Episode 59 Homes Under the Hammer


Episode 59

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Transcript


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Hello. Now, even in these troubled financial times

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we all still need a roof over our head

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or somewhere to invest our money.

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And an excellent place to pick up a property bargain could well be at an auction.

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Well, we've been trawling the country to find people who've have done just that.

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Now, buying and doing up properties can be great fun, but also fraught with problems.

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Now, some take to it like a duck to water and others, well, like cats to water.

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So, which will it be for today's buyers?

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In Derby there's a two bed terrace up for grabs if you can see it.

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Look at the size of this tree!

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This land in Kent comes with planning permission...

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to build not one, not two, but three houses.

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And there's a Grade 2 listed cottage in Wiltshire, but in what state?

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I'm categorising it as "original" condition straight away.

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All of these properties went to auction.

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We'll find out who bought them and what they paid for them when they went under the hammer.

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I'm in Alveston, a suburb of Derby which lies just two miles south of the city centre.

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There's no planes in the sky at the moment, but there could be as we're close to East Midlands Airport.

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Why is that significant? A lot of the people who work at the airport live and rent in this area,

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so the property I'm here to see could have great potential.

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I think it has. This is it, two bedroomed mid-terrace.

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The guide price was 60,000 quid. Let's take a look inside.

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Actually, before we go inside, I don't need to go anywhere else

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other than the front garden to see a major problem. Look at the size of this tree!

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Major problem. Three basic reasons. One, it's going to affect the foundations,

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two, it'll affect the drains,

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and three, it's blocking out all the light from the house. The first thing I'd do is chop it down!

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Now, from the outside the house is quite wide, which bodes well,

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however when you come inside, you realise it's not that deep

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so in the living room here this is what you've got.

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Good news, though, it doesn't smell damp.

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You've got double glazing, which is good.

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Fireplace, well, it's a bit dated, could do with replacing.

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In fact, the whole place just needs a bit of a freshen up, but, overall, not a bad start.

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So, the kitchen here is the only other room on the ground floor

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so, as you can see, yes, it is very wide, but not very deep.

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The kitchen itself, well, not exactly a huge amount of space and clearly in need of a bit of design.

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One thing I do like is this. You don't see this enough these days - a pantry.

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It's under the stairs, makes great use of space for you to put your beans and other stuff. Great.

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Now, when it comes to the outside, well, a reasonable-sized garden and a downstairs loo,

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one you can easily access from the garden. That is a plus point.

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So, all in all, yeah, downstairs it's all right.

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You could knock all this through and create a much bigger kitchen,

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but any structural work would probably add a zero to the budget

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and if you plan to rent this out you might not see your money back for a while.

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So, upstairs, two bedrooms.

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A good sized double on that side, then across the landing to a smaller single there.

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But, you know, all in all, it's not too bad.

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The only downside in some ways is this, the bathroom.

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It's tiny. It's got everything you need, and at least it is upstairs,

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but, really, there isn't enough room even for a door, but, all in all, it's not a bad little house.

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Recent sale prices of similar houses on Baker Street show that many are going for just below £90,000.

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So, with that guide price of 60,000, there is profit to be made here,

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but just how far can you go?

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I asked the auctioneer who sold this one for his thoughts.

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Whether you'd alter it depends on the long term future for it.

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If you're going to rent it out,

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there's no point rearranging the accommodation.

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There are obviously limitations with the kitchen,

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limitations with the bathroom.

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They can be altered, but you're adding significant cost to do that

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and, from a rented point of view, it's fine.

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And if whoever bought this property intended to rent it out what kind of market would they be entering?

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There's quite a rental demand here. Most of Baker Street, I would say,

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is a mix of first time buyer material and rented accommodation.

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This would make quite a good rented material and I think you'd rent it out probably about £375 a month.

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If someone renovated this as it stands, what could it sell for?

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I would say this would go on the market at about £85,000.

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You'd probably expect to get upwards of 80,000.

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So, a decent enough little house. It doesn't need a lot of work doing to it to get it into tiptop shape.

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A good rental potential. The only problem is the tree.

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Let's find out who went for it at the auction.

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Lot number seven is 194 Baker Street in Alveston.

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Who's got 50 to start me? £50,000 bid, somewhere?

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50 is bid. Thank you very much. £50,000. That's £50,000.

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51 is bid here. 52 on the back corner.

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52. 53. 54. 54,000. 55, sir?

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55. 56?

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I'll take a half if it'll help you. 55 is bid on the front row.

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It's in the market, no mistakes. 55 and a half?

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At £55,000 then, all done with it.

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194 Baker Street.

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500. 56 is bid. 56,500.

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Seven?

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56 and a half. All the bids are yours. At £56,500.

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Once, twice, third and last opportunity.

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We're selling at 56 and a half.

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Sold on the back wall, 56 and a half. Thank you.

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Electrician Rich made the winning bid for almost £5,000 below the guide price,

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but there seemed to be some discussion about it on the day,

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so I met up with him back at the house to find out why.

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-Rich, nice to meet you.

-All right, Martin?

-Congratulations.

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So, why this house?

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There are several reasons, but, to be honest, the actual one reason is it was an accident.

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-An accident?

-Yes. My wife was talking to me all the way through the auctions.

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This one came on, she said, "This is the one we seen first, isn't it?" I said, "Yeah, this is the one."

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The business starts. 54, 55, 55 and a half.

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She elbows me. "What are you doing?" I said, "Well, you wanted me to bid, didn't you?"

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"No, I said, 'That's the one with the small bathroom, isn't it?'"

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I said, "Ooh...!" "Sold, man at the back."

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-No!

-I said, "I hope you wanted it because we've just bought it!"

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Sold on the back wall.

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Oops! You could forgive someone who's never been to an auction before for an error like that,

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but Rich and Sue have gone to more than a couple.

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-Eight, ten auctions we've been to.

-You went to eight or ten auctions, you did all your research...?

-Yeah.

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You knew about auctions and you bought it by mistake.

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Yes.

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But that's just how it goes. It might have been a mistake, but it was obviously meant to be.

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-So, tell me a bit more about you.

-I left school when I was 16, went straight to the Electricity Board,

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did my apprenticeship with them, worked for them for ten years, decided to work for myself.

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As you do working for yourself, you end up dabbling in all the different trades,

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working alongside different ones until you can do those trades, too.

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There are very, very few things house-wise, domestic, that I can't turn my hands to,

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so it makes money sense that we buy a house and I do it myself.

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Rich and Sue have been looking to buy a property to renovate for some time.

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They were waiting until their two daughters were old enough to look after themselves

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before making that financial commitment and they hope this will be a wise investment.

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If somebody offered us money tomorrow, and it made a profit, then, yes, I would sell it,

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but as it stands at the moment, we intend to fix the house up and rent it,

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more than likely, to my daughter and her boyfriend,

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as long as they realise we're not in this for the fun of it. It's got to pay the mortgage.

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-What does your daughter think about this?

-Buzzing like a little girl.

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And I tell you something, it'll be great to get a bathroom back!

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So, Rich's first development project has a tenant lined up before work's even started.

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He hopes it'll take about five months to get the property ready, with him doing almost all the work.

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I would say around 8,000. 10,000 if something goes wrong,

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but 8,000 I'm expecting to be able to buy all the materials,

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new kitchen, new bathroom, rewire it, central heating,

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strip everything down and redecorate the whole lot.

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Brilliant. What about the internal layout? Are you going to do anything to knock through walls?

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We've obviously got interesting thing with pantries, and downstairs loos, all that kind of stuff.

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The only thing that's of question is the upstairs bathroom. It is quite small.

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If I was to go in the bath I think I'd probably hit every wall with my arm.

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I think all we're going to end up doing is probably a large P-shaped bath with a built-in shower into it.

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So, no, structurally it's going to pretty much stay the same.

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The only thing I really have got in question is to look on to the deeds

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and make sure that that isn't a shared access to the side

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because if it isn't, we may look into pushing this kitchen right to the side wall

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because at the moment it's just wasted space.

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It's an interesting idea and not one I'd have thought of,

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which just shows that Rich certainly knows what he's doing.

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Would you contemplate doing this full time, giving up the day job and becoming a full time developer?

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If it works out that way, then great,

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but my honest intentions are to make sure I've got some sort of retireable future

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because I had an accident on my back some years ago

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and I can't say by the time I'm 50 if I'll be able to walk properly.

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So, with these 10 years now, if I can cram as much work in years as I can,

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I can secure a future for my wife and a pension for myself.

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-Well, listen, I hope this all turns out brilliantly for you. Good luck with it.

-Thanks very much, Martin.

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Congratulations.

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Well, it's funny how things turn out sometimes, isn't it?

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This may well have been an accidental purchase for Rich,

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but I think it gave them the push they needed to finally get into property development.

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Let's face it, he's got all the skills and the enthusiasm he needs

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and it's great to see his level-headed approach.

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How's he going to get on? I think pretty well. Find out later in the show.

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I'm in Kent today at a rather wet Kemsley.

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It's just a short train ride from Gillingham and a mere hop from Sittingbourne.

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I'm hoping the lot I find here will brighten my day.

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This is the busy Grovehurst Road.

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Now, I'm here to see a plot of land for a guide of £120,000 to £130,000.

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Now, that is a lot for a piece of land, but it's not just any old piece of land.

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It's a plot with planning permission to build not one, not two, but three houses.

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The three houses will be three-bed starter homes with gardens and parking for two cars.

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So, let's talk about the benefits of a new build.

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No maintenance, no old lead piping to replace, no flaking paint, no crumbling pointing etcetera.

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New build homes are also four times more energy efficient than older homes, therefore, they're greener.

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Now, this also means they're far cheaper to live in with lower heating bills

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and there should be no onward chain, so significantly speeding up the buying process.

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Now, that is all the good news.

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And now for the bad news.

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New builds are often sold at a price premium which can reduce how much the property goes up in value

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in the first few years compared with other older properties in the same area.

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It's also getting harder and harder to secure that finance in this current climate.

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And so, whilst it's not impossible to make money on these developments,

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the profits of yesteryear are no longer for the taking.

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The key thing is to construct the right homes to appeal to the market,

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build them quickly and make them affordable.

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This site ticks most of the boxes.

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It was previously owned by the council, who drew up the outline planning permission,

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so getting formal permission shouldn't be a problem provided you stick to those plans.

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But are the current proposals right?

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What does a local estate agent think?

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Having had a chance now to look at the site, it's quite compact,

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it's very overgrown, but it's well connected to the highway,

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so you haven't got any access problems

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and, as such, the services should be quite easy to bring into the site.

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You've got no mature trees on the site, you haven't got any demolition work to undertake,

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therefore, from a development and construction point of view, this site should be easy to procure.

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Quite a few positives there, but what about the negatives?

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Grovehurst Road is a busy road. At the end of the day, these properties are situated right on that road,

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so there is going to have to be some form of discount on the price

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to reflect the fact that you do have a lot of roads and traffic noise.

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Taking all that into account, what kind of values could each of the three houses command?

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Prices of the individual houses, I'd have thought that prices in the order of perhaps £185,000 can be asked,

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and I would expect these to sell in the order of about £175,000.

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Multiply that by three and you're looking at £425,000 to £440,000.

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Even with build costs of approximately 150,000 to 200,000,

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this plot was always going to interest a few developers

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with its £130,000 guide price, even in the current market.

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It's a sizeable plot, it comes with planning permission,

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but the area and the road lets this lot down slightly.

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The market's not at its best so I worry about the profit margins here,

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but someone thought there was money to be made. Let's find it who that was as we go to the auction.

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Lot 104, we move to a residential site, a development site with outline planning permission.

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120 to start me? 120,000, land with planning for three houses.

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120? 120?

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120 I have in the middle. At £120,000 I'm bid.

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125. And 130.

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135. And 140.

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145. And 150.

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155. 160.

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165. £160,000 I am bid.

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At £160,000, then, being sold for the first time.

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This is lot 104. At 160,000. 162. 165.

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166. 168.

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And 170. 172. 175.

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178. 180 do I see?

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At 178,000 then.

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Being sold for the first time at 178,000.

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The gentleman standing on the wall.

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At 178 for the second time.

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178 for the third and final time. Are you all done?

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Sold at 178.

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David made that winning bid of 178,000.

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After a quick look around the site we'd had enough of the wet weather

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so I met David in a nearby cafe for a chat.

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-Dave, it's really nice to meet you and get out of the rain and find out all about your purchase.

-Yeah.

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What is it you do for a living, David?

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I am a developer. I'm a carpenter by trade

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and I've been actually developing for wages for probably three or four years now.

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Now, when you say you've been doing this for wages, what do you mean?

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Well, I take wages out and then roll the money over because obviously you've got to go again,

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and hopefully, a little bit bigger each time.

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-Do you have your own building company?

-No, no, I employ contractors.

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-So, you're a one man band, really?

-Yeah, that's it.

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# Well I'm a one man band Nobody knows, nor understands

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# Is there anybody out there Wanna lend me a hand

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# To my one man band...#

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David's but has no plans to retire.

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He just wants to continue doing what he enjoys and property is a passion.

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-Let's have a look at these plans now, because I know you've been slightly tweaking them.

-That's right.

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Have you made any changes?

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We're actually levelling out the step-down on the roofs and there is one step forward,

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-we're levelling that out, so it actually will be a straight block.

-Why have you decided to do that?

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Because I think, aesthetically, it would have looked nice having it sort of staged.

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Yeah. Well, these are actually low cost housing so the cheaper we can build them for,

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and all the staggers and drop downs cost money to do, more work for the bricklayer, more work for the tiler.

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If we can level it out it makes the houses cheaper to build,

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and we can sell them cheaper so obviously move them on quicker.

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And what is your budget, David, for the work here?

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I would say around 150,000.

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Have you had to adhere to any special conditions?

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Because I know that, you know, keeping green is an important thing when building a new house.

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Well, there's coming more online now, every house in the nation will have to abide by these new rules,

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such as recycling rainwater,

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off road parking, things like cycle racks, everything like that.

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Tell me about the cycle racks!

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A cycle rack on the wall encourages someone to use their bike,

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which keeps everything greener.

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Yes, these days it's not just about building houses,

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it's how you build them, what materials you use and how efficient they are once built.

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# I want to ride my bicycle I want to ride my bike. #

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Will you be on this site every day...

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-Every day.

-Checking everything, talking to everybody, sorting out the budget, being in charge?

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Every day. I'll actually get a team of bricklayers in to do the shell.

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I'll set out the ground. I'll do all the roofs.

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I'll do the kitchens, the stairs, second fix, first fix and the ground work.

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What sort of foreman are you?

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I would say I like to get on with all the trades that I use, I the same ones each time.

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And the guy that will help me do the roofs, a fellow carpenter, I went to school with him,

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he was my best man when I got married years ago and we always work together.

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You look really relaxed about it all and you seem to completely be enjoying doing something like this.

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-Am I right in saying that?

-Definitely, yeah.

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But what is it about it that you love?

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You're just creating something, yeah. Years to come people will say,

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"Oh, Dave built that one.

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He's right. There is something to be proud of,

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but it involves an awful lot of effort and means his wife, Belinda,

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won't see much of him in the coming months.

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-How involved does your wife get?

-Very involved.

-Or does she just try and make sure you get home on time?

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No, no, no. She gets very involved. She can't actually wait until it's her time to come in.

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She'll do all the buying of the paint, choosing the bathrooms and so forth.

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And they she'll come and actually do the painting.

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Is it something you two just talk about constantly, property, property, property?

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-All the time, yeah. It is a hobby.

-Is it?

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When we're on holiday we're looking at property.

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-We don't look in souvenir shops, we look in estate agents' windows!

-You've certainly got the bug!

0:21:300:21:35

Yeah, certainly.

0:21:350:21:36

# Well I'm a one man band Nobody knows, nor understands

0:21:360:21:43

# Is there anybody out there Wanna lend me a hand...? #

0:21:430:21:46

David's come a long way since building his own house in 1979.

0:21:460:21:51

He's equipped with all the knowhow and resources, plus the planning is in place.

0:21:510:21:57

The hardest part of David's job is the resale. Will he recoup on his investment?

0:21:570:22:02

It really is a tough market at the moment for new builds.

0:22:020:22:05

So, he'll have to keep his eye firmly on the budget for this to be a success.

0:22:050:22:09

You can find out how he gets on later in the programme.

0:22:090:22:12

Coming up, there's lots to discover at this character cottage in Wiltshire.

0:22:140:22:18

Yeah, it's tired, it dated, but I think you could do great things with this place.

0:22:180:22:22

We return to this development plot in Kent hoping that more than just the weather has improved.

0:22:230:22:30

But first, back to Alveston, where Rich bought this property by mistake.

0:22:330:22:38

What are you doing?

0:22:380:22:40

You wanted me to bid, didn't you? No, I said that has a small bathroom.

0:22:400:22:43

It's been almost eight months since Rich, along with his wife, Sue,

0:22:470:22:51

accidentally bought this two bedroom mid terrace in Alveston, near Derby.

0:22:510:22:57

Sold on the back wall, and a half. Thank you.

0:22:570:23:01

-Sold! Man at the back.

-No!

-I said, "I hope you wanted it, we've just bought it!"

0:23:010:23:04

Well, Rich may not have intentionally bid on this house,

0:23:130:23:16

but it wasn't so bad as it was in, fact, something that he and his wife had wanted to do for some time.

0:23:160:23:23

So, for £56,500, Rich's dream of doing this for himself had finally happened

0:23:230:23:28

and I'm looking forward to hearing how he got on.

0:23:280:23:32

Everything's been taken down to bare brick.

0:23:330:23:35

The whole room... Every single room has been gutted.

0:23:350:23:39

All the trees have been removed out of the back garden, of which there was about nine!

0:23:390:23:44

We're putting everything back together.

0:23:440:23:46

Apart from the living room, the house is still work in progress,

0:23:460:23:50

but it's looking pretty good judging by this.

0:23:500:23:54

Rich intended to make this his first rental property and even had a tenant already lined up,

0:23:540:23:59

his daughter, Kylie. But, things have changed slightly.

0:23:590:24:02

We had actually planned to rent it to Kylie, but with the market the way it is

0:24:020:24:07

she's actually gone and bought her own house round the corner from us,

0:24:070:24:10

which is one of the reasons why I've not been here as much as I want to be,

0:24:100:24:14

because I'm working on hers as well as my own.

0:24:140:24:16

Although it's still unfinished, Rich had made some major improvements to this little terrace.

0:24:160:24:21

Well, there was a porch up outside. Obviously, it was in a bit of a rickety state,

0:24:210:24:27

so we knocked it all down and everything. There's still the concrete to take out.

0:24:270:24:31

There was bushes and everything over here and a massive tree over here.

0:24:310:24:35

We've taken all of that out. The only thing I wasn't expecting here is I thought we had a gas supply,

0:24:350:24:40

so this has all had to be dug up. We've put a new gas main in, the service is there,

0:24:400:24:45

but I've still got the guttering, the drains and everything to replace.

0:24:450:24:49

Rich's original idea of taking the kitchen out into this alleyway hasn't been done

0:24:490:24:55

because it would have been just too expensive for a rental property.

0:24:550:24:58

However, that's not stopped him from improving the layout upstairs.

0:24:580:25:03

I've done quite a few things up here.

0:25:030:25:05

Obviously, everything has been gutted down to bare brick.

0:25:050:25:08

I've taken this bathroom wall out because it was too far in.

0:25:080:25:12

The bathroom is small as it is, but I've at least made it level with the landing.

0:25:120:25:16

All that room has been gutted.

0:25:160:25:18

Everything's been replastered. There's going to be new laminate flooring there.

0:25:180:25:24

It's all been rewired,

0:25:240:25:25

central heating put in and ceilings and everything decorated.

0:25:250:25:29

Obviously, not finished yet, but it's getting there.

0:25:290:25:34

With Rich's experience as an electrician and his general building knowledge,

0:25:340:25:39

he's done almost all the internal work.

0:25:390:25:42

Outside, the family have tackled the garden with impressive results.

0:25:420:25:46

There's little that hasn't been changed or replaced

0:25:460:25:49

but because of Rich's skills, his budget has been kept low.

0:25:490:25:53

Because we didn't start straight away, we've made the best of all the offers

0:25:560:25:59

and at the moment I've spent, what? £5,147.

0:25:590:26:03

I would imagine by the time I've finished we'll be touching 6,000, so I'm well under budget.

0:26:030:26:10

So, things are looking good on the financial side, but what about Rich's health?

0:26:100:26:15

One of the main reasons behind this venture is that he had a problem with his back.

0:26:150:26:20

Has renovating this house affected that?

0:26:200:26:22

I'm quite pleased about it because the hospital said two years ago I possibly wouldn't be working now.

0:26:260:26:31

Not only am I working now I feel stronger than I've ever felt,

0:26:310:26:36

so if anything this has helped, but knowing that in years' time if I can't work

0:26:360:26:41

it doesn't matter because I've got houses I can rent.

0:26:410:26:45

There had been only seven years left on Rich and Sue's mortgage, but they extended it to finance this,

0:26:450:26:51

but it's a calculated gamble which Rich feels is vital for their future.

0:26:510:26:56

They bought the house for £56,500 and have spent only £6,000 on it.

0:26:560:27:03

Has that money been well spent? We invited two local estate agents to come and take a look.

0:27:030:27:08

Of what I can see so far the standard is fairly good,

0:27:210:27:23

but the essentials are -

0:27:230:27:24

the windows and doors, you've got to do the central heating,

0:27:240:27:27

you've got to look at the services.

0:27:270:27:29

You've got to get the basics right and I think that's what they've achieved.

0:27:290:27:33

He's done it to a reasonable standard

0:27:330:27:35

if he's going to rent the property out.

0:27:350:27:38

All the walls are flat

0:27:380:27:39

and the kitchen and bathroom are obviously work in progress,

0:27:390:27:43

but it seems that he's going to be doing it to a reasonable standard and it looks... It looks OK.

0:27:430:27:49

It's about the appeal, isn't it, and presentation? So, you've got to do the garden and the fencing

0:27:490:27:54

If it looks as if it's all been presented well,

0:27:540:27:58

tidy finish and reasonably good quality I think that does tick the boxes.

0:27:580:28:03

Rich will be pleased to hear that seeing as this is the first property he's done himself.

0:28:030:28:09

While he doesn't plan to sell it, how much value will he have added once it's finished?

0:28:090:28:15

I would suggest an asking figure of around about £75,000, and it will sell in this market.

0:28:150:28:22

I think you'd put it on the market at something like 79,950

0:28:220:28:25

and expect to get as near to that as you possibly can.

0:28:250:28:28

I didn't expect it to have gone up that much.

0:28:280:28:30

It doesn't really matter to us because we've no intentions of selling it,

0:28:300:28:34

we bought it to rent, but I thought with the current market at the moment

0:28:340:28:38

it wouldn't quite have reached that figure, so that's a surprise.

0:28:380:28:42

And a nice one at that.

0:28:420:28:44

But this is an investment, so to be successful, Rich has to make a good rental return on it.

0:28:440:28:51

Once the property's finished I would suggest a rental value of around about £450 per calendar month.

0:28:510:28:58

My guess is the rental value would be probably somewhere between £400 and £425 a calendar month.

0:28:580:29:04

I'm actually quite surprised about that, as well.

0:29:070:29:09

We don't know, but we thought probably around 350ish mark, so, yeah, that's a nice bonus.

0:29:090:29:14

Sold at the back wall.

0:29:140:29:16

So, what started out as a case of mistaken identity has turned out to be a very successful venture,

0:29:210:29:28

but has this encouraged Rich to add another property to his new portfolio?

0:29:280:29:33

It's certainly encouraging. I think we'll be doing more at that sort of valuation!

0:29:360:29:40

With a view like that you could only be in the White Horse County of Wiltshire.

0:29:440:29:50

Surrounded by this beautiful countryside is the village I've come to see, Littleton Panell.

0:29:500:29:55

So, when up for auction came a three bedroomed end of terrace, double fronted,

0:29:550:30:01

Grade 2 listed character cottage with a guide price of 160,000 quid,

0:30:010:30:06

you could imagine it got a lot of interest. And from the outside, it's pretty spiffing.

0:30:060:30:12

Of course, buying a listed property comes with issues.

0:30:150:30:18

For example, you'll need consent for almost everything you do, even installing a fire alarm.

0:30:180:30:25

OK. Right, well, I'm categorising it as 'original condition' straight away,

0:30:280:30:34

but it's got a nice feel to it.

0:30:340:30:36

We've got a sitting room over that side and through into what I suppose is the main living area.

0:30:360:30:41

Love the little windows.

0:30:410:30:42

It's tired, it's dated, but I think you could do great things with this place.

0:30:420:30:45

Look at this fireplace. Lovely to have that.

0:30:450:30:49

So, yeah, onwards.

0:30:490:30:52

Upstairs there are three good sized bedrooms,

0:30:520:30:55

again needing a bit of money spent on them to bring them up to date.

0:30:550:31:00

And while you're at it, this bathroom needs to be completely ripped out,

0:31:000:31:04

though the room itself is also a decent size.

0:31:040:31:08

But I'm still looking for the heart of any home.

0:31:080:31:10

One thing that's quite nice is that there's lots of different levels in the house

0:31:100:31:14

with these sort of steps into different parts.

0:31:140:31:17

This is the kitchen.

0:31:170:31:18

We've got lots of different sort of doors and places to store things and the space itself,

0:31:180:31:23

well, it's a good size, but clearly very, very dated. You could spend a good bit of money in here,

0:31:230:31:28

but you would get your returns because you'd dramatically change the feel of this house

0:31:280:31:33

if you improved the kitchen.

0:31:330:31:34

And, when it comes to outside, well, there's good news and bad news.

0:31:340:31:41

The thing is, you've got a nice view over the garden. The only problem is it's not your garden.

0:31:440:31:48

It's actually owned by the house two doors down.

0:31:480:31:52

You have got this plot, but that has shared access for the properties round here,

0:31:520:31:56

so a bit higgledy piggledy, especially when your garden is over that way.

0:31:560:31:59

So, you know what? It's not ideal.

0:31:590:32:02

So, what's the good news?

0:32:040:32:06

Well, to the side of the cottage, behind the garage, you'll find the garden and it doesn't disappoint.

0:32:060:32:13

So, the house has great potential, but the potential profit, I think,

0:32:130:32:18

is in the land that also comes with the property.

0:32:180:32:21

It's this bit here, extending all the way round here to where this double garage is at the moment.

0:32:210:32:26

Now, it's about a quarter of an acre in total.

0:32:260:32:28

There has been a planning application put in in the past

0:32:280:32:31

to actually put a dwelling on this site.

0:32:310:32:33

It was turned down, but only on highways' grounds.

0:32:330:32:37

Basically, they were saying they don't like the fact that the access here is on to a fairly busy road.

0:32:370:32:42

So, if you could deal with that, if you could find some way round it,

0:32:420:32:46

I don't know what that might be, or just coming up with a solution that the planners liked,

0:32:460:32:51

then the idea of building something on here, well, now you're talking some serious profit.

0:32:510:32:58

For £160,000 suddenly this auction lot has options

0:32:580:33:03

and not just on the large plot of land.

0:33:030:33:07

The cottage is Grade 2 listed,

0:33:070:33:08

but that shouldn't put you off making changes,

0:33:080:33:11

as an agent from the auction house that sold it points out.

0:33:110:33:14

It would be worth extending the cottage

0:33:140:33:16

as it's only got three bedrooms at the moment,

0:33:160:33:19

so you could create a fourth bedroom with an ensuite,

0:33:190:33:22

which would make it more of a family home. And also add another reception room downstairs.

0:33:220:33:27

If you just really renovate what's already currently here, potentially updating everything inside,

0:33:270:33:32

you'd be looking in and around that Stamp Duty bracket of 250.

0:33:320:33:35

If the market steps up a little bit, then you might take it over the Stamp Duty bracket.

0:33:350:33:40

If you did extend it to create a fourth bedroom

0:33:400:33:43

then you'd be getting nearing up towards that 300,000 mark.

0:33:430:33:46

If you secured planning permission for a new built on that plot

0:33:460:33:50

you could potentially add another £200,000 to that, not including building costs, of course.

0:33:500:33:56

But once all the work's been completed, would this make a good long-term investment?

0:33:560:34:02

Looking at the figures, you'd be in and around £770-£750 per calendar month.

0:34:020:34:06

Again, there would be quite a good demand for it -

0:34:060:34:09

contracts with the MOD, Honda, other companies that would be looking for a cottage of this size as well.

0:34:090:34:14

Well, I don't know what you think, but I think this is a very pretty little cottage.

0:34:190:34:24

A few issues with the fact that it's Grade 2 listed,

0:34:240:34:26

but that's more than compensated for by the fact

0:34:260:34:29

you've got that plot of land at the side that you could develop,

0:34:290:34:32

subject, of course, to planning permission. Let's see who fancied this one when it went to auction.

0:34:320:34:38

Pretty cottage with a big plot on the side.

0:34:380:34:44

Good village, as you all know.

0:34:440:34:47

Where are you going to start me, 170, somebody? £170,000?

0:34:470:34:51

150, then. OK, we'll start there at 150. At £150,000. I'm selling lot 32 at £150,000.

0:34:510:34:58

Five I'll take to get on. 155. 160.

0:34:580:35:01

At 160. 165. 170 I've got. 175. 180 may I say? 180 I'm bid.

0:35:010:35:07

At 180. The bid's here on the wall at £180,000. 185, or 182, if you like?

0:35:070:35:14

Otherwise, at £180,000, it's going to be sold for the first time. 182, OK. I've got you, sir, 182.

0:35:140:35:21

184. Yes? Yeah? 184, OK. 186 to you, sir. 186.

0:35:210:35:26

188. 190. 192. 194. 196.

0:35:260:35:33

198. 200. 202. 204.

0:35:330:35:39

208. 210 to you, sir.

0:35:390:35:44

210. 212.

0:35:440:35:48

14. At £214,000. 216.

0:35:480:35:53

18. At 218. OK, the bid's over there. You're out now.

0:35:530:35:57

At £218,000 sat down. OK. At £218,000. Are you finished?

0:35:570:36:03

At £218,000, then, for the first time. £218,000 for the second time.

0:36:030:36:09

And 218 to all finish. Third and last time at 218. BANGS GAVEL

0:36:090:36:13

Your number, sir, is?

0:36:130:36:15

'The purchase of this period property was a bit of a family affair.

0:36:160:36:20

'Chris was bidding on behalf of his stepson Adam

0:36:200:36:23

'and his girlfriend, Laura, all with a bit of financial help from mum, Alison.

0:36:230:36:29

'I was looking forward to hearing what their plans were so I met them at the cottage to find out.'

0:36:290:36:35

So, Adam, Laura, nice to meet you both. Congratulations. Why did you want to buy this place?

0:36:350:36:41

I'm in university, but I'm looking for a work placement year in this area, in which case

0:36:410:36:46

I could live here for the year and help Adam do it up, so...

0:36:460:36:49

So, she'll be living with me for a year and, hopefully, get the property into the way we'd like it

0:36:490:36:55

in that time and, yeah, it would be a home for us.

0:36:550:36:58

So you've bought it to be a home?

0:36:580:36:59

Yeah, that's why we bought it, yeah. To live in, not to sort of do up and sell on again.

0:36:590:37:04

It was somewhere to live.

0:37:040:37:05

Do you have much experience? What you do for a living?

0:37:050:37:08

I'm an engineer and, yeah, we've done one property before.

0:37:080:37:13

Where I lived in university, with my mother's support, we bought a house and she put down the deposit,

0:37:130:37:20

the rent from the other tenants, my student friends, paid the mortgage.

0:37:200:37:24

We sold it. The money we made has gone towards this place.

0:37:240:37:27

-What made you want to buy this place?

-Primarily the garage.

0:37:270:37:30

The garage! Yeah. I looked at a number of properties, most modern houses have a much smaller garage

0:37:300:37:36

and, yeah, that had everything I was looking for. So, yeah, it was good.

0:37:360:37:40

-He doesn't mind about the house, just the garage!

-OK.

0:37:400:37:44

-So, why this house, then, obviously apart from the garage?

-That was it.

-You can't be serious!

0:37:440:37:51

-I am.

-Not the charm of the house, the Grade 2 listing,

0:37:510:37:54

the nice position, the garden, the potential planning permission?

0:37:540:37:58

Well, those were all bonuses that worked out well in my favour, I suppose.

0:37:580:38:03

But, yeah, I prefer kind of older houses than newer builds.

0:38:030:38:06

It's certainly got some nice aspects about it, it's a nice house,

0:38:060:38:10

but, yeah, primarily it was the garage that swung it for me, really.

0:38:100:38:15

'OK, I'm fairly certain that he's not pulling my leg!

0:38:170:38:20

'He really has spent 218,000 quid on a Grade 2 listed cottage

0:38:200:38:24

'with a building plot just for the garage.

0:38:240:38:27

'Well, as I've said, the property market is a little strange at the moment.'

0:38:270:38:32

-So, how come you're so into garages?

-I just want space for my cars, really.

-How many cars have you got?

0:38:330:38:39

At the moment I've got two, but I'm looking to buy another.

0:38:390:38:42

The thing is, when I lived at university I lived on a very steep incline, no parking or anything.

0:38:420:38:47

I just hate parking on the road, come out and your cars have been damaged

0:38:470:38:50

and it's something that's important to me, so, I want a garage.

0:38:500:38:54

'Now, this all sounded a bit unusual until I discovered that Adam is an engineer for a Formula One team.

0:38:540:39:01

'Cars are clearly a passion he's had most of his life, hence the attraction of that garage.'

0:39:010:39:08

But while he toils over carburettors and spark plugs, Laura has plans for the house.

0:39:080:39:13

The first thing we're going to do is get a new bathroom and kitchen and then just do each room,

0:39:130:39:18

-just make it nice, a bit more modern than this decoration at the moment.

-And Adam?

0:39:180:39:24

First things first, we need to get it rewired. We can move on from there, really.

0:39:240:39:28

So, any plans for any sort of major structural works or modifications?

0:39:280:39:33

We'd hoped the smaller downstairs toilet,

0:39:340:39:36

we'd hoped to, perhaps, convert into a toilet with a shower room in there.

0:39:360:39:41

We're deliberating over plans for the kitchen,

0:39:410:39:44

what with the possibility of knocking out one of the walls.

0:39:440:39:48

We need to determine if it's structural, but these are things we can play with.

0:39:480:39:52

OK. Any ideas on a budget for the work?

0:39:520:39:56

Well, from the money that we made on the property that I lived in while I was at university,

0:39:560:40:02

the original intention was to use that to pay off my student loan,

0:40:020:40:06

but as it's worked out, the rates on that aren't too bad,

0:40:060:40:09

so the money would be better spent on this property.

0:40:090:40:11

We think we've probably got around £20,000 to spend.

0:40:110:40:14

-What about timescales, then?

-Well, obviously we want to get everything done as soon as we possibly can.

0:40:140:40:19

-Make it liveable.

-Yeah. But I think... I think we'll be looking at maybe three, four months

0:40:190:40:27

before we're somewhere better off than we are now.

0:40:270:40:30

'So, this is a first for both Adam and Laura.

0:40:300:40:34

'Helping them make it a reality is Adam's mum, Alison, who has helped with the finance,

0:40:340:40:39

'but she also has some plans of her own.'

0:40:390:40:43

Now, what's your involvement in this whole thing going to be?

0:40:430:40:46

Well, I've funded it so far. Adam is going to get a mortgage for his part of... For the house.

0:40:460:40:53

And then what I'd like to be able to do is get planning permission on this area here

0:40:530:40:58

and be able to put a new build in here in keeping with the Grade 2 listing.

0:40:580:41:02

You'll have to leave the garage where it is

0:41:020:41:05

otherwise you're going to be in massive trouble, aren't you?

0:41:050:41:08

I either have to leave it or move it, as he'll be living in the garage, practically.

0:41:080:41:12

It has had an application turned down in the past, hasn't it?

0:41:120:41:16

What are you going to do to counteract that?

0:41:160:41:18

The property is owned up to the telegraph pole over there,

0:41:180:41:22

and if we cut the bank right back to here the visibility should, I hope,

0:41:220:41:26

be sufficient to obtain planning permission.

0:41:260:41:29

Right, OK. And have you had any indication that that might be the case?

0:41:290:41:33

-Not yet, no. We're just in the early stages of getting plans drawn up.

-Right.

0:41:330:41:38

'If successful, Alison hopes to be able to recoup her investment.

0:41:380:41:43

'She would pay off Adam's mortgage and have some money left over

0:41:430:41:47

'to spend on the next investment for one of her other eight children.'

0:41:470:41:52

-Eight!

-Yes. So, the next one down and we'll be able to help her along.

0:41:520:41:57

-Are you planning to help them all in the same way that you've helped Adam?

-Yes, we'd like to.

0:41:570:42:02

-Really?

-Yes.

-Wow!

0:42:020:42:03

I quite like doing properties up and so I... Yes.

0:42:030:42:08

Well, with the help from mum, Alison, Adam and Laura have got themselves a great place here.

0:42:080:42:13

There is development potential, all sorts of things they can do with it,

0:42:130:42:17

but, of course, the only thing that Adam is really bothered about is that garage.

0:42:170:42:21

Will it be filled with a new car when we return in a few months?

0:42:210:42:24

You'll have to join us later in the show to find out.

0:42:240:42:27

Well, the weeks and months have rolled by and there's no escaping it,

0:42:300:42:35

it's time to return to see how our buyers have fared.

0:42:350:42:38

Like you, we're trying to find out what's been happening.

0:42:380:42:41

It's time to take off the dustsheets and see what's lurking beneath.

0:42:410:42:44

It may have been a miserable rainy day when I visited Kemsley in Kent,

0:42:520:42:57

but the outlook is bright for carpenter and builder David.

0:42:570:43:00

He paid £178,000 at auction for this piece of land just a few minutes from where he lived.

0:43:000:43:06

With it came planning permission to build three three-storey terraced houses.

0:43:060:43:12

David planned to build them, then sell or let depending on the market.

0:43:120:43:17

While the weather hasn't improved much in months, the plot of land is a different story.

0:43:170:43:22

Well, actually building the houses hasn't been a problem.

0:43:340:43:38

It's been a nice build, gone smoothly,

0:43:380:43:41

the only problem is something that I didn't know about when I bought it, was the Code 3 Sustainable Homes.

0:43:410:43:48

Before I bought the plot, I went into the council to find out what it entailed.

0:43:480:43:53

Because it was a new thing they couldn't really give me a lot of information, only an outline,

0:43:530:43:58

which I thought was quite reasonable and I went ahead and bought the plot.

0:43:580:44:03

And then, after that, you have to find someone who's a registered assessor for the points system,

0:44:030:44:08

because it's all done on a points system, and he did his counts

0:44:080:44:13

and he actually got down to me just before Christmas with news of what I would have to do.

0:44:130:44:19

And the news was quite shocking, really, the amount of work I'd have to do to get it up to Code 3.

0:44:190:44:25

'When David bought this land, he asked the council about the Code 3 Sustainable Housing standard.

0:44:250:44:30

'Because it was all fairly new, nobody knew for certain what that involved.

0:44:300:44:34

'Perhaps upping the installation or the drainage? But, in fact, it meant quite a bit more.

0:44:340:44:40

'To reach Code 3 standard,

0:44:500:44:52

'facilities such as underground rain tanks, grey water tanks and thermal heat pumps had to be installed,

0:44:520:44:59

'which is where David had problems.'

0:44:590:45:01

This is the kitchen/dining room area. This is where the Code 3 would cause me the most problems.

0:45:010:45:07

This is the only place where we could position a thermal heat pump and it's the size of a double fridge-freezer,

0:45:070:45:14

and it's also got to be linked outside to another unit

0:45:140:45:18

which is probably the size of two wheelie bins,

0:45:180:45:21

and they've got to be linked together, but, as you can see, it's not a very big area.

0:45:210:45:25

It's the only area where you can have a table and chairs, and there just literally wouldn't be room.

0:45:250:45:30

And, not only that, it's got to be linked right up through all the floors to the loft area

0:45:300:45:35

where you'd have to have a heat exchanger and there's no room in the loft area for this heat exchanger.

0:45:350:45:41

And you would have ducting through all the bedrooms,

0:45:410:45:44

and in the kitchen area, you'd have to have another ducting off the cooker hood

0:45:440:45:49

which also runs up through the bedrooms into the heat exchanger,

0:45:490:45:52

and from the heat exchanger you'd have to have more ducting to come round to all the rooms,

0:45:520:45:57

so, it would just be totally unpractical to put it in.

0:45:570:46:01

'After several discussions with the council,

0:46:090:46:12

'David's hoping they'll compromise on the assessment of these new builds.

0:46:120:46:17

'While he will include recycling bins, water butts and other items,

0:46:170:46:21

'he's building the houses in the way he knows.'

0:46:210:46:23

This is the first floor layout. Behind me, there's bedroom number one that overlooks the back garden.

0:46:260:46:31

This is a bathroom. The bath comes down on the right-hand side here.

0:46:310:46:35

Wash basin, toilet, heated towel rail.

0:46:350:46:39

I'll come through into the landing.

0:46:390:46:42

That is the second largest bedroom, on the top floor in the actual roof space.

0:46:420:46:48

And come through into a third bedroom.

0:46:480:46:50

It's an L-shaped bedroom with a wardrobe space on the right.

0:46:500:46:54

And then you turn into the main part of the bedroom where you'd have your bed and a dressing table

0:46:540:47:00

overlooking the front.

0:47:000:47:02

'David has many years of experience building houses

0:47:020:47:05

'and it's only the new Code 3 regulations that caused him problems.

0:47:050:47:10

'Everything else went exactly to plan.'

0:47:100:47:12

What I want to do is finish them in a conventional way, in the way I planned

0:47:120:47:16

and the way I budgeted for.

0:47:160:47:17

Obviously, we can do a lot of the Code 3 Sustainable Homes which will move us towards the certificate,

0:47:170:47:24

but we wouldn't have done enough to get the Code 3, so it's pointless going for it.

0:47:240:47:28

'So, how has all this affected David's original budget,

0:47:350:47:40

'especially considering there was a three-month delay before he even broke ground?'

0:47:400:47:46

I think the original budget was 140, 150, and I think we'll be about 160, somewhere around there,

0:47:460:47:52

so, pretty close, really.

0:47:520:47:53

'Hopefully, the council will see David's point of view

0:47:530:47:56

'and he can do the finish to his own high standards,

0:47:560:47:59

'but is he likely to make a profit from this project after paying £178,000 for the plot

0:47:590:48:03

'and a further £160,000 building the houses?'

0:48:030:48:09

My first thoughts on the property is it's in a good location

0:48:220:48:25

with regard to the station.

0:48:250:48:27

Being a townhouse, it's different to the properties

0:48:270:48:30

in the road and a good amount of outside space,

0:48:300:48:33

with parking and a garden.

0:48:330:48:34

Three bedrooms are always highly in demand in this area

0:48:340:48:37

and due to the benefit of the great communication network

0:48:370:48:40

surrounding this area, I think there's a high demand for a property of this type.

0:48:400:48:45

'Until the development is completely finished, it's difficult to say exactly how well David has done,

0:48:450:48:52

'but is there a demand for this type of rental property around here?'

0:48:520:48:55

In terms of rent, I think this property

0:48:550:48:58

will be able to be rented between £750 to £775 per calendar month.

0:48:580:49:04

For rental value, I think the mid- and end-terraces would roughly be about the same

0:49:040:49:08

at £725 per calendar month.

0:49:080:49:10

They're higher than what I thought, yeah. Yeah.

0:49:100:49:13

Originally the estimate I had was to £650 to £700, so that's good.

0:49:130:49:18

'That's great news on the rental valuations, but what about the sale prices?

0:49:180:49:24

'It cost David about £338,000 to buy the plot and build three new homes here,

0:49:240:49:29

'so what could they be worth once finished?'

0:49:290:49:32

For resale, I'd recommend putting the properties on the market for £145,000 for the end-terrace

0:49:320:49:39

and £140,000 for the mid-terrace.

0:49:390:49:42

I think on completion, this property will sell in the region of £150,000 to £160,000.

0:49:420:49:48

Yeah, I would say the second one is closer to the mark.

0:49:480:49:51

The valuation we had was 159 for the end-of-terrace and 155 for the middle-terrace.

0:49:510:49:58

That would leave David with a handsome profit.

0:49:580:50:01

Although this project has been a success,

0:50:010:50:05

he's not about to do it again anytime soon.

0:50:050:50:07

I think with new builds, there's too much red tape now.

0:50:070:50:11

It's just hard work. Unless you were doing one big house,

0:50:110:50:14

which isn't viable at the moment, but I think then you'd be all right,

0:50:140:50:18

but with these small developments there's too much legislation.

0:50:180:50:21

Sold for £218,000, this double fronted, two bedroom,

0:50:330:50:38

Grade II listed cottage in Wiltshire was a great auction buy.

0:50:380:50:42

With a building plot to the side,

0:50:420:50:44

it was pretty obvious why Adam and his girlfriend, Laura,

0:50:440:50:48

bought it as their new home, with a little help from Adam's mum.

0:50:480:50:51

Except, as it turned out, it wasn't that obvious.

0:50:510:50:55

-What made you want to buy this place?

-Primarily the garage.

0:50:560:51:00

-The garage?!

-Yeah!

0:51:000:51:01

He doesn't mind about the house, just the garage!

0:51:010:51:04

No, he was really serious!

0:51:040:51:07

But, thankfully, Laura had her own ideas for the cottage,

0:51:070:51:11

while Adam's mum, Alison, planned to recoup some of her investment

0:51:110:51:14

by getting planning permission to build a house on the large side plot.

0:51:140:51:19

Nine months later, we're back to see what's changed.

0:51:190:51:23

Well, while there's no sign of that new build,

0:51:230:51:25

inside there have been some changes.

0:51:250:51:28

As you can see, upstairs is quite different to how it originally was.

0:51:300:51:35

It was all appallingly decorated.

0:51:350:51:38

There were millions of different wallpapers,

0:51:380:51:40

the bathroom was in a terrible state and the toilet over that side.

0:51:400:51:45

So, all the bedrooms, we've completely redecorated,

0:51:450:51:48

had new carpets, everything.

0:51:480:51:50

Yeah, so it's all been completely redone up here, really,

0:51:500:51:53

and we are very close to completely finishing.

0:51:530:51:56

Just carpets and then furniture up here, really, and then that's it.

0:51:560:52:00

Downstairs has been restructured, as well.

0:52:010:52:03

As you can see, the main developments in this room are

0:52:060:52:09

we've knocked out the original pantry-style cupboard that was here.

0:52:090:52:14

That involved having an RSJ put in.

0:52:140:52:16

The whole ceiling had to be supported while it was removed.

0:52:160:52:19

We've had all the floor replaced,

0:52:190:52:21

and what we will be having fitted in here is a whole new kitchen

0:52:210:52:26

in a kind of L shape all the way round.

0:52:260:52:28

It'll probably be the small breakfast table over here for seating.

0:52:280:52:32

And then, out the back there, we've converted what was previously

0:52:320:52:35

a small downstairs toilet into a wet room with shower facilities,

0:52:350:52:39

and, yeah, sort of a smaller downstairs bathroom.

0:52:390:52:42

As you can see, Adam and Laura have still to move in.

0:52:420:52:47

They hope to do so in the next few weeks

0:52:470:52:49

once all the work has been completed.

0:52:490:52:51

Meanwhile, Adam's mum, Alison, has been looking into plans to build

0:52:510:52:55

a house on this side plot of land and is currently in the process

0:52:550:52:58

of buying half an acre from next door's field.

0:52:580:53:01

Originally, we were going to move the garage and put it over here

0:53:010:53:04

by the boundary and put a four-bedroomed house, detached house,

0:53:040:53:09

in the area of the front garden by lowering all the garden down.

0:53:090:53:12

There was a declined planning permission before,

0:53:120:53:15

but it was only declined in terms of access on the highways.

0:53:150:53:20

So, hopefully, in the long term,

0:53:200:53:22

if we are able to realise the negotiation on the field

0:53:220:53:26

and put another access in, then we've got the possibility

0:53:260:53:30

of building long term.

0:53:300:53:33

If successful, that new build would not only help pay off the mortgage

0:53:330:53:37

of this cottage, but allow Alison to fund

0:53:370:53:40

the next property for another one of her eight children!

0:53:400:53:44

But the majority of work here has been managed and funded

0:53:440:53:47

by Adam and Laura, so what has it cost them so far?

0:53:470:53:50

The initial budget we estimated to be round about £20,000...

0:53:520:53:56

and I think we've stuck reasonably well with that.

0:53:560:53:59

Obviously, it's not been the best time for the housing industry,

0:53:590:54:03

but, contrastingly, it means that we've been able to get quotes

0:54:030:54:06

from somebody to do work and then somebody else will undercut that.

0:54:060:54:10

It means that we've got a lot done for less money than we originally thought it would be,

0:54:100:54:14

so that has worked well in our favour.

0:54:140:54:17

So, for £218,000 and a budget of around £20,000,

0:54:170:54:21

Adam and Laura have nearly finished their new home

0:54:210:54:24

and are looking forward to moving in.

0:54:240:54:26

Well, at least Laura is!

0:54:260:54:28

Adam will be too busy in the garage with his car!

0:54:280:54:31

While he takes his pride and joy out for a spin,

0:54:480:54:50

we invited two local estate agents to come and see what they thought of this cottage.

0:54:500:54:55

The style, for me, looks very, very good.

0:55:070:55:09

The finish looks high quality. They've not gone too modern.

0:55:090:55:12

They kept the age of the property, tried to keep the character here.

0:55:120:55:16

-A very nice property.

-I think it's a fantastic cottage.

0:55:160:55:19

They've obviously spent a lot of time and effort

0:55:190:55:22

bringing it back up to its original state.

0:55:220:55:24

They've done some expensive refurbishment inside,

0:55:240:55:27

the heavy things like rewiring, new boiler.

0:55:270:55:30

The garden's a nice discovery. It was fairly overgrown when we sold it.

0:55:300:55:34

When the work's done, it looks like it will be quite a high standard.

0:55:340:55:38

The area... A very nice area. It's a very good sized garden, as well.

0:55:380:55:42

It's going to be a nice property for people looking for character.

0:55:420:55:46

Bought for £218,000,

0:55:460:55:48

they spent 20 grand renovating it to its current state.

0:55:480:55:51

While it may not be finished, what do the estate agents

0:55:510:55:55

think it could be worth in today's market?

0:55:550:55:58

Resale value for me, once it's renovated,

0:55:580:56:00

you'd probably be looking around £250,000 to £275,000 mark.

0:56:000:56:04

Once renovated, I'd imagine that the price is going to need to be

0:56:040:56:08

around that Stamp Duty of 250,

0:56:080:56:10

possibly 275...as a top level.

0:56:100:56:13

-Wow!

-That's better than we were anticipating

0:56:130:56:17

considering the current climate, really, yeah.

0:56:170:56:20

-That's excellent.

-That's good.

-Especially in its current state.

0:56:200:56:23

I thought it would be about 250 in the market

0:56:230:56:26

as it was when we bought the house, so that's very good.

0:56:260:56:29

Very pleased, yeah.

0:56:290:56:30

If Alison succeeds in getting planning permission to build that new four-bed,

0:56:300:56:35

they'll all be on to a winner, but for now Adam and Laura

0:56:350:56:38

can look forward to moving into their first home together,

0:56:380:56:41

complete with that all important garage!

0:56:410:56:44

Well, that's it for today's show. Make sure you join us next time for more Homes Under The Hammer.

0:56:540:57:00

-See you then!

-Goodbye.

-Goodbye.

0:57:000:57:02

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0:57:260:57:29

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