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Up and down the country, there are empty properties just waiting | 0:00:01 | 0:00:04 | |
to be brought back to life. | 0:00:04 | 0:00:06 | |
I'll be discovering why and how you can turn a diamond in the rough | 0:00:06 | 0:00:10 | |
into a gem of a home. | 0:00:10 | 0:00:11 | |
We'll be following the Empty Property Officers, | 0:00:14 | 0:00:16 | |
whose job it is to track down the owners of these forgotten houses | 0:00:16 | 0:00:20 | |
and get them back into use. | 0:00:20 | 0:00:22 | |
And I'll be finding out more about our housing stock, | 0:00:24 | 0:00:27 | |
our history and why we should be both preserving and reinventing | 0:00:27 | 0:00:30 | |
Britain's empty homes. | 0:00:30 | 0:00:32 | |
Renovating an empty property | 0:00:40 | 0:00:42 | |
is sometimes the only way | 0:00:42 | 0:00:43 | |
of being able to afford your dream home | 0:00:43 | 0:00:46 | |
in an area that's otherwise out of your price range. | 0:00:46 | 0:00:48 | |
But taking on a place that has sat empty for a few years | 0:00:48 | 0:00:52 | |
can challenge even the most experienced of renovators. | 0:00:52 | 0:00:56 | |
That said, it's the promise of that dream finally becoming | 0:00:56 | 0:00:59 | |
a reality that drives people on to bringing an empty home back to life. | 0:00:59 | 0:01:04 | |
On today's show, we'll be meeting a young couple who think | 0:01:08 | 0:01:12 | |
an empty building could be their ideal first home together. | 0:01:12 | 0:01:16 | |
Given our budget, we might have to go for a one bedroom, | 0:01:16 | 0:01:19 | |
but a big living room or a big space. | 0:01:19 | 0:01:21 | |
We'll find out what's being done to preserve | 0:01:21 | 0:01:24 | |
Britain's oldest properties. | 0:01:24 | 0:01:25 | |
This is a classic case of a repair, which is closer to conservation, | 0:01:25 | 0:01:29 | |
because we've followed the same pattern throughout. | 0:01:29 | 0:01:32 | |
And we'll be following an Empty Property Officer as she aims | 0:01:32 | 0:01:35 | |
to take houses from dereliction to dwellings. | 0:01:35 | 0:01:38 | |
They really don't do anything unless it's absolutely in a notice. | 0:01:38 | 0:01:42 | |
Carolina Hernandez and her fiancee, Dom James, | 0:01:47 | 0:01:50 | |
are first-time buyers renting in Waterloo, South London. | 0:01:50 | 0:01:54 | |
They're keen to stay in the area, but a 350,000 budget | 0:01:54 | 0:01:58 | |
for their first home isn't enough to buy | 0:01:58 | 0:02:00 | |
the property they want already renovated. | 0:02:00 | 0:02:02 | |
Given our budget, | 0:02:02 | 0:02:04 | |
we might have to go for a one bedroom, | 0:02:04 | 0:02:06 | |
but a big living room or a big space. | 0:02:06 | 0:02:08 | |
We want somewhere where people can come round | 0:02:08 | 0:02:10 | |
when they want to come, they want to drop by. | 0:02:10 | 0:02:12 | |
The couple were recently gazumped on the purchase of a nearby | 0:02:12 | 0:02:16 | |
run-down empty flat, but that hasn't dampened their enthusiasm. | 0:02:16 | 0:02:20 | |
Quite the opposite - it's made them even more determined to realise | 0:02:20 | 0:02:23 | |
their dream of buying an unloved property which they can transform. | 0:02:23 | 0:02:26 | |
The property that we put an offer in, as well, had no central heating, | 0:02:26 | 0:02:29 | |
so we were prepared to, you know, | 0:02:29 | 0:02:33 | |
do the re-wiring of the house, put central heating in. | 0:02:33 | 0:02:36 | |
Dom and Carolina will be first-time renovators, | 0:02:36 | 0:02:39 | |
but they have family and friends in the architect trade, | 0:02:39 | 0:02:42 | |
so they are hoping to get lots of help and advice. | 0:02:42 | 0:02:45 | |
We've got good parents that have done their own homes, as well, | 0:02:45 | 0:02:49 | |
so we've got experience behind them. | 0:02:49 | 0:02:51 | |
Both our parents have done that route of finding some place | 0:02:51 | 0:02:54 | |
that's, you know, needing a lot done to it. | 0:02:54 | 0:02:57 | |
Carolina can't join us today, | 0:03:01 | 0:03:04 | |
so I'm meeting Dom in Hither Green, in South London, to show him | 0:03:04 | 0:03:07 | |
a disused house that could be an amazing first home. | 0:03:07 | 0:03:11 | |
They're looking for a flat, but one of the advantages of | 0:03:11 | 0:03:14 | |
buying an empty property is that budgets can be stretched further. | 0:03:14 | 0:03:17 | |
Dom, this is the property I want you to see. It's been empty a while, | 0:03:17 | 0:03:20 | |
it's pretty run-down. This is really an exercise | 0:03:20 | 0:03:23 | |
to test your imagination and your nerve, to some extent, | 0:03:23 | 0:03:25 | |
whether you're really up for taking on an empty property. | 0:03:25 | 0:03:28 | |
What are your first impressions? | 0:03:28 | 0:03:30 | |
Probably - not, obviously, beautiful. | 0:03:30 | 0:03:32 | |
But it looks like a house. | 0:03:32 | 0:03:33 | |
Would you like a house rather than a flat? | 0:03:33 | 0:03:35 | |
-No real preference, actually. -OK. -No, we're really open | 0:03:35 | 0:03:38 | |
to sort of seeing anything. | 0:03:38 | 0:03:40 | |
Being open to anything is a very, very good start. | 0:03:40 | 0:03:42 | |
-I suggest we now take a look inside. -Let's do it. All right. | 0:03:42 | 0:03:45 | |
This house has been empty for about eight years. | 0:03:47 | 0:03:50 | |
Properties like this were built in Hither Green | 0:03:50 | 0:03:52 | |
in the late 19th century by builder Sir Archibald Corbett | 0:03:52 | 0:03:56 | |
who constructed 3,000 houses in the area. | 0:03:56 | 0:03:59 | |
He was a Quaker, so there's a distinct lack of pubs, | 0:03:59 | 0:04:02 | |
but there are great train links, so Dom and Carolina | 0:04:02 | 0:04:05 | |
could be back in Waterloo in 15 minutes. | 0:04:05 | 0:04:07 | |
So a word about budget. This house is on the market for £250,000, | 0:04:07 | 0:04:12 | |
which is well within your budget and would even leave up to | 0:04:12 | 0:04:15 | |
100,000 for renovation. | 0:04:15 | 0:04:17 | |
Typically, the houses sell for about 350 here. | 0:04:17 | 0:04:20 | |
There's one down there on sale for 400, but it's got an extra bedroom. | 0:04:20 | 0:04:23 | |
-But that just shows you, this has good potential. -Yeah. | 0:04:23 | 0:04:26 | |
But it's not about making money, it's about you guys having a home. | 0:04:26 | 0:04:29 | |
That's the main consideration. | 0:04:29 | 0:04:31 | |
What's your vision of where you'd like to live? | 0:04:31 | 0:04:33 | |
How would your home feel? What's the sort of look or feel? | 0:04:33 | 0:04:36 | |
Well, I think it would...it would be a warm place that people | 0:04:36 | 0:04:41 | |
like to come and stop in. | 0:04:41 | 0:04:43 | |
-You know? -Do you like these big, open spaces? | 0:04:43 | 0:04:45 | |
Yeah, I like the open spaces. | 0:04:45 | 0:04:46 | |
I'm interested to see the kitchen, | 0:04:46 | 0:04:49 | |
-because we cook a lot. -Right. -And so it'd be nice to find a place | 0:04:49 | 0:04:52 | |
where we...you know, you sort of have some food and everyone get together. | 0:04:52 | 0:04:57 | |
-So, actually, a through kitchen is more my thing... -OK. | 0:04:57 | 0:05:00 | |
-..than a through living room. -That's interesting. | 0:05:00 | 0:05:03 | |
When it comes to renovation, | 0:05:03 | 0:05:05 | |
how much of the work would you take on? | 0:05:05 | 0:05:06 | |
We'd be keen to do quite a lot of it, | 0:05:06 | 0:05:09 | |
whether it's knocking down a wall or something... | 0:05:09 | 0:05:12 | |
My dad's got a lot of experience doing something like this. | 0:05:12 | 0:05:15 | |
And so has Carolina's dad, so... I have no clue. | 0:05:15 | 0:05:19 | |
It's all about the vision. | 0:05:19 | 0:05:20 | |
It seems like you're quite comfortable with that in this room, | 0:05:20 | 0:05:22 | |
anyway. Let's go through to the kitchen. | 0:05:22 | 0:05:24 | |
You can have a look at what they've got here. | 0:05:24 | 0:05:27 | |
Right, so, the kitchen. | 0:05:30 | 0:05:33 | |
-What do you make of this? -It's...pretty...nasty. | 0:05:33 | 0:05:37 | |
Looking around the kitchen, this damp stands out a mile. | 0:05:37 | 0:05:41 | |
It's a huge alarm bell. | 0:05:41 | 0:05:42 | |
You'd think, "All right, it's just break in the roof," | 0:05:42 | 0:05:45 | |
but this is double storey, this back bit to the house. | 0:05:45 | 0:05:48 | |
So, I'm assuming the bathroom is at the back and that is sort of | 0:05:48 | 0:05:51 | |
a bath or a shower has leaked there. | 0:05:51 | 0:05:53 | |
Or the guttering has gone. Either way, | 0:05:53 | 0:05:56 | |
something big needs fixing, doesn't it? | 0:05:56 | 0:05:58 | |
Yeah, so, I think it's important to get the right person to look at that | 0:05:58 | 0:06:01 | |
and work out what's going wrong. | 0:06:01 | 0:06:03 | |
If you have to do something to this wall, | 0:06:03 | 0:06:05 | |
you might as well knock it down. | 0:06:05 | 0:06:06 | |
In simple terms, if you push out, you get a lovely living area. Also, | 0:06:06 | 0:06:11 | |
you probably add quite a bit of value to the house. | 0:06:11 | 0:06:13 | |
But more importantly, | 0:06:13 | 0:06:14 | |
-it creates the space you want to as a home. -Although, it might make | 0:06:14 | 0:06:18 | |
the room behind a bit darker, cos that does have light coming in. | 0:06:18 | 0:06:21 | |
-So there's a negative to that. -Yes, but there's also solutions, | 0:06:21 | 0:06:24 | |
and that's where a good architect would walk you through the options, | 0:06:24 | 0:06:27 | |
because, I think, if you were to push out, | 0:06:27 | 0:06:29 | |
-as long as you strategically placed your overhead windows... -Yeah. | 0:06:29 | 0:06:33 | |
..you could get a lot of light streaming in that way. | 0:06:33 | 0:06:35 | |
So that's another thing to consider. | 0:06:35 | 0:06:38 | |
Out the back, is a barbecue-friendly garden, which needs some work, | 0:06:38 | 0:06:42 | |
and upstairs, are two double bedrooms | 0:06:42 | 0:06:45 | |
and a large, if tired-looking, bathroom. | 0:06:45 | 0:06:47 | |
So, as we suspected, the bathroom is at the back | 0:06:49 | 0:06:52 | |
-of the property. Good size. -Yeah, it's nice, big. | 0:06:52 | 0:06:55 | |
-Needs a lot of work, though. -Yeah. | 0:06:55 | 0:06:57 | |
And then this is the master bedroom. | 0:06:57 | 0:07:01 | |
-So, really light. -Yeah, it's lovely. | 0:07:01 | 0:07:03 | |
-Lots of space. -Yep. | 0:07:03 | 0:07:04 | |
-Got a good feel to it. -Yeah, it's nice. Yeah. | 0:07:04 | 0:07:07 | |
As you come onto the landing, you can see into the roof, | 0:07:09 | 0:07:11 | |
and there is the potential to do a loft conversion at a later date. | 0:07:11 | 0:07:15 | |
-Dom, you've seen the house. -Mm-hm. | 0:07:23 | 0:07:24 | |
You can see what there is of a garden. | 0:07:24 | 0:07:26 | |
What do you make of the price? | 0:07:26 | 0:07:28 | |
I think the house is lovely. | 0:07:28 | 0:07:30 | |
I think it's the ideal restoration project. It's a lovely house. | 0:07:30 | 0:07:33 | |
And it would be perfect for turning into a home. | 0:07:33 | 0:07:37 | |
Is it within the realms of possibility for you to do that? | 0:07:37 | 0:07:40 | |
I mean, is it too much for you guys? | 0:07:40 | 0:07:42 | |
-Is it about the right thing you're looking for? -Yeah, I think | 0:07:42 | 0:07:45 | |
the level of work required for this house | 0:07:45 | 0:07:47 | |
is about right. I think it's something that we would take on. | 0:07:47 | 0:07:50 | |
OK. Well, look, | 0:07:50 | 0:07:51 | |
it's going to be interesting for you to meet a couple later on, | 0:07:51 | 0:07:54 | |
because they've taken on a house, which was very similar to this, | 0:07:54 | 0:07:58 | |
and it was in a very similar state to this house, as well. | 0:07:58 | 0:08:01 | |
But the couple who took it on have completely renovated it. | 0:08:01 | 0:08:04 | |
So there'll be loads of ideas, lots of inspiration but also, | 0:08:04 | 0:08:06 | |
very much like yourselves, they wanted to stay in central London, | 0:08:06 | 0:08:09 | |
but in the end, the benefits that they could get from moving | 0:08:09 | 0:08:12 | |
a little bit further out won them over. | 0:08:12 | 0:08:15 | |
So, it will be interesting to see what you make of them | 0:08:15 | 0:08:18 | |
and their property. I think they'll have a lot of useful tips | 0:08:18 | 0:08:20 | |
and advice. So, are you keen to meet them? | 0:08:20 | 0:08:22 | |
-Yeah, very looking forward to that. -Great. | 0:08:22 | 0:08:24 | |
Well, I really like Dom's energy. | 0:08:27 | 0:08:29 | |
He seems up for taking on empty property. | 0:08:29 | 0:08:31 | |
He's not daunted by the size and scale of this project, | 0:08:31 | 0:08:33 | |
which is perfect, because if you're going to do it, | 0:08:33 | 0:08:35 | |
you need the enthusiasm. | 0:08:35 | 0:08:37 | |
My one worry is the lack of experience between him | 0:08:37 | 0:08:40 | |
and Carolina. | 0:08:40 | 0:08:42 | |
They haven't taken on a renovation before, | 0:08:42 | 0:08:44 | |
I'm not sure they really know what lies ahead, | 0:08:44 | 0:08:46 | |
so it's going to be great for them to meet a guy who's been through it. | 0:08:46 | 0:08:50 | |
They have loads of tips, loads of advice and, importantly, | 0:08:50 | 0:08:53 | |
whatever project they take on, | 0:08:53 | 0:08:55 | |
he can tell them the challenges that lie ahead. | 0:08:55 | 0:08:59 | |
All over the country, there are many empty properties | 0:09:04 | 0:09:07 | |
lying dormant, waiting to be revitalised. | 0:09:07 | 0:09:10 | |
Our councils' Empty Property Officers seek out these buildings | 0:09:10 | 0:09:12 | |
and track down the owners, with the sole aim of turning them | 0:09:12 | 0:09:15 | |
back into homes as quickly as possible. | 0:09:15 | 0:09:19 | |
Sue Li is the local Empty Property Officer | 0:09:19 | 0:09:22 | |
for Amber Valley in Derbyshire. | 0:09:22 | 0:09:24 | |
She has about 1,000 abandoned buildings on her books. | 0:09:24 | 0:09:28 | |
Today, Sue's visiting a house, which the current owner bought | 0:09:34 | 0:09:37 | |
after it was repossessed by a bank. | 0:09:37 | 0:09:39 | |
Sue wants to check on the current state of the property and find out | 0:09:40 | 0:09:44 | |
if there's any work being done to get the place lived in again. | 0:09:44 | 0:09:48 | |
Wow! | 0:09:48 | 0:09:49 | |
I can see why I've been contacted. | 0:09:49 | 0:09:51 | |
It's not very often I get a pile of rubble and debris | 0:09:51 | 0:09:54 | |
quite like this. | 0:09:54 | 0:09:56 | |
It's spilling over onto the footpath. | 0:09:56 | 0:09:58 | |
But it also concerns me that there may be harbourage | 0:09:58 | 0:10:02 | |
for vermin here, | 0:10:02 | 0:10:03 | |
who can quite typically hide in piles of bricks | 0:10:03 | 0:10:06 | |
and rubble. There's some carpet over there, as well. | 0:10:06 | 0:10:09 | |
Soft-textured fabrics, such as that, can provide nesting materials. | 0:10:09 | 0:10:14 | |
Again, down this end of the garden, more of the same. | 0:10:14 | 0:10:18 | |
Another sign of an empty property is a build-up of mail | 0:10:19 | 0:10:23 | |
through the letter box and cobwebs | 0:10:23 | 0:10:26 | |
down the frame of the door. | 0:10:26 | 0:10:30 | |
Now, I can't see any mail through there. | 0:10:30 | 0:10:33 | |
And this door is quite clear of cobwebs. | 0:10:33 | 0:10:36 | |
So, it does make me wonder if somebody, at least, | 0:10:36 | 0:10:40 | |
comes in occasionally, goes into the property. | 0:10:40 | 0:10:43 | |
If I'm having no joy at the address that I've written to them at, | 0:10:43 | 0:10:47 | |
I think I'll try and contact them here | 0:10:47 | 0:10:50 | |
and see if I have more luck. | 0:10:50 | 0:10:52 | |
So, taking one final look at the front of this, | 0:10:57 | 0:11:00 | |
there's what looks like a CCTV camera, | 0:11:00 | 0:11:03 | |
which is good as far as I'm concerned, | 0:11:03 | 0:11:05 | |
cos that shows me that somebody is interested | 0:11:05 | 0:11:07 | |
in protecting this property, another sign that there might be | 0:11:07 | 0:11:10 | |
somebody who I can talk to, go through my concerns | 0:11:10 | 0:11:14 | |
and also see what we can do to help. | 0:11:14 | 0:11:16 | |
Good. | 0:11:16 | 0:11:18 | |
With signs that someone may be visiting the property, | 0:11:24 | 0:11:26 | |
Sue investigates further at the back of the house. | 0:11:26 | 0:11:29 | |
OK, so, I'm at the rear | 0:11:34 | 0:11:36 | |
of the property. Now, I've got sandbags here. | 0:11:36 | 0:11:40 | |
Let's have a look a little further. | 0:11:40 | 0:11:41 | |
OK, well, this door is obviously quite new. | 0:11:44 | 0:11:47 | |
Got a window up there that seems to be being bricked up | 0:11:47 | 0:11:50 | |
on the inside. | 0:11:50 | 0:11:52 | |
I assume, at some point, the owner is probably going to remove | 0:11:52 | 0:11:55 | |
that window and install something that matches the rest. | 0:11:55 | 0:11:59 | |
It's clear that some work has been done at the house. | 0:11:59 | 0:12:02 | |
What isn't clear is if someone is living here. | 0:12:02 | 0:12:05 | |
Sue decides to chat to a neighbour to see | 0:12:05 | 0:12:08 | |
if they know anything about the owner. | 0:12:08 | 0:12:10 | |
I've spoken to a local resident, | 0:12:10 | 0:12:12 | |
and they've actually met the owner. | 0:12:12 | 0:12:13 | |
He's been trying to do the property up, | 0:12:13 | 0:12:16 | |
but it seems there may be personal issues as to why | 0:12:16 | 0:12:19 | |
he hasn't actually finished what he started. | 0:12:19 | 0:12:21 | |
So, er, I'm quite hopeful, really. | 0:12:21 | 0:12:25 | |
Um, much different to when I first came and first saw the property. | 0:12:25 | 0:12:29 | |
Since her visit, Sue is now in touch with the owner, who has promised | 0:12:30 | 0:12:34 | |
to complete the work on the house and move into it within 12 months. | 0:12:34 | 0:12:38 | |
Sue will continue to monitor the progress. | 0:12:38 | 0:12:40 | |
Taking on an empty property can be a huge undertaking | 0:12:46 | 0:12:49 | |
but it often brings with it an equal degree of satisfaction. | 0:12:49 | 0:12:52 | |
Because not only are you creating a dream home, | 0:12:52 | 0:12:55 | |
you're also bringing a building back into use | 0:12:55 | 0:12:57 | |
that has otherwise lost its purpose. | 0:12:57 | 0:12:59 | |
And that's just what Stephanie and Carl Shaw set out to do | 0:13:00 | 0:13:03 | |
when they spotted this 17th-century, listed manor house in Derbyshire, | 0:13:03 | 0:13:07 | |
in 2002. | 0:13:07 | 0:13:09 | |
It had been empty for five years | 0:13:09 | 0:13:11 | |
and was in a terrible state when they first set eyes on it. | 0:13:11 | 0:13:14 | |
I found this particular house, | 0:13:14 | 0:13:16 | |
I was looking one Friday night on the Internet, | 0:13:16 | 0:13:19 | |
and found it and it was up for auction the following Wednesday. | 0:13:19 | 0:13:23 | |
and thought, "Well, that's probably be too quick to raise the money. | 0:13:23 | 0:13:26 | |
"But we'll have a look at it anyway." | 0:13:26 | 0:13:28 | |
Came and looked at it with my sister | 0:13:28 | 0:13:31 | |
and, of course, went to the auction and bought it on the Wednesday. | 0:13:31 | 0:13:34 | |
They paid £245,000 for it at auction | 0:13:35 | 0:13:38 | |
and then embarked on an epic renovation that was to take them | 0:13:38 | 0:13:42 | |
seven years and cost a further £400,000. | 0:13:42 | 0:13:46 | |
Once we actually bought the property, | 0:13:46 | 0:13:49 | |
then the reality of what I'd done really kicked in. | 0:13:49 | 0:13:53 | |
The bulk of the windows at the front of the house | 0:13:53 | 0:13:55 | |
were cracked or broken. Most of the wooden floors | 0:13:55 | 0:13:57 | |
downstairs were rotten. With the exception | 0:13:57 | 0:14:00 | |
of the main hall, every room in the house has been re-plastered. | 0:14:00 | 0:14:03 | |
During the process of renovation, | 0:14:03 | 0:14:04 | |
we've been at times where things have been extremely tight. | 0:14:04 | 0:14:07 | |
And at that point, you question whether it's all worthwhile. | 0:14:07 | 0:14:10 | |
You get through it and there's another day and, actually, | 0:14:10 | 0:14:12 | |
it is worthwhile. | 0:14:12 | 0:14:13 | |
And you just save up. And that's why this will be a lifelong project. | 0:14:13 | 0:14:17 | |
I think we almost feel like we're guardians of the property. | 0:14:17 | 0:14:21 | |
It's our home, but we don't feel like we actually own it, | 0:14:21 | 0:14:25 | |
we feel like everything we're doing is ready to pass on | 0:14:25 | 0:14:28 | |
to another generation at some point. | 0:14:28 | 0:14:31 | |
So we need to leave it in the best possible condition we can. | 0:14:31 | 0:14:34 | |
In 2008, the Shaw's house was valued at just under £1 million. | 0:14:36 | 0:14:41 | |
So taking on an empty property has certainly paid off for them. | 0:14:41 | 0:14:45 | |
It has been such a good experience. | 0:14:47 | 0:14:49 | |
Would we do it again? Absolutely. | 0:14:49 | 0:14:52 | |
Will we ever find a property that lives up to this | 0:14:52 | 0:14:55 | |
and gives us so much pleasure? | 0:14:55 | 0:14:56 | |
I don't know. But this one has been a big chunk of our lives, | 0:14:56 | 0:15:01 | |
but probably, for me, one of the most enjoyable. | 0:15:01 | 0:15:04 | |
It's had its pitfalls but, overall, fantastic experience. | 0:15:04 | 0:15:08 | |
We British have a real affection for our old buildings. | 0:15:15 | 0:15:18 | |
We love their history, their design, their period features | 0:15:18 | 0:15:22 | |
but years of decay and countless generations | 0:15:22 | 0:15:25 | |
of owners all putting their own stamp | 0:15:25 | 0:15:27 | |
on the decor can mean that some period homes | 0:15:27 | 0:15:30 | |
end up losing their historic detail. | 0:15:30 | 0:15:32 | |
Putting period features back into a home can be an expensive | 0:15:33 | 0:15:38 | |
and meticulous job that's easy to get wrong. | 0:15:38 | 0:15:40 | |
Peter Rumley is a building conservationist, | 0:15:42 | 0:15:45 | |
and I've come to take a look at the old farmhouse here in Kent | 0:15:45 | 0:15:48 | |
that he's been lovingly conserving as his home. | 0:15:48 | 0:15:51 | |
What state was this originally in when you took it on? | 0:15:57 | 0:16:01 | |
Horrific. | 0:16:01 | 0:16:02 | |
It was in an absolutely appalling state - Artex everywhere, | 0:16:02 | 0:16:05 | |
most of the timbers were covered up. | 0:16:05 | 0:16:07 | |
And we spent our time taking away the modern material | 0:16:07 | 0:16:10 | |
to see what actually we had underneath. | 0:16:10 | 0:16:13 | |
My eyes are immediately drawn to the mix of newer wood | 0:16:13 | 0:16:15 | |
-against older wood. -We wanted to do two things. We wanted to conserve, | 0:16:15 | 0:16:19 | |
but we couldn't conserve the timbers all the way through | 0:16:19 | 0:16:22 | |
because they'd degraded so much. We had to put in replacement timbers. | 0:16:22 | 0:16:26 | |
And the replacement and repair that we did was with new timber. | 0:16:26 | 0:16:29 | |
But it is a replacement, it isn't technically conserving it. | 0:16:29 | 0:16:32 | |
All we've done is conserve the actual format. | 0:16:32 | 0:16:35 | |
It doesn't matter that it's new wood, you're not hiding that. | 0:16:35 | 0:16:38 | |
It's not as if you suddenly stain everything | 0:16:38 | 0:16:40 | |
so you can't tell the new wood from the old. | 0:16:40 | 0:16:42 | |
No, that would be falsifying it. | 0:16:42 | 0:16:44 | |
And that's something which isn't really acceptable. | 0:16:44 | 0:16:46 | |
Why would you want to disguise it? It's honest to the building | 0:16:46 | 0:16:49 | |
and honest to the materials. | 0:16:49 | 0:16:51 | |
Is there anywhere in this room, | 0:16:51 | 0:16:53 | |
I would see an example of what you would call restoration? | 0:16:53 | 0:16:56 | |
Over here, on this wall, I can show an example | 0:16:56 | 0:16:58 | |
of a repair. | 0:16:58 | 0:16:59 | |
We took away the old wall and discovered this. | 0:16:59 | 0:17:02 | |
But the timbers were so bad and rotten | 0:17:02 | 0:17:06 | |
that we had to repair it. So, this is a classic case of a repair | 0:17:06 | 0:17:10 | |
which is closer to conservation | 0:17:10 | 0:17:12 | |
because we followed the same pattern throughout. | 0:17:12 | 0:17:14 | |
Looking around, you put new materials in. Were you ever tempted | 0:17:14 | 0:17:17 | |
to go to a salvage yard and find older, | 0:17:17 | 0:17:19 | |
historic objects and materials to put in? | 0:17:19 | 0:17:21 | |
I don't seem to think it's really ethical to go to salvage yards. | 0:17:21 | 0:17:24 | |
From a conservation point of view, | 0:17:24 | 0:17:26 | |
there's nothing wrong in a sense with salvage per se, | 0:17:26 | 0:17:29 | |
but actually, I would go down the other route, | 0:17:29 | 0:17:32 | |
which I think is a much more intelligent route | 0:17:32 | 0:17:34 | |
and a more sustainable route, | 0:17:34 | 0:17:36 | |
of going to new materials and going to the craftsmen. | 0:17:36 | 0:17:39 | |
So that's important. | 0:17:39 | 0:17:41 | |
It's fundamental to the conservation of buildings. | 0:17:41 | 0:17:43 | |
I suppose the other benefit is, you are keeping crafts alive. | 0:17:43 | 0:17:46 | |
If you go for something bespoke and you get a craftsman to make it | 0:17:46 | 0:17:49 | |
and help it fit into your home, that's good for them, as well. | 0:17:49 | 0:17:53 | |
Absolutely. You're maintaining the country's manufacturing base, | 0:17:53 | 0:17:56 | |
in the building industry. | 0:17:56 | 0:17:57 | |
I think it's really important to remember that a home, a house | 0:17:57 | 0:18:01 | |
is a continuing story. | 0:18:01 | 0:18:02 | |
Absolutely. Buildings do change. They will change for ever. | 0:18:02 | 0:18:05 | |
Hopefully, they'll continue to change. It'd be wrong | 0:18:05 | 0:18:08 | |
to keep a building locked in one time frame | 0:18:08 | 0:18:10 | |
over the period that we're in now. | 0:18:10 | 0:18:12 | |
It's remarkable what you've done here. | 0:18:12 | 0:18:14 | |
Clearly, a lot of love and attention has gone into it. | 0:18:14 | 0:18:16 | |
What do you get out of it? | 0:18:16 | 0:18:18 | |
It really is, basically, preserving a historic building | 0:18:18 | 0:18:20 | |
for future generations. | 0:18:20 | 0:18:21 | |
-And that's so important. -Well, it's a wonderful home. Thank you | 0:18:21 | 0:18:25 | |
for letting me in and showing me around. | 0:18:25 | 0:18:27 | |
Pleasure. No problem. | 0:18:27 | 0:18:28 | |
Back in London, I'm taking Dom James to meet a couple | 0:18:33 | 0:18:37 | |
who took the plunge and bought an empty property | 0:18:37 | 0:18:40 | |
and have transformed it into a stunning family home. | 0:18:40 | 0:18:43 | |
In 2007, architect Will McGuinness and his wife, Emily, | 0:18:43 | 0:18:47 | |
took a chance on a run-down, | 0:18:47 | 0:18:49 | |
three-bedroom Victorian house in southwest London. | 0:18:49 | 0:18:52 | |
When we first saw the property, it was pretty daunting. | 0:18:52 | 0:18:55 | |
No-one had lived in it for about six months. | 0:18:55 | 0:18:57 | |
It was very damp, | 0:18:57 | 0:18:58 | |
no central heating, we thought, "That's a lot of work." | 0:18:58 | 0:19:01 | |
Will and Emily paid £325,000 | 0:19:01 | 0:19:04 | |
for the house and spent 90,000 on the renovation. | 0:19:04 | 0:19:07 | |
It took them five months to gut it and get it habitable, | 0:19:07 | 0:19:10 | |
they then moved in whilst building work continued. | 0:19:10 | 0:19:13 | |
It took a further 18 months until the house was completed. | 0:19:13 | 0:19:17 | |
The process of taking the house from derelict to where we are now | 0:19:17 | 0:19:21 | |
is immensely rewarding. | 0:19:21 | 0:19:23 | |
Breathing life back into and seeing it go from really quite a tired | 0:19:23 | 0:19:27 | |
house into being something that's fantastic for a family. | 0:19:27 | 0:19:31 | |
So, here we are, this is the property I want you to see. Now, | 0:19:36 | 0:19:39 | |
from looking at it, you get the sense | 0:19:39 | 0:19:41 | |
that it's a very similar property, but it's been completely renovated. | 0:19:41 | 0:19:44 | |
It was in a pretty bad way. | 0:19:44 | 0:19:45 | |
I'm going to introduce you to Will. | 0:19:45 | 0:19:47 | |
Not only has he been through the whole renovation, | 0:19:47 | 0:19:49 | |
so he'll have some really good advice and some tips, | 0:19:49 | 0:19:51 | |
-he's also an architect. -Right. | 0:19:51 | 0:19:53 | |
A professional. So, quite a good guy to get a few tips off. | 0:19:53 | 0:19:56 | |
-Perfect. -Shall we go and say hello? -Yeah, let's go. | 0:19:56 | 0:19:58 | |
Wow, look at this! | 0:20:08 | 0:20:10 | |
Um, so, start at the beginning then, Will. | 0:20:10 | 0:20:12 | |
What was this place like when you first saw it, when you took it on? | 0:20:12 | 0:20:15 | |
Um... It was a complete wreck. It'd been empty for a little while. | 0:20:15 | 0:20:19 | |
And these rooms were pretty derelict, full of rubbish. | 0:20:19 | 0:20:23 | |
-Really not very nice at all. -OK. | 0:20:23 | 0:20:24 | |
Immediately my eye is drawn to the fact that we've got a kitchen | 0:20:24 | 0:20:27 | |
behind us, right here. | 0:20:27 | 0:20:28 | |
-Was it always there? -The kitchen was at the back, | 0:20:28 | 0:20:31 | |
but we wanted to move the kitchen into the middle of the plan. | 0:20:31 | 0:20:35 | |
The kitchen is the heart of the house. Putting it | 0:20:35 | 0:20:37 | |
in the middle means the front room gets used as a dining room. | 0:20:37 | 0:20:40 | |
It's really an extension of the kitchen. | 0:20:40 | 0:20:42 | |
At the back, that frees it up to have a sitting room. | 0:20:42 | 0:20:45 | |
I hate unused rooms. | 0:20:45 | 0:20:46 | |
So opening it up and making everything usable is brilliant. | 0:20:46 | 0:20:50 | |
-Great. Well, let's see where your kitchen would have been. -OK. | 0:20:50 | 0:20:54 | |
And was at one point. | 0:20:54 | 0:20:55 | |
And go through and look at what's now the living room. | 0:20:55 | 0:20:57 | |
-Yeah, fine. -Great. | 0:20:57 | 0:20:59 | |
Will and Emily have created a wonderfully open and functional | 0:21:00 | 0:21:03 | |
living space on the ground floor - something which Dom and Carolina | 0:21:03 | 0:21:06 | |
are very much wanting in their first home together. | 0:21:06 | 0:21:09 | |
OK. Right, now we see the full vision. | 0:21:09 | 0:21:12 | |
We're standing in what was a side alley built | 0:21:14 | 0:21:17 | |
out of the boundary of the property. | 0:21:17 | 0:21:19 | |
And put this roof light in here. | 0:21:19 | 0:21:20 | |
There's a bedroom up there, | 0:21:20 | 0:21:22 | |
so we couldn't change the height of the ceiling. | 0:21:22 | 0:21:24 | |
So this was the only way | 0:21:24 | 0:21:25 | |
that we could make the space feel more generous. | 0:21:25 | 0:21:28 | |
When you think about that kitchen we were in earlier and the value | 0:21:28 | 0:21:31 | |
of extending out, you can see how much more space and what difference | 0:21:31 | 0:21:35 | |
-that makes to a room. -Yeah. No, absolutely. | 0:21:35 | 0:21:37 | |
It is a much nicer sized room to what that kitchen was. | 0:21:37 | 0:21:41 | |
So, whether you did use this as a kitchen or not, | 0:21:41 | 0:21:44 | |
it would be better for that. | 0:21:44 | 0:21:46 | |
-Yeah. -So, seeing this, | 0:21:46 | 0:21:47 | |
I'd definitely consider doing a lateral expansion. | 0:21:47 | 0:21:51 | |
Upstairs, the transformation of the house includes | 0:21:51 | 0:21:55 | |
a master bedroom with an en suite. | 0:21:55 | 0:21:57 | |
So this is our master bedroom. | 0:21:57 | 0:21:59 | |
It is the smaller of the bedrooms, but it's at the back of the house, | 0:21:59 | 0:22:02 | |
it's quieter. | 0:22:02 | 0:22:03 | |
This was the original bathroom, which we split into a shower room | 0:22:03 | 0:22:08 | |
-and a walk-in wardrobe. -Right. | 0:22:08 | 0:22:09 | |
So it's a small room, but we've got storage off it. | 0:22:09 | 0:22:13 | |
So it's kind of non-cluttered. | 0:22:13 | 0:22:15 | |
Dom and Carolina don't have renovation experience. | 0:22:21 | 0:22:24 | |
You went through this, you've got professional experience, | 0:22:24 | 0:22:27 | |
what should they be bearing in mind in practical terms | 0:22:27 | 0:22:29 | |
about taking on a project of this scale. | 0:22:29 | 0:22:31 | |
You've got to plan everything correctly from the start. | 0:22:31 | 0:22:34 | |
So you might need to get planning permission if you're extending. | 0:22:34 | 0:22:37 | |
You will need probably building regulations approval. | 0:22:37 | 0:22:40 | |
Jumping in on a renovation is probably pretty dangerous. | 0:22:40 | 0:22:43 | |
It'll be a bit of a roller-coaster ride. | 0:22:43 | 0:22:46 | |
There'll be moments at the beginning where you think, | 0:22:46 | 0:22:48 | |
"What on earth am I doing?" But then as the build goes on, | 0:22:48 | 0:22:51 | |
you'll see the end result. Honestly, | 0:22:51 | 0:22:52 | |
once it's completed, it's fantastic. | 0:22:52 | 0:22:54 | |
It's great to spend all that time | 0:22:54 | 0:22:56 | |
and effort and end up with something you want | 0:22:56 | 0:22:59 | |
and you love to live in. | 0:22:59 | 0:23:00 | |
Thank you for opening up your house to us. | 0:23:00 | 0:23:02 | |
It's great to see it, great to see it in such shape, | 0:23:02 | 0:23:04 | |
and I'm pleased it's worked out so well. Thanks very much. | 0:23:04 | 0:23:07 | |
-Thanks, Will. -Good luck. | 0:23:07 | 0:23:09 | |
Back in Amber Valley, Empty Property Officer Sue Li is heading to | 0:23:14 | 0:23:19 | |
an affluent area of Derby to a house she visited in the last series. | 0:23:19 | 0:23:24 | |
There's a window that's been smashed here. | 0:23:24 | 0:23:26 | |
The back door is open, so you can just wander straight into the house. | 0:23:26 | 0:23:31 | |
Oh! | 0:23:31 | 0:23:33 | |
It looks like... | 0:23:33 | 0:23:35 | |
someone has been trying to take the copper piping at some point. | 0:23:35 | 0:23:38 | |
Because there's obviously pipes still remaining, | 0:23:38 | 0:23:41 | |
I really need to get this property secured and get that window boarded. | 0:23:41 | 0:23:45 | |
Sue's since been in contact with the owner and today | 0:23:45 | 0:23:48 | |
she wants to check on the progress being made | 0:23:48 | 0:23:50 | |
on bringing the house back into use. | 0:23:50 | 0:23:52 | |
Well, I've asked the owner to voluntarily tidy up | 0:23:52 | 0:23:56 | |
the general appearance of the property. | 0:23:56 | 0:23:58 | |
Cut back all the overgrown vegetation, clear the paths, | 0:23:58 | 0:24:02 | |
so it looks like the rest of the properties around here. | 0:24:02 | 0:24:04 | |
The front of the property is in a state of disrepair | 0:24:04 | 0:24:07 | |
but it's at the back where Sue had concerns about a broken window | 0:24:07 | 0:24:11 | |
which could allow unwanted access to the house. | 0:24:11 | 0:24:14 | |
Well, I'm really pleased to see that they have boarded the window. | 0:24:16 | 0:24:20 | |
It's not great in appearance, though. | 0:24:20 | 0:24:22 | |
But they really don't do anything unless it's absolutely in a notice. | 0:24:22 | 0:24:27 | |
I mean, they've left all of the glass | 0:24:27 | 0:24:29 | |
and the property still looks quite untidy from the front. | 0:24:29 | 0:24:33 | |
So, I really am going to have to put EVERYTHING in a notice to them. | 0:24:33 | 0:24:38 | |
As the owner has failed to carry out all the work Sue asked them to, | 0:24:38 | 0:24:43 | |
further action will now be taken against them. | 0:24:43 | 0:24:45 | |
And it's clear there's still plenty of work that needs to be done | 0:24:45 | 0:24:48 | |
before the house can be lived in again. | 0:24:48 | 0:24:51 | |
I'll be going back to the office now to write a notice | 0:24:51 | 0:24:54 | |
to serve on the owner. | 0:24:54 | 0:24:55 | |
And I'll give them about two months to do | 0:24:55 | 0:24:57 | |
all of the other work that I've asked them to do. | 0:24:57 | 0:25:01 | |
It looks like this property will be on Sue's books for some time yet, | 0:25:01 | 0:25:05 | |
but she'll persevere with the owner to get the house back into use. | 0:25:05 | 0:25:10 | |
Dom and Carolina are first-time buyers | 0:25:14 | 0:25:16 | |
who think an abandoned building could be | 0:25:16 | 0:25:18 | |
their ideal first home together. | 0:25:18 | 0:25:20 | |
In southwest London, I've taken Dom to meet someone | 0:25:20 | 0:25:23 | |
who took on an empty property | 0:25:23 | 0:25:25 | |
and made it into a beautiful family home. | 0:25:25 | 0:25:27 | |
Dom, how have you found it, seeing the transformation | 0:25:29 | 0:25:31 | |
from properly derelict to a renovated home? | 0:25:31 | 0:25:34 | |
I mean, great. I mean, it's been lovely | 0:25:34 | 0:25:37 | |
to come and see what Will's done | 0:25:37 | 0:25:39 | |
with something that was completely derelict. | 0:25:39 | 0:25:41 | |
You're a novice DIY, you haven't done a renovation before, | 0:25:41 | 0:25:44 | |
but, after today, do you feel you've got a handle on, | 0:25:44 | 0:25:47 | |
sort of, how to get started, some of the practicalities involved? | 0:25:47 | 0:25:50 | |
Definitely. The idea of having good plans in place, | 0:25:50 | 0:25:56 | |
budgeting properly and calling in the right professionals, | 0:25:56 | 0:26:00 | |
then, yeah, absolutely that. I'll go forward with that. | 0:26:00 | 0:26:03 | |
The place you saw earlier, not for you because of the location, | 0:26:03 | 0:26:06 | |
is that how you feel? But that sort of project? | 0:26:06 | 0:26:08 | |
Yeah, that's right. Not for us location wise, | 0:26:08 | 0:26:11 | |
but the scale of the project is about right for us. | 0:26:11 | 0:26:14 | |
And, you know, something we could definitely take on. | 0:26:14 | 0:26:18 | |
Brilliant. I'm sure you'll find something, so I really wish you | 0:26:18 | 0:26:21 | |
-the best of luck. -Yeah, thanks a lot. | 0:26:21 | 0:26:22 | |
I'm really pleased that Dom could see this property today, | 0:26:25 | 0:26:28 | |
because what a transformation it is! | 0:26:28 | 0:26:30 | |
It just shows you, you don't have to be constrained by what's there, | 0:26:30 | 0:26:33 | |
you can change the internal layout, | 0:26:33 | 0:26:35 | |
you can move the kitchen to the heart of the home, | 0:26:35 | 0:26:37 | |
you can do whatever. | 0:26:37 | 0:26:39 | |
And, OK, maybe Dom and Carolina aren't going to take on a property | 0:26:39 | 0:26:42 | |
this size, maybe they want somewhere | 0:26:42 | 0:26:44 | |
more central. Now, it's up to them to go and find an empty property | 0:26:44 | 0:26:47 | |
and turn it into their dream home. | 0:26:47 | 0:26:50 | |
Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd | 0:27:11 | 0:27:14 |