The BRRR engine scores every active sale listing against refurb keywords (needs modernisation, motivated seller, investment opportunity), EPC retrofit signals (D-G ratings), and price-per-sqm outliers vs the regional median. We project a sane After-Repair Value from comparable refurbished sales — no fantasy numbers — then run the 75% LTV refinance maths so you know exactly how much capital comes back out.
BRRR = Buy, Refurb, Refinance, Rent. You buy a tired property at a discount, refurbish it (usually a kitchen + bathroom + EPC upgrade), refinance against the higher After-Repair Value at 75% LTV, and rent it out long-term. Done well, the refinance returns most or all of your capital — leaving a high-yielding rental with very little money left in. The signals we look for: refurb-related keywords in the listing (needs modernisation, motivated seller, investment opportunity), an EPC rating of D or worse (especially F/G which qualify for grants + force the seller into a sale ahead of the 2028 MEES deadline), and a price-per-sqm that sits in the bottom 25% of the local market. The full evaluator combines those signals with a refurb cost stack (£250-£900/sqm depending on intensity, plus fees + contingency), an ARV projection anchored to nearby refurbished sales (EPC A/B/C, last 3 years), and a 75% LTV refinance calculation that tells you exactly how much cash comes back out.
We pick cosmetic, light, or heavy refurb intensity based on the listing signals + EPC + price-per-sqm outlier, apply a per-sqm rate (GBP 250 / 450 / 900), add fixed fees (planning, building regs, professional fees), bake in an EPC retrofit add for F/G ratings, and finish with a 15% contingency.
Pull refurbished comparables (EPC A/B/C, sold within the last 3 years) from within 0.5mi of the subject using the same ranking engine as the valuation tab. Median £/sqm × subject floor area = ARV. Sparse postcodes fall back to a conservative cap of asking + 25% of refurb cost.
Capital in = deposit + SDLT (investor) + £2.5k legal/survey + refurb + bridging interest. Capital out = ARV × 75% minus the day-one mortgage. Capital recycled % tells you whether this is a true BRRR (80%+) or a partial recycle (40-60%).
Properties under 5 years old (new build), already refurbished (EPC A/B with recent certificate), or where the refurb cost exceeds 60% of asking (rebuild territory) are auto-excluded. Listed buildings + conservation area properties are surfaced with warning chips.
Three things have to line up: (1) 3+ refurb keyword signals fire OR EPC F/G + price 25%+ below regional £/sqm median OR price in bottom 25% + 1+ keyword. (2) The ARV uplift projects at 25% or more of the refurb cost. (3) Refurb cost is under 25% of asking price. Silver requires 2 signals, 15-25% uplift, and refurb 25-40% of asking. Bronze needs 1 signal, 5-15% uplift, and heavy refurb territory (40-60% of asking).
ARV is anchored to nearby refurbished sales whenever we can find at least 3 EPC A/B/C comparables within 0.5mi sold in the last 3 years. Sparse postcodes fall back to a conservative formula: asking price + 25% of the projected refurb cost. This intentionally under-states the upside in low-data areas rather than pencilling in a fantasy number. Each property's ARV breakdown shows the sample count, median £/sqm, and source so you can sense-check it against your local market view.
It means the 75% LTV refinance against the post-refurb ARV returns enough cash to pay off your original mortgage AND recover every penny of deposit + buying costs + refurb. You walk out with the original capital, a higher-LTV mortgage that's cheaper to service relative to the rent, and a stabilised rental yielding 6-9% gross. In practice 80-100% is excellent BRRR; 40-60% is a good cosmetic refurb; below 40% is a flip, not a BRRR.
Yes — but expect refurb costs to roughly double versus the cosmetic baseline, planning consent to be required for external changes, and a 6-8 week lead time before works can start. We still surface them as candidates with prominent warning chips on the panel so you can factor those costs in before offering. The evaluator's tier matrix isn't relaxed for listed properties — it has to clear the same uplift + refurb-share thresholds.
Save your refurb buying box and get alerts when refurb-suited properties hit the market in your target areas — already pre-filtered against keyword signals, EPC rating, and price-per-sqm outliers.
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