing voids and re-letting costs.

2. Stronger, more resilient rent – premium rooms in a premium product outperform standard HMOs in both demand and stability.

In short: this is co-living done properly — not a race to the bottom on space or specification, but a sustainable, high-performing asset built for long-term cash flow and capital preservation.

The property now generates £2,300 per month in gross rent, proving that quality-led design and intelligent space planning can outperform traditional “cram-and-rent” HMO strategies.

The Numbers

• Purchase Price: £200,000

• Refurbishment Cost: £60,000

• Total Capital Invested: £260,000

• Refinance Valuation: £280,000

• Refinance at 75% Loan-to-Value (LTV):
  → £210,000 new mortgage

• Gross Rent: £2,300 per month

• Annual Gross Rent: £27,600

Investment Rationale

• Premium co-living specification = higher quality tenants

• More space per occupant = lower turnover and fewer voids

• Strong design and finish = rent resilience and market differentiation

• Optimised for sustainable cash flow, not short-term yield tricks

This project demonstrates a core principle of our strategy:
Build better, attract better tenants, and the numbers look after themselves.