Bet Everything on a property Crash. It Worked.
In 2022, interest rates started rising faster than we’d seen in over a decade. Panic set in. The market wobbled. And I made a move most people would call mad:
I sold my home.
I took 15 years of experience in property and went all in—on a crash.
Why I Sold at the Peak
I could see what was coming:
Cheap money was disappearing
Yields were thinning
The commercial market was headed for a reset
So I sold my house near the peak of the market, went into cash, and moved into a rental.
It sounds backwards, right? But here’s the trick most people miss:
Using the law of diminishing rental returns, we could rent a house far nicer than we could buy. For less money, less commitment, and more flexibility.
My partner Helen did the same. Together, we freed up about £500,000 in liquidity.
Strategy in Motion: Go Where the Crash Hits First
We set up a 50/50 SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle) and went deal hunting.
Our first move?
We bought a commercial block for £345,000 in early 2023—cash.
This was right after Liz Truss’s infamous mini-budget, which tanked market confidence and made sellers more negotiable.
We put around £70,000 into cosmetic works—whiteboxed it, modernised the layout, let the commercial space, and turned three of the four flats into Airbnbs (with a tenant still in the fourth).
The Results? Not Hype—Hard Numbers
Just had it revalued at £795,000
That’s £350,000+ in equity created
Rental income: £60,000+ a year (before finance)
This wasn’t theory—it was strategy in motion.
Deal #2: Leveraging Up with Precision
With the remaining funds—and a portfolio facility secured on property #1—we bought our second site:
A block of 7 tenanted flats for £825,000.
As tenants moved out, we converted each one into boutique Airbnb units.
As of now, we’ve flipped 4 out of 7. The current valuation?
Over £1 million—and tracking toward £1.2 million once the last 3 are done.
📅 This July alone: Airbnb bookings hit £16,000 gross.
That’s enough to:
Pay out tax-free director’s loans to cover our rent
Leave the rest in the company to compound for the next deal
So... Madness or Strategy?
In under two years, without external investors, we’ve:
✅ Built a portfolio generating enough net cashflow to cover all our personal living costs
✅ Created over £500,000 in equity
✅ Maintained full control by using only the equity in our homes
Meanwhile, many higher-end homeowners are watching their valuations slide.
We moved when others froze. We bet on a crash—and we had a plan to make it work.
Your Move
Was it risky? Yes.
Was it reckless? No.
It was informed, timed, and executed with intent.
The question is—would you have done it?
👇 Drop your take in the comments.
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