How to Invest in Property with No Money or Little Money
Property is expensive in pretty much every major city and most major towns across the UK. So getting on the housing ladder or building a property portfolio feels out of reach of the average person. So a question we get asked often, is, is there any way you can get started in property with little to no money?
Most people believe you need £100,000 or more to start investing in property. That's not true. Residential properties still sell for as little as £60,000 in many areas across England, Scotland, and Wales, with the cheapest places in the UK to buy a home often being up north or in the midlands. With a mortgage, investors regularly start with £40,000+ covering deposit and purchase costs.
Yet, for those with limited or no capital, and no deposits, three practical paths exist: working in the industry to earn while learning, using property crowdfunding platforms, or becoming a property sourcer. This guide examines what you actually need to get started, when direct ownership makes sense, and how to build a property career without substantial upfront capital.
Article updated: December 2025
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by Robert Jones, Founder of Property Investments UK
With two decades in UK property, Rob has been investing in buy-to-let since 2005, and uses property data to develop tools for property market analysis.
What You Actually Need to Get Started
Here's the thing everyone gets wrong about property investment: they think it's either "buy a property outright with cash" or "impossible to start." Neither is true.
I've been investing since 2005, and I've seen people start in all kinds of situations, everything from £20,000 to £2,000,000. We all start from a different position.
The magic number everyone quotes to start with changes depending on who you ask and what property course they're selling. Let me give you the actual numbers from 20 years of experience in residential property.
First, understand that "property investment" doesn't automatically mean "owning property on day one." That's where beginners trip up. They see the headline figures for average UK house prices (currently £271,531 across the UK) and think "I need £70,000 for a 25% deposit, plus stamp duty, plus fees..." and give up before they start.
But here's what they're missing: property is an industry with multiple entry points. Some require capital. Some require time. Some require knowledge and connections. The key is matching your current resources to the right starting strategy, then working your way up.
Path One: Working in the Industry (Earn and Learn)
This is the only real no-money-strategy. If you have no funds and no experience, the reality may be not needing to own a property on day one. Instead you could consider, how do you get into property and build a portfolio over time. Rather than how do you buy now with no money. It's a different question to ask yourself. The solution. Building a career in the industry.
Working in property gets you paid whilst building the knowledge and contacts that matter. This isn't a backup plan. It's a legitimate strategy that I used myself when starting out. In 2005, someone introduced me to estate agency work. I spent a year as a negotiator, sleeping little, reading everything I could, attending every networking event. Years later, I had the knowledge and contacts to launch my own property sourcing business.
Here are the roles that actually teach you property whilst paying a salary:
Estate Agent Positions
Junior sales negotiators earn £18,000-£25,000 base plus commission. You're on the front line seeing what buyers want, what sells, what doesn't, and why. You learn negotiation. You build relationships with investors. You understand local markets inside out.
Specialist markets offer better education. City centre agents in Leeds or Liverpool teach you what sells as investment property. Super-prime agents in London show you high-value transactions, where you build relationships with Ultra High Network Real Estate investors and homeowners. This level of education and experience is a fantastic foundation.
For me. I started in estate agency because I needed to understand how property transactions actually worked. Not the theory from books. The reality of chains falling through, buyers pulling out, what makes deals stick. You can't learn that anywhere else.
Property Investment Companies
Want to learn about buy-to-let specifically? Then consider working for a property investment company. You'll see deal flow from start to finish of sourcing the property, to finding a buyer and then completion. You will understand what investors actually look for (versus what courses tell them to look for), learn how to assess different buy to let locations, and build a network of active investors.
Many property investment firms need sales consultants, property analysts, or junior sourcers. Base salaries £22,000-£30,000, plus commission on completed deals. You're building skills that directly apply to your own investing later.
Land Acquisition Roles
Interested in development or land? Look for land developers, housebuilders, or commercial developers who need acquisition agents. These roles teach you how to assess development potential, understand planning, and spot opportunities before they're obvious.
Land isn't the same as residential buy-to-let. It requires different knowledge. But working for developers shows you how to find off-market opportunities, a skill that transfers directly to any property strategy later.
The "Earn and Learn" Advantage
While working in property, you're simultaneously:
- Earning £18,000-£35,000+ per year
- Saving capital for your own investments
- Building industry contacts (estate agents, solicitors, mortgage brokers, investors)
- Learning local markets in detail
- Seeing hundreds of deals and understanding what works
After 12-24 months in the right role, you have capital saved, knowledge gained, and contacts who will actually answer your calls when you're ready to invest.
Path Two: Property Crowdfunding
This requires some funds, but it can be a low starting point. Property crowdfunding lets you invest in property with much smaller amounts than buying directly. Platforms like London House Exchange allow investors to buy shares in properties or property portfolios rather than purchasing entire buildings.
Some platforms start from as little as a couple of hundred pounds. Others might have a minimum of £1k+.
The Risks and Downsides
Property crowdfunding isn't risk-free. Key considerations:
- Illiquidity: Your money is typically locked in until the property sells or the collective votes to liquidate. This could be 3-7+ years.
- No direct control: You're one shareholder among many. Major decisions are voted on collectively.
- Platform risk: If the platform fails or exits the market, your investment is affected.
- Returns aren't guaranteed: Like any property investment, capital values can fall and rental income isn't certain.
- Fees: Management fees, platform fees, and transaction costs reduce your net returns.
Remember, though, it's not a replacement for direct property ownership if you want control and hands-on involvement.
Path Three: Property Sourcing
This is similar to path one, but it is going straight in at the sourcing stage, where no buying deposits are needed. This is arguably one of the most valuable parts of the process. If you have an ability to find the best property deals, then finding investors, funding or partnerships becomes much easier.
Property sourcing is how I started building capital and connections after working in estate agency. It is essentially about finding profitable property deals for other investors and earning fees when those deals complete. Rather than getting paid £20k a year as a salary, your income is purely commission-based. But I have seen larger deals where sourcers earn £20k for one property in commission alone (and more on some portfolio deals). More importantly, it's not just about one-off income. It leads to something bigger: joint ventures and partnerships that can even fund your own property purchases.
This isn't theory. This is how I built my portfolio when I didn't have funds to buy multiple properties outright. Sourcing got me in front of investors with capital. Some of those relationships turned into joint ventures where I provided the deal-finding and management skills, and they provided the money. Read our complete guide to joint venture property finance to understand how these partnerships work.
What Property Sourcers Actually Do
A property sourcer finds investment opportunities for clients, typically below market value properties, high-yield buy-to-lets, or development opportunities that aren't openly advertised. You're essentially a specialised property finder working on behalf of investor buyers.
Earnings typically range from 1-3% of the property purchase price. For a £200,000 property, that's £2,000-£6,000 per completed deal. Source 6-10 deals per year and you're generating £12,000-£60,000 in income whilst building the knowledge, contacts, and credibility that leads to bigger opportunities.
Check our article on choosing property sourcing companies to understand what good sourcing looks like from the buyer's perspective – because that's what you need to deliver.
From Sourcing to Joint Ventures
Here's where sourcing gets interesting. Once you prove you can find good deals, investors with capital start asking: "Would you be interested in partnering on these properties? Why would they suggest this? Because they want to incentivise you to find the very best deals rather than selling them elsewhere. A joint venture partner or angel investor may suggest, "you find and manage it, I'll fund it."
These joint venture arrangements typically work like this:
- Financial partner provides all capital (purchase, refurb, legal fees, running costs)
- Active partner (you) finds the deal, manages acquisition, handles letting and property management
- Financial partner recovers their initial investment first
- Remaining profits split 50/50 or 60/40, depending on negotiations
- After refinancing or sale, both parties have built equity without the active partner needing large upfront capital
This is how portfolios get built when you don't have £200,000 sitting in the bank. You bring time, effort, knowledge, and deal-finding ability. They bring capital. Everyone profits.
It's not passive. It's a proper business. But it's a path from no capital to building a portfolio over a number of years through partnerships and reinvesting sourcing fees into your own properties over time.
The Honest Truth About Starting with No Deposit
No deposit and no experience? That's a tough place to be. I'm not going to pretend otherwise.
The "no money down" property schemes you may read about, vendor finance, lease options, rent-to-rent, do exist, but they are surrounded by controversy and risk and it's not something we focus on. Lease options mainly apply to land or commercial property and require nuance that catches out even experienced investors, never mind someone just starting. Those strategies exist, but they're not mainstream, not straightforward, and not typically suitable for your first property transaction.
So if you have no capital and no experience, the solution isn't necessarily a clever scheme. The solution is time and partnerships.
You Need Experience First
Think about it logically. Why would someone with capital partner with you on a property deal if you've never completed a transaction, don't understand how chains work, don't know how to assess rental demand, and can't spot a problem property? Unlikely.
Experience gets built through working in property (Path One), or through starting small with sourcing and learning from every deal (Path Three). There's no shortcut. You earn credibility by demonstrating competence repeatedly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you really invest in property with no money down in the UK?
Not realistically for residential buy-to-let as a beginner. "No money down" strategies like lease options, exist but apply mainly to commercial property or land, and require expertise that beginners often don't have. The alternative is working in property to earn whilst learning, using crowdfunding platforms for lower capital entry, or becoming a property sourcer to build toward joint ventures. These are practical paths that don't require six-figure capital upfront.
How much deposit do I actually need for my first buy-to-let property?
Buy-to-let mortgages typically require 25% deposits. For a £160,000 property, that's a £40,000 deposit plus £9,000-£12,000 in purchase costs (stamp duty, legal fees, surveys, mortgage fees), totaling £49,000-£52,000 upfront. Properties in cheaper locations like Sunderland or Bradford can reduce this requirement significantly. Use our LTV calculator and buy-to-let costs guide to calculate exact requirements for your target property.
Should I work in estate agency before investing in property?
Working in estate agency, property investment firms, or land development gives you paid education. You learn how transactions work, understand local markets, build industry contacts, and see what buyers/investors actually want versus what courses teach. Junior positions start at £18,000-£25,000 plus commission. After 12-24 months, you have capital saved, knowledge gained, and contacts who'll help. It's not essential, but it's a practical path from no experience to building a portfolio.