We quit our tearoom business, and now have 11 homes worth £1.2m

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Jacqui and Neil Dobson's 11-property portfolio generates £9,555 a month in gross rent, but they say it is has become harder to make a big profit in recent years due to interest rate rises

Eight years ago, Jacqui and Neil Dobson were working 13-hour days in a struggling tearoom, making less than minimum wage and £25,000 in debt.

Today, the 52- and 63-year-olds are their own bosses, with an 11-property portfolio worth £1.2m.

But they say they made plenty of mistakes along the way – and have seen the profit from their buy-to-lets hit in recent years as well.

The couple, from in Colchester, Essex, opened their 1940s-style tearoom in 2014 after leaving careers in the motor trade, but within a few years, found running the business had become all consuming.

Speaking to The i Paper, Jacqui said: “From the outside it looked like a very successful business.

“What people didn’t see was that we were there from 6.30 in the morning until 7.30 at night, six days a week if our staff turned up and seven if they didn’t.

“The tearoom and coffee shop phenomenon had really taken off, so our profits were diluted by competition. In five years, we went from a very profitable tearoom to one that was struggling to stay afloat.”

They realised something had to change and their solution was property investment.

The inspiration came from Neil’s cousin, who was moving back to Colchester from London. Rather than sell her flat, she put it on a buy-to-let mortgage, released equity and rented it out.

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