An old post, but well worth a reread.

Thanks for digging that post out again, Benny – the bit I keep coming back to is the test rather than the arithmetic: is the discount measured against what comparable stock nearby actually settled for, or just against the vendor’s asking price? If it is only against the asking price, then the whole return-on-cash case rests on the refinance valuation landing where you bought, which is really a bet on the location and the rent holding up rather than on the deposit trick itself. Before committing that much cash I would want three things written down: the vendor’s concrete reason for needing a fast, certain settlement, an independent rental appraisal supporting the income I am counting on, and a lender confirming up front that they would lend against that value. Miss any one of those and the bigger deposit is just buying a story, however good the arithmetic looks on paper. Great thought to have in the margin though – and asking costs nothing.