348 - Ideal Financial Fortress Asset

In this month's Deals Deals Deals episode of The Blueprint Podcast, we're joined by Chris Dornan, a Property Entrepreneur Board Member, family man, and experienced property entrepreneur based near Edinburgh. Chris works closely with his business partner Tsen Wharton across several ventures, including their Emergency Accommodation business, their coaching brand Devenir Plus, and as a Property Entrepreneur Host assisting with the monthly events. Chris joined Property Entrepreneur with Tsen in 2022, and after 2 years on Adam Goff's Mastermind group, has just joined the Property Entrepreneur Board and Chris shares how this has helped their business. In this episode, Chris breaks down a mixed commercial deal with a restaurant on the ground floor and 5 flats with 11 bedrooms. The property was initially leased for 5 years for their Serviced Accommodation business providing accommodation for contractors before transitioning to working with the council for emergency housing. With an initial investment of just £21,000, Chris controlled the property before later agreeing to buy it off market, using the rental profits for their deposit. This is a powerful example of how commercial principles applied to residential assets can dramatically change the outcome of a deal — and how this approach fits into a wider Financial Fortress strategy. What you'll learn in this episode: How B2B council leases for emergency housing work in practice Why block-of-flats deals can outperform single-let and standard HMOs How rental income was used to fund the deposit How stamp duty strategy can save six figures Why this type of deal is ideal for long-term, low-friction wealth building The Deal Numbers Initial Investment: £21,000 Purchase & Valuation: Purchase price: £1.06m Valuation: £1.17m Income & Cashflow (Monthly) Rental Income Flats: £18,146 Restaurant: £1,916 Total Monthly Income: £20,062 Operating costs (including mortgage): £12,635 Net Monthly Income: £7,461 Structuring & Tax Strategy Used rental income to form the deposit Generated £5k+ immediate profit on the flats Claimed £200,000 in capital allowances Added 3 flats to the sale to qualify as a commercial transaction Residential stamp duty of £117k reduced to £18k commercial SDLT Success and failure are both very predictable. I hope you enjoy. Want to contact Mark or his guests? www.theHMOagent.com [e-mail] 07970 079700 Chris Dornan FB: chris.Dornan.127 Insta: chrisdornan82 www.devenirplus.co.uk Success and failure are both very predictable. Get the Blueprint that shows you what to do next. 19–21 May 2026 | See what's included: https://theblueprintretreat.co.uk/ Want to learn more? 👥 Join 13K.3+ property entrepreneurs and business owners in our free Property Entrepreneur Facebook Group - a community built on shared knowledge, proven strategies, and support from those on the same journey.. 👉 The Property Entrepreneurs Community 📺 Want to see my proven Blueprints in action? Subscribe to The Blueprint YouTube Channel for powerful, practical content on how to start, scale, or sell a business in property — straight from the source. 👉 Watch & Subscribe Now Follow me on Social: Instagram: @propertyentrepreneur_ Facebook: @PropertyEntrepreneurOfficial LinkedIn: @propertyentrepreneur Check out our new Instagram: @propertyentrepreneur_uk