Accidental Entrepreneur: How Buying My First Student House Paid Off

Clearing out some paperwork with my Mum the other day, we stumbled across the original estate agent details for the sale of my very first house.

Looking back, people often tell me, “You were so entrepreneurial!” At the time, I honestly didn't think about it like that, it just felt like a practical solution to a practical problem. But looking back at how it played out, maybe it really was?

When I went off to Polytechnic (or what we now call a University), my parents advised me to stay in the Halls of Residence for my first year. It made total sense. Moving to a brand new city was a big shift, and living on campus gave me the perfect environment to orientate myself, get used to student life, and figure out the local area.

During my time in Halls, somebody happened to mention their plan: buy a house and rent out the extra rooms to friends. The idea stuck with me immediately.

I stayed in Halls for two terms before moving into a rented house with three friends. But over the summer, I started hunting for a place of my own to buy. My goal wasn't even to turn a huge profit, I just wanted to find a house with enough rooms to rent out so I could effectively live rent-free.

I managed to borrow the deposit from the "Bank of Mum and Dad," but then I had to go to a real bank and ask for a mortgage. To this day, people are still amazed that a full-time student without a proper job walked away with a mortgage. Looking back, it was essentially my very first business pitch. I laid out the exact cost of the property and demonstrated the incoming rental yield from my housemates. The bank manager saw the business case, trusted the numbers, and advanced me the money.

We completed the deal just in time, getting everyone moved in and paying rent right before the new term kicked off in September.

I ended up living in that house for four years, two as a student, and one in my first proper job. By then, my friends had all graduated, moved away, and started their own careers, and I reached a point where I wanted a place to myself. I eventually sold it in 1988.

Looking at those old property details was a great reminder that sometimes the best ventures aren't planned out as grand business strategies. They just start with a good idea, a solid pitch, and the willingness to take a leap.