How a Police Officer Used None of His Own Money to Buy His First Property Deal

Can you really buy your first property investment deal using none of your own money? In this episode of From The Ground Up, Steve Doran sits down with property investor, finance broker and SD Financial co-founder **Ben Willox** to unpack how he went from 23 years in the police force and £38,000 in debt to building wealth through property. Ben shares how property education, deal packaging, rent-to-rent, private finance and bridging loans helped him buy his first investment property. Steve and Ben break down the full numbers behind the deal: listed at £200,000, negotiated down to £160,000, refurbished for around £15,000 and later revalued at £275,000. They also discuss finding motivated sellers, raising private investment, using bridging finance, paying zero stamp duty through the right structure and turning the property into a short-term let generating up to £1,700–£1,800 net profit per month. A practical episode for anyone who wants to leave a job, replace income, buy property with other people’s money and understand how BRR, serviced accommodation and property finance work in the real world. Want to learn more and find out how to transform your financial future in just 2 days - connect with Steve via **https://stevedoran.co.uk/home** **Key Moments:** 0:00 Buying a property deal with none of his own money 01:12 From 23 years in the police to property investing 03:34 Why property education, deal packaging and rent-to-rent changed everything 06:53 How to find profitable property deals and motivated sellers 10:14 Analysing property deals from end value, GDV and sold comparables 12:39 Negotiating a £200k property down to £160k 17:07 Buying property with other people’s money and raising private finance 20:35 Finding private investors and borrowing £75,000 for the first deal 27:30 When the first investor pulled out and how Ben saved the deal 31:09 Why your first property investment deal is usually the hardest 33:06 Refurbishing the property for £15,000 and cutting costs 35:44 How Ben paid zero stamp duty on the property purchase 37:01 Why every property investor needs a second exit strategy 39:05 Turning the deal into serviced accommodation and refinancing at £275k 40:21 Generating £1,700–£1,800 net profit per month from short-term lets 42:35 Leaving the police and moving into property finance 45:09 Launching SD Financial with Steve Doran 47:41 Specialist property finance, bridging loans, HMOs and short-term lets 53:40 HELOCs and revolving credit facilities for property investors 57:58 How bridging finance, LTV and retained interest really work 1:01:36 The truth about the six-month refinance rule 1:03:36 Planning your refinance exit, valuation and finance strategy 1:06:19 Bridging loan fees, arrangement fees and valuation costs explained 1:09:37 How to start property investing when you feel trapped in your job 1:10:16 Why making the decision is the first step to financial freedom