Episode 70 Homes Under the Hammer

Buying a property is often a long, drawn out process,

but there is a way to tighten up the whole thing.

It can take months of stress to seal a deal and bag your dream house.

Alternatively, you can go along to auctions

where it's all crammed into a few action-packed minutes

when you buy your home under the hammer.

Buying at auction can be quick,

but it's important to take your time and do your research.

Many of the properties on sale may need drastic redevelopment.

So, let's see what excited the buyers on today's show.

I was concerned that there could be damp

and all sorts of problems in this Cornish bungalow.

Actually, it's looking pretty good.

On reflection, you might wish you hadn't bought this Southampton semi.

Mirror, mirror on the wall, this house just needs an overhaul.

And, in Wales, I make an alarming discovery in this terraced property.

Whenever I see one of these I want to turn it on and check it works,

but better not!

All these properties went to auction and we'll find out who bought them

and what they paid, when they went under the hammer.

OK, I know budget airlines can whisk you off almost anywhere

for about the cost of half a tank of petrol,

but I bet, like me, you'd be just as happy in the South West,

with its beautiful scenery and beaches.

Today I'm in Liskeard.

So, in somewhere as lovely as this,

a property which had a guide price of just 85,000 quid

had to be a complete hovel, didn't it?

Not somewhere...

that looks like that.

Three to four bedroomed

detached dormer bungalow,

lovely grounds, out buildings.

There's got to be a catch.

From here, though, I'm impressed.

Splendid though it appears on the outside,

I've seen enough properties to know that however glorious the exterior may look,

there could be a disaster lurking behind the front door.

So, tentatively through the front door expecting cascades of water

down the walls and the smell like a sewer.

But, no! Actually, it's looking pretty good.

Nice big entrance hall here which you wouldn't necessarily expect.

Stairs up to the bedrooms there.

We've got more rooms dotted about here.

It all seems in pretty good nick, I have to say.

The painting on the walls seems OK.

A few cracks here and there but I don't think that's too major.

This kind of room makes the most of the position here.

You've got views on to the garden. It's nice and light, it's airy.

Nice clean floor that you could strip back.

This is an interesting feature. What's that?

Oh!

It's the kitchen! How cute.

I wonder how many other interesting features I'll find.

Clearly this property has been cherished over the years

and it's very well maintained, if a tad dated.

Off the hall there's a second large reception room,

plus the first of four bedrooms and a cork-clad toilet.

As this is a dormer bungalow, the accommodation continues upstairs,

with three more bedrooms and this bathroom.

So, the house itself then, extremely likeable,

but what makes it absolutely wonderful is the garden.

It is...enormous!

And it's been carefully maintained. Spectacular!

There's almost a third of an acre here, but if that gets you dreaming of flinging open the doors

on a hot summer's evening and heading outside, then think again.

Well, I love houses where there's easy access from the inside to the garden and in this case,

straight out from the lounge on to the patio.

Not quite!

MUSIC: "Jump" by Van Halen

There's a three-foot drop!

# Might as well jump... #

That will certainly catch you out if you weren't expecting it!

Well, it gives spilling out on to the lawn a whole new meaning.

Joking aside, you'd certainly need to install some steps as soon as possible,

or this is an accident waiting to happen.

So, it's all pretty splendid, but, of course, there is a problem.

Now, what do you think it is?

A - it's on the route of the new Liskeard bypass,

B - it's suffering from an attack of the lesser-known Cornwall wood boring beetle,

or, C - it's made of mundic block.

Well, the first two are, of course, rubbish.

It is, in fact, C. It's made of mundic block.

Now, in case you don't remember, mundic block is actually pretty much stonework

that's been made from the residues of the mines in the area.

Often it's a major problem. The brickwork starts to crumble and your house falls down.

Insurers don't like it and neither do mortgage lenders,

so you have to have the property checked out.

Now, this property has got a B grade for mundic block,

which means it's, sort of, mediumly serious, but, whatever,

it is a big fly in the ointment.

I've arranged for a local estate agent

to cast his expert eyes over the property.

What boxes does it tick for him?

Um, the type of property sells well here at the moment.

Dormer bungalows are very popular.

Outside the decor is good, low maintenance,

it's recently been painted.

Generous gardens. It's quite private to the front of the property.

Internally, most people would probably want to update the kitchen.

It does have a Rayburn in it, plenty of character features.

Some very good timber floors in there, as well.

Considering the land and the condition of the bungalow

the guide price of just £85,000 does seem pretty reasonable.

That could reflect the mundic construction

but that's not the only issue here.

There is a covenant on this particular property which says

that if the property is levelled, you can only reinstate one property,

so that will put off quite a few developers.

So, I hope whoever took on this bungalow had read the legal pack thoroughly.

How much could it be worth once refurbished

and could the real return be in demolishing it and starting again?

Obviously, this property is a mundic, so it may be flattened entirely

and a completely new property put on it,

in which case, if you put a decent-sized four-bedroom property,

then you would probably be looking in the mid 300s.

As it is currently, with a new bathroom,

new kitchen and decor being done inside,

then we would think you're probably looking at around 175.

Well, what is there not to like about this property?

A nice house in a glorious location.

You just have to be careful about that rather nasty step at the back

which could catch you out at a dinner party!

Apart from that, the only serious issue, of course, is the mundic,

which definitely limits the potential for raising finance on it.

Still, at £85,000 as the guide price,

I'm sure it was a very popular lot at the auction.

Six Gypsy Lane. It's a detached three-or-four-bedroom bungalow.

A fair proportion are thinking of bowling it right over, swing shovel,

and putting on a lovely house like the many that are in the vicinity.

Who's going to say 100 straight in?

Thank you, sir. 100. 100 I've got. At one. At 100.

We've got two on my right here. 102.

102, 105.

I'm going to concentrate on two for a moment and I'll come back to everyone else. 110.

115, 120. 120. How about 130? 130.

140, 142, 44...

46, 48. Where are you?

150, 152. New face.

154, 156, 158,

160, 162, 164, 166,

166. You're in, sir. Front row.

166, 168. Another new face across here.

170, 175, 175.

180.

190, 200,

210.

Looking for 215.

215, 220.

221?

At 220. A half if it'll help.

220 and a half. 221.

And a half? 221 and a half.

222.

222 and a half. 223, 223 and a half.

224. 224 and a half.

225.

Once. 225 twice.

225 and a half. 226.

226.

226 and a half. 227.

227 and a half, 228 and a half. 229.

229 and a half. 230. At 230.

I'm feeling for you, sir, I honestly am.

At 230 we've got on my right.

The gentleman is going to have it. Last chance then.

Looking around, in case on the off chance, there's anyone else.

At 230. Once, twice, selling this time. It's your home, sir.

For £230,000, that winning bid was made by Ken sitting in the front row with his wife, Jill,

and daughter, Helen.

I met dad and daughter back at the bungalow.

-Ken, Helen, good to meet you both.

-Hello.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

-So, why did you want to buy this place?

Well, basically, we live at number eight,

which is next door.

-Oh, right. What, just over there?

-Yeah, just up over the grass there.

And we'd seen hundreds of people looking round the place

and there were lots of developers involved and that and we thought,

well, the only way to preserve our own privacy and our large site,

was to purchase it and control it ourselves.

-Wow!

-We actually went to this sale with the sole intention of purchasing it.

So, you would have paid, within reason, any amount?

Well, obviously, if someone else went with the same intentions

we'd have had to stop somewhere

-but we were a long way short of what we were prepared to pay...

-Wow!

-If we had to.

-So, it was a joint family decision to buy it, was it?

Oh, yes, yes.

I was looking to invest in some property anyway

and then this came up so it was an ideal opportunity, really,

to sort of go in with Mum and Dad.

And obviously then with this property there's lots of options available, whether we develop it,

or, if next door gets too big for Mum and Dad,

I can push them down here and I can take over their property!

So, lots of different options.

Well, they've kept the developers at bay,

but it's not just the bungalow they bought.

That extra third of an acre increases Ken's land

to one-and-a-quarter acres of Cornish countryside.

And in terms of utilising the property, then,

what are you going to do with it in the short term?

When we actually purchased it, we didn't have a clue.

We went to the auction purely with the aim of purchasing it.

Once purchased we thought, well, it was a shame to leave it empty,

so we have decided to, in the short term, to let it.

Are you going to tart it up, spend any money, do anything at all, short term?

Basically, we're going to redecorate, recarpet upstairs,

bathroom we're going to change.

Kitchen, any plans for this?

Are you going to leave it as it is?

Probably a bit of tiling in here.

-Yeah. We probably... Belfast sinks are in fashion.

-Yeah, nice.

So we'll probably leave the kitchen very much as it is, actually.

So, Ken, Jill and Helen now have control of their future

but it could have ended so differently

and Ken had planned for the worst-case scenario.

As far as we were concerned, the only way to control it is you have to own it

and if we had lost it at the auction,

if it had gone to way above price,

well, obviously we could have then, if it was a developer,

sold them our place and we could have moved on if necessary,

but we didn't really want to because we like the area and,

believe you me, I've only ever moved once in my life

and it took us three months to move up here

because I'm a bit of a magpie.

-Are you? What sort of things do you collect?

-I'm mainly interested in old vehicles

and because I worked for GPO-come-BT all my life, until I took early retirement,

I've got three old GPO telephone vans.

-Oh, wow!

-The trouble is, I never seem to have time

to play with my hobby because always something like this crops up

and you start with other projects again!

-Well, listen, congratulations.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

And good luck with it all

-and we'll look forward to seeing how you get on.

-Thank you.

You know, with a view like this it's little wonder

that Ken didn't want any developers ringing the changes round here.

So here's something to think about.

How much would you spend to protect the area around where you live?

For Helen, Ken and Jill, it was a quarter of a million pounds, almost!

Wow! Lots of options in terms of what they might do to it, including knocking it down.

Now, that is an expensive way to add to your garden,

but something tells me I don't think they'd care.

Good luck to them. Find out how they get on later in the show.

For the next property under the hammer, I'm heading to Hampshire.

Just five miles from Southampton and I'm in Totten,

a town popular with commuters.

From here, you can be in London Waterloo

in just over an hour and a half

and Southampton is less than 20 minutes away by train.

You also have strong road links here.

Now, the M3 is easily accessible.

So, top marks for transport,

but how much is a three-bedroom house going to cost in this area?

Well, this property was on the market for 180,000 with no takers.

It then went to auction and the guide price just 125,000 to 130,000.

On my way to the distinctive side entrance,

I notice that most of the windows and doors seem relatively new.

You walk into this hallway and through here

and you've got a lounge to the right which is a really good size,

and in here is a second reception room.

You've got this lovely big old sash window

looking onto the side conservatory,

and then, well, there's this fireplace

that doesn't really go with the style of the house.

And up here a rather interesting pelmet!

I think at one time there would have been a curtain up there

to divide this room

and that's because, down there, you've got the kitchen.

It certainly doesn't flow at the moment.

I'd remove these walls here - it's a bit like a triangle - to make better use of the space.

As I go round the bend, physically, not mentally,

I come to the spacious kitchen

which is in reasonable condition,

but, unfortunately, right next to that kitchen is the bathroom.

That's very common in a house of this age.

The obvious solution is to move it upstairs,

especially since there are three bedrooms.

Still, going out through the conservatory,

I find a well-sized garden.

Rubbish apart, there's plenty of space for the keenest of gardeners.

But there's also the first sign of a potential problem.

Now, that sagging roof looks serious and needs investigating.

So, upstairs we've got three bedrooms. There's a really big space across the landing.

We've got this bedroom here which I'd easily call a double.

And bedroom three is through here.

Now, my guess is that this was once a bathroom

and that's exactly what I would turn this back into.

That is easily achieved because you could create a corridor

off the landing into that bedroom through there, along the back wall.

I know it would eat into the square footage of the space,

but I think it would be worth moving that bathroom up here.

I think it would make this house much more saleable.

Apart from the cost of moving the bathroom upstairs,

there are other renovation costs that need bearing in mind.

These include various holes in the plaster,

some missing roof guttering and the fact that the rear extension is only a single skin of bricks deep,

which would fail modern building regulations.

Add to that the fact that the house looks tired and passe

and it leaves me feeling the writing is on the wall here.

Mirror, mirror on the wall, this house just needs an overhaul!

Ah, yes, but overhauls mean expense.

I've invited a local estate agent to tell me how much it would cost

to renovate this three-bedroom house.

Would it be worth it, considering the auction guide price

was between 125,000 to 130,000?

I'd say, for this property, you'd look to spend probably about £30,000.

I would say that is a minimum figure and it could go in excess of that.

So, an expensive renovation mostly caused by two big jobs,

the first being the sagging roof.

It's a classic example of original slate tiles

being replaced by concrete tiles

and a lack of additional roof support,

causing, basically, the house to feel squashed.

You probably need further roof supports

and that should solve the problem.

So, with an auction guide price of between 125,000 to 130,000

and a renovation cost of around £30,000,

what could the property be worth once all the work's done?

You'd look to sell this property at around £165,000 to £170,000.

And if the new owner wants to rent it out, how much could it go for?

I think you'd rent this out probably at around £650 to £700 per calendar month.

A sagging roof, a single-skin extension,

a very odd layout upstairs.

This house is going to require a lot of structural work.

Someone was up for the job, though.

Let's find out who it was as we go to auction.

I'm going to give you the chance on this, ladies and gents,

an incredible opportunity at just 90,000.

£90,000.

90,000 at the back. I'll take it up in thousand pounds.

90,000 I've got.

I need 91 from someone now.

Thank you. 92, 92 we have got. 93?

93 on the left-hand side.

94 bid, thank you.

95, sir?

95 on my left-hand side.

96,000 from you, or somebody else to come in?

Original one back, 96,000.

97,000 on my left-hand side.

98 I have got. 99,000 over here.

Round it up to 100, sir, it might do the job... Shaking his head.

You were the original bidder, I'll give you a chance with £500.

99 and a half.

Yeah, 99,500.

Back to you, sir, at the hundred.

It's with you at 100,000. The same chance at 100,500?

He comes back very late at 100,500.

At 101. The gentleman saying yes, at £101,000.

Same chance for you at 101,500.

£101,000 then I have for the first. 101 for the second.

101 for the third and the final time.

Your property, sir, well done.

And number 7018 also goes by the name of Ray.

A Geordie by birth, Ray did his apprenticeship as a carpenter

and worked in the local shipbuilding industry.

But, over the years, he headed south

and now lives in another maritime city, Southampton.

He currently runs a joinery firm that makes custom-built kitchens.

This raises the question of whether one of Ray's bespoke masterpieces will take pride of place here.

It might do because Ray has been tracking this house for a while.

-It was strange, really. I noticed the house about six months ago.

-Yeah.

And came down and had a look with the agent.

I thought, no way it's worth 180,000, so I put an offer in for 150.

They came back to me and said if I could go ahead

and confirm that they'd definitely make £150,000.

I went and done some figures on it and I thought, maybe it's still a bit of money, so I came away.

Then a couple of months later, he rang me up and said it's back on the market again.

And so they had it back on the market at 150,

so I came and had a look at it and offered them 130.

By then had the market changed a little?

Ah, yes. Big time, big time.

So, everybody was, I suppose, frightened.

But I heard it would go to auction if the sale didn't go ahead

and so I pulled out and I thought, well, if it's going to go to auction

I may as well give it a go at auction.

-So it went to auction and then we got the 101,000 and...

-Wow!

So, it's a bit of a saving, yeah.

Ray, that is an incredible story! So what was it that took your eye?

The house is a nice house.

I've seen the potential in it and I know roughly what I want to do to it

and, hopefully, what I do to it will make it a saleable asset.

What are you going to do to this house to really make it stand apart from others?

Depending on whether I take the back chimneys and everything out,

if that's going to be viable, I'm going to turn it into three bedrooms with an upstairs bathroom.

But if I don't take the back chimneys out, if that's going to be too much money,

I'm going to turn it into two bedrooms, two bathrooms.

So, both bedrooms will have an ensuite.

And a new kitchen, which will be extended because that will go where the bathroom is now.

You mentioned the kitchen, what's it going to look like?

-Well...

-Is that going to be quite nice?

-It'll be a readymade kitchen.

It's not going to be handmade - the property doesn't demand it.

So what sort of budget are you looking at here?

I'd like to say I could do it for 20,000 but...

-I think it'll be nearer 30.

-And who's going to be doing it?

All the lads I normally work with are going to be doing the work.

You've got to be careful with your pennies, you can get carried away,

especially in your line of work because you know what looks good and you know what you would like?

Yeah. At the end of the day, I'm in this to make money

and I want to make money at it, or if it doesn't sell

I'm going to get my return off a rental income.

How long is this project going to take you?

How many months?

Three.

-Three months!

-Three months, yeah.

I wouldn't want it to take longer than that.

I'm intrigued to find out how you're going to change the layout.

I know you've got a bedroom leading off of another bedroom.

-Can we go upstairs and chat about that?

-Yeah, by all means.

Ray, upstairs is where, I feel, the property lets itself down.

What are you going to do to sort of reconfigure this?

Well, as I said downstairs, the bathroom is the main...

the main problem with the property and I think, at some stage,

-the back small bedroom has, at some stage, been the bathroom.

-I think so.

And that's what we need to turn round and try and get another bedroom.

The idea is, we're going to cut a big aperture, here,

so we're going to have a doorway through into this big front bedroom.

Obviously, we're on very different levels here because the bedroom would start through there.

The floor level's actually only about...about there, so I reckon two steps.

-Two steps and you'll be up into the bedroom.

-Yeah.

And, obviously, if we go three bedrooms we'll come through this area

to go straight through into the back bedroom

and we turn left into the bedroom which is bedroom two now.

So, you're going to create a corridor?

-Yes, a corridor in there, yes.

-Into the third bedroom?

-That's right.

-So where are you going to put the bathroom?

-Right there.

-Right there.

-Yeah.

-You've got a big window, are you going to keep that?

-Yeah.

Don't you think it'll be a bit of a pinched staircase up here?

It isn't...it isn't a grand space but, to be truthful, I think it's big enough.

-Three months, we'll be back to check up on you! Good luck.

-Thank you.

Ray played a good waiting game here

and got this house nearly £50,000 cheaper.

His patience certainly paid off but all that work in three months?

Will he do it? You can find out later in the show.

Coming up, the condition of this property in Wales isn't great.

If you're looking at renting this out, I reckon perfectly serviceable.

We return to Southampton,

where a change has been as good as a rest for Ray and his team.

We've had some good laughs doing the job, which has been great.

But, first, down in Cornwall they haven't stopped.

Someone, rather politely, said to me, "You're working harder than when you were at work."

Earlier in the programme, in the Cornish town of Liskeard,

Ken, his wife, Jill, and their daughter, Helen,

paid £230,000 for this bungalow next door to their house.

They bought it to stop development of the land.

The plan was to give it a quick makeover and rent it out.

So, six weeks later, we've returned to see what's happened.

Well, downstairs the bungalow has been decorated

but it still looks very similar.

The kitchen's had some new tiles and the hallway looks brighter

but, as Helen explains, the majority of the work has taken place upstairs.

It may not look a lot different up here

but actually, we've done most of the work up here.

We removed batons from the walls,

there was no insulation at all, so all the ceilings have come down, we've reinsulated.

There was a built-in wardrobe in this bedroom

which has been taken out.

Both sinks have been removed from the bedrooms.

We've replaced the night storage heaters.

It's been recarpeted and redecorated.

We had an unexpected problem with the immersion heater, so we had to replace it.

And the bathroom,

we've put a new bath in, new shower screen,

shower and regrouted.

With the bathroom refit, this character property

has had a little more than a splash of paint, so who did all the work?

I've sort of done most of the work.

Helen has helped when she's been able to, mostly upstairs, you know?

We put in new ceilings. I done all that myself.

The plumbing I've done myself.

Dad's very handy, so that works out really well.

And handy Helen has some useful contacts as well.

An agent that I know in Looe,

we approached him about renting the property.

He contacted us within a few days saying he's got a possible tenant.

They came and looked at it, liked it,

so it almost was meant to be, really.

But there was one request the new tenants had

that required some structural work to be carried out in the original cloakroom and toilet.

The tenants that we've got coming in

requested a downstairs shower room, which meant a fair bit of work here,

and you can see, the scar on the floor where the existing wall was.

And although this property is mundic block, believe you me,

it was a fair bit of work to get the wall down!

Remember, Ken and his family bought the bungalow

to prevent developers changing their outlook

but the property is made of mundic block,

so one option for Ken might be to demolish it and start again.

It all depends on how bad the mundic brickwork is.

We've had an initial survey done and everything is sound at the moment

but there's no point in spending

more than the property is going to be worth in five years' time.

Money has been spent on the shower room,

so how is the budget bearing up?

We had a budget of 4,000, which we were well on track, weren't we?

-We were, yes.

-Until we had the unexpected immersion tank.

There was no one big expense, to be quite honest.

It was all small expense and that, you know.

I mean, obviously our main cost

of an individual item was probably employing a painter and decorator.

I was really worried that the level of the patio

wasn't the same as the living room.

It was an accident waiting to happen

but it sounds like Ken and the new tenants aren't about to fall out.

The bottom step will be in line with the outside edge of the bay window and will gradually go in.

That will look nice, coming out there.

It's a pity they weren't in place before they come in, but, still...

Well, as those steps aren't in yet,

I'd better warn these two local estate agents to watch their step.

What will they think of the bungalow and its unusual construction?

This was a really unusual property because, obviously,

being mundic it's cash only. At the time it fetched

way above the guide price. We guided at 85 at auction.

We expected in the mid hundreds

and of course, we achieved around the 230 level.

My first impressions of the property

are that it's set in a fabulous plot with good views

but within easy reach of the town centre.

The construction, of course, is something we have to worry about.

It's most likely that the present owner will rent it out

for the foreseeable future cos it'll bring in some income,

but in three, five years' time, maybe even sooner,

the market will go back up and he may be sitting on a good profit again.

How much could the bungalow be worth right now?

For a mundic property, it would be unusual if it would break the stamp duty level,

which is around 175 in normal circumstances.

If this wasn't mundic,

I'd probably be putting a figure of around about 350,000 on it.

We aren't worried about the resale value of the property

because it's unlikely that it will ever be sold

as an individual property - as six Gypsy Lane.

It is now part of 6a Gypsy Lane and...

We didn't buy it as a commercial venture.

So, really, that price is immaterial.

Well, thanks to Helen's friend, they've managed to find tenants

for a couple of years but what's the going rent?

How much should they be charging?

Ideally you would need to have full central heating in the property,

so I think that will reduce the rental potential,

probably to about 750 per calendar month.

They've done everything that they should do to make it presentable.

It will rent fairly quickly, good strong rental market at the moment,

and he could be looking in the region of £700 a month.

Well, we're getting £750 a calendar month.

So we're quite happy with that.

Of course, the income will be gratefully received for a couple of years

but don't forget, the reason they bought the bungalow

was to protect their view, which they have successfully done.

But, in the future, could this mundic building be knocked down and turned into rubble?

It's a good-looking property and the more I've been down here it...

It does feel really welcoming,

so, ideally, we'd like to keep it standing.

This is Treforest in South Wales, home to the University of Glamorgan

and bordering the town of Pontypridd.

I'm visiting a house on a pretty busy thoroughfare,

just a half a mile from the university.

MUSIC: "Broadway" by The Drifters

Well, this is Broadway, although, unlike New York,

I don't think there are too many stars on this particular street of that name.

However, Tom Jones was born and brought up around this area.

So what am I here to see? Well, it's a four storey five-bedroomed house of multiple occupation.

What's it like? Well, I don't know,

compared to the others in the area...it's not unusual!

MUSIC: "It's not unusual" by Tom Jones

An HMO, or House Of Multiple Occupation,

is generally a property which is let to three or more individual tenants.

# It's not unusual to be loved by anyone... #

According to the auction catalogue, this property complies with HMO regulations

for five sharing,

so it has met the standards for fire regulations and facilities.

So what have we got? Oh, well, that's a good start.

Now, it is an HMO, a House Of Multiple Occupation.

One of the things which is going to cost you a fortune,

if you haven't got it, is a proper fire alarm system like this.

It's hardwired and everything. That would be two, three, four thousand quid if it didn't have one already.

Whenever I see one of these I want to turn it on and check it works but better not!

Anyway, large sitting room, living room area,

stairs down to the basement.

A passageway there up to the other bedrooms

and then through into the kitchen.

Now, not in terribly brilliant condition,

but if you're looking at renting this out,

I reckon perfectly serviceable. And you know what?

All in all, an interesting start.

At a guide price of £69,000 this house looks ready to go for a buy-to-let investor.

There's a large living room, kitchen and fire alarm.

The next stop is downstairs to the basement.

Downstairs and this is where this property starts to score for me.

A couple of negatives first.

That is the only bathroom in the property, although there is a loo upstairs, so that's not ideal.

Also, it smells damp, which you might expect

and actually there's indications of damp in that loo.

But what you've got here is a very interesting and flexible space.

At the moment there's just a bathroom, as I said, and a bedroom.

However, the key to this is that there's a separate entrance there.

So you could consider turning this into a self-contained flat.

Mm-hmm. Good news!

There are two doors down in the basement.

The back one leads out to the garden,

while this one at the front gives access up to the pavement.

Another bonus is that you can drive a car up to the back of the property.

Onwards and upwards to the first floor,

which has two large bedrooms and a toilet, all in reasonable condition.

There are new PVC double-glazed windows,

which at least keep out a lot of the traffic noise.

Then there are more stairs up to the second floor.

So up to the very top of the house, where you've got two attic bedrooms.

The first thing I notice is this plaster.

It's very new, which definitely gets me thinking.

Look, it goes onto the ceiling there.

I wonder if there's been a leak.

I'd definitely want to check out the chimney breast to see if there's a leakage

and that repairs have been done outside as well.

Not a bad-sized space. Two rooms, as I say.

But when it comes to these kind of rooms, if you're renting this out as an HMO,

they'll be very, very concerned about a fire escape up here.

That window, I don't think, is compliant.

It looks a bit small. On the other side there are opening windows,

which would give you necessary escape routes in case of fire.

But, all in all, a lot of house for the money.

So, with a guide price of 69,000, this house, on three levels,

seems to be pretty good value.

I've invited a local estate agent to take a look at the house.

Would it make a good student let?

Student accommodation is ideal for this location

because you're literally on the doorstep

of the Pontypridd train station

and then you're very close to the university and local amenities.

If not for students, or multiple occupancy,

what about converting this building into flats?

Yes, it could be divided into two separate flats.

We've just recently sold one which is a few doors down,

that the family actually lived in the self-contained flat downstairs

and rented the four rooms upstairs.

Of course, any buy-to-let investor is going to want to know what the rental income could be,

so how much are we talking here?

Rental income, you're looking at around about £200 per calendar month per student.

The rental income for a family

could be around about £500 to £600 per calendar month.

If five rooms were let to students,

that could produce £1,000 per calendar month.

That's more than you'd get for a family

but do remember that student lets are often only for term time,

so a 12 month let to a family could end up producing a similar annual income.

What about the resale value?

Renovated to a reasonable standard, we are going to be looking at between £100,000 and £110,000.

So, a good property this with some interesting options.

You can use it as it is, as an HMO, in the knowledge

that you have got some good rental potential in the area.

Or, for my money, the thing to do is to convert this basement

into a separate flat.

That is how, I think, you really get your money out of this one.

Let's find out who fancied it when it went to the auction.

Now, then, we go to lot number 35,

which is the four-storey house.

It's had a successful history as a student letting property in the past.

Who's got 80,000 for it? It's got to be worth that.

It's there, I would have thought, ready to let.

Who's got 70 to start me?

-65.

-Thank you, sir. Well, done.

65, I'm bid. You all heard that bid.

Good job there's one brave man here.

65. Thank you. At 65, I'm bid.

Can I see eight anywhere, now?

Is that a bid, sir? Yes, thank you.

68 I'm bid. At 68.

Fresh bid. 70. Thank you. At 70.

I'll take them one at a time, then. Can I see one for you, sir?

The bid's in the back at £70,000.

One, is that, for you? One, thank you.

Two. Thank you. 72 I'm bid.

Both of you in the back at 72.

Are you all done then at 73?

Thank you, sir. At £73,000. It's against both of you. There is the bid on the aisle.

At 73... Four, thank you, 74.

At 74,000. Is it another one?

Quick if you like it. It's only a small bid if you want one.

At 74. Can I make it five, quick if you like?

At 74,000. It's your bid.

I make no bones about it,

I have to get five so whoever comes in first with 75...

I can drop the hammer at five but I can't before. Either of you?

Nope? Come and see us, let's see what we can do.

So it failed to reach its reserve price and was withdrawn

but Joshua decided to speak to the auction house afterwards.

He's a lecturer in civil engineering at Kingston University in Surrey

and has built up a portfolio of properties

as a long-term investment.

He hopes they'll provide an income and a pension.

I met up with him at the house to find out how he came to buy it.

-The kitchen. Anyway, Joshua, good to meet you.

-You too.

-Congratulations. Now...

-Thank you.

-I thought you hadn't got it at the auction. What happened?

Well, I hadn't got it because I gave up on the price.

It looked very high at £74,000 but I had a change of mind afterwards.

They said I should go for it and I did get it for 75 grand in the end.

You went to see the auctioneer after and negotiated...

-Yes.

-A post-auction bid.

-Yes.

So, Joshua paid £75,000 and added this property

to five others that he already owns in Cardiff and elsewhere.

So, what was it about this house, specifically, that you liked?

I didn't actually intend to buy this property.

-What?

-That's right, because, the property I wanted to buy was in Cardiff

but once I got into the auction room and bids started coming through,

I knew I was going to be outbid. So I gave up on that one.

In the meantime, I started looking around for other properties in the same catalogue.

I quickly went down to look at the HIP report for it

and it looked like it was a good property.

It didn't look like it required a lot of work to be done

and because, also, I used to work in this area,

I know this street quite well,

and I had a gut feeling it was a good property.

So Joshua hadn't viewed the house before he bought it.

Buying it blind is not something I'd recommend

but luckily, in this case, the gamble seems to have paid off.

So tell me exactly what you're going to do with the place

I'm going to do some minor improvements,

spend about between £6,000 and £7,000.

I'm planning to tile the whole of the ground floor,

with bathroom and hallway,

and also recarpet the two upstairs bedrooms,

also tile the upstairs toilet floor

and replace or repair the windows upstairs which don't close properly.

And I think it'll be looking good in the end.

Tell me what the idea is, then?

Is it to rent it out as individual rooms?

It is to rent it out as a whole unit for a family,

or to individual, you know, students.

Now, one option that we thought about was potentially

converting the downstairs into an independent self-contained flat.

-Have you considered that?

-Yeah, I've got that in mind,

but I'll have to look at the costs involved

and also the possibility of getting planning permission for that.

If I can afford it and if they accept I can do it, then I'll do it

but it's not something I would do within the next six months.

It's more like a year or more.

-Well, congratulations. Good luck.

-Thank you.

And delighted to see how you get on.

Thank you very much.

In the end, Joshua paid a reasonable £75,000 for the property,

but will the repair work needed here

end up being a drain on his finances?

Well, it looks like things have turned out OK for Joshua

but I still think he made a big, big, big gamble

by not visiting the property beforehand.

In terms of what he's planning to do, yes, I think he's going down the right lines

and renting this out to a family will certainly be less hassle

than renting it out as individual rooms to students.

That budget, though, 6,000 to 7,000 quid, it's a big house to sort out for that. Will he do it?

You can find out later in the show.

It's been several months since we first met our buyers.

Have they just been papering over the cracks?

Or have they transformed their lot?

Let's find out.

We're returning to Totten in Hampshire, where Ray,

a highly-skilled carpenter,

had paid £101,000 for this house which needed a full refurbishment.

He's owned five other investment properties in the past

but this was his first purchase for ten years

as he now runs his own successful bespoke kitchen company.

Eight months later and the refurbishment's complete.

From the road, the house doesn't appear to have changed that much but don't be fooled.

Behind the bay window, the living room's been decorated

and looks so much bigger.

And good to see that the fireplace remains

but it's the only one in the house because the rear chimney

in the dining room has gone

and a fabulous new kitchen diner's been created.

That meant the original bathroom at the back of the house had to move upstairs.

Ray had planned to have three bedrooms and a bathroom

but two of the bedrooms would have been too small

and the bathroom tiny, so he decided less was more.

There would be just two bedrooms,

each with an ensuite and new doorways.

Well, as you see, this is one of the two new entrances to the bedrooms.

This room has now become the master bedroom.

You used to enter this room from a doorway in the wall here,

which we've now blocked up, totally redone.

The landing has become the ensuite for the front bedroom,

now the second bedroom.

Across here, we have the bathroom to this main bedroom,

the fireplace and the big... was taken away,

everything opened up, and we now have a lovely new bathroom,

nice and big, nice and airy.

A separate shower,

lovely big bath and it's one of the best rooms in the house again.

Ray and the workers from his kitchen company have done most of the work.

Upstairs, the chimneys have gone and the ceilings have been replastered.

The original kitchen and conservatory were only single skinned

but a second wall's been added with all the necessary insulation.

And that sagging roof has been retiled.

The chimneys in the back of the house really interfered with the layout

and as we wanted to really open the back and front of the house out,

they had to come out.

It gave us more vision cos that was the first job we did.

Once the obstructions had gone, the full potential of the property was clear.

So what happened in the kitchen?

Well, we've totally transformed it, really. We've ripped the wall out.

We've ripped the partition wall out here,

which went to the original bathroom.

We've retiled the floors,

complete new units, white gloss, clean and crisp

and as ladies love kitchens

and are normally the biggest selling points of the house,

we decided to spend the most money on that and, hopefully, this is what will sell it, with the bathrooms.

It's one thing to rip everything out but it all has to be replaced.

Ray used his expert carpenter's skills.

There's quality woodwork everywhere.

It really does set the house apart.

I've been away from the property market for about ten years.

I've been concentrating on kitchens and joinery and enjoying it, really.

I always wanted my joiner's shop and finally I've been able to get it

but as work went a little bit slack I thought we'd give,

we'd give this a go and the lads, all of them, have worked really hard.

It's been eight months since we first saw the property.

Ray's been busy on other projects,

so he's actually only spent about three months here.

Every little bit of space has been utilised.

The stairs were, if you remember from the beginning, a little further back

and there was really just a load of dead space under there.

So we decided we didn't have to gain a lot of room,

even though it was a lot of work, we were only gaining about a foot and a half,

but the foot and a half, of course,

enabled us to put a lovely cloakroom in there.

How much has all this refurbishment work cost?

When I originally said I was going to spend maybe between 20 and 30,

I've spent probably nearer 35, 36.

A lot of money but it sounds like all Ray's hard work and design skills have paid off.

Well, a week ago we decided to put the property on the market

and the first couple that were able to view it bought it.

They offered me the full asking price of 175, so I was more than happy.

So well done, Ray! He's got a buyer already!

How impressed will two local estate agents be with the property?

Time to find out.

I like the fact that this property's got well proportioned rooms.

I like the layout with the open-plan kitchen and dining area.

Everything within the property now is new and modern, which is always nice.

Somebody can come in and there are no question marks and expenditure.

The fact that they've put the bathrooms upstairs

has enabled them to make the kitchen a nice big room.

They've also incorporated a downstairs cloakroom, which is excellent.

Modern living is very much family room at the back of the house

and if there was anything that I would have done differently,

it would have been to bring the kitchen out to where the conservatory is

and maybe leave the possibility of a conservatory on the back for the new owners. The plot does allow it.

Obviously, Ray was considering letting it

but he's now decided to sell the house for £175,000.

Did he get his sums right? Could he have got more? Let's find out.

I would put this property on the market for a maximum of £185,000.

I would put this property on the resale market for £175,000.

Oh, it would have been nice to get 185,000

but that would have probably put me in a big chain.

I think it was marketed right and I'm happy with what I got, really.

Ray paid £101,000 at the auction and his budget reached 35,000,

so a sale at 175,000

represents about 39 grand gross profit and a job very well done.

Considering I hadn't done it for ten years,

it's nice to get back in the swing.

I've had friends in the game who've come round and said it's a lovely job,

and I think that's why the first person who walked in bought it.

They're happy, I'm happy, and the house is looking like a house now.

I think the old lady who lived here would have loved it and all, so everybody's happy!

We now return to Treforest in Wales, where part-time developer Joshua

had paid £75,000 for this mid-terraced property,

without seeing it first.

In the past, it had been let to students and he intended to do some improvements

before renting it out again.

Less than one month later, we're back to see Joshua

and I'm struggling to see any of his minor improvements.

Nowhere looks to have been painted

and the only change seems to be some tiles in the upstairs loo.

So why has he left it as it was?

I was thinking of doing a lot of things, initially,

including a new bathroom upstairs

and also creating a shower for the upstairs bedrooms,

but after a bit of thought I decided to scale down the work

and do only those that I can afford to do, for now,

and the rest, possibly, I'll do in the future.

It's not just the first floor where the tiler's been at work.

Now the basement corridor's ceramic and it hasn't stopped there.

This bathroom has been tiled.

This wall was affected badly by the water which was leaking outside

but that has been sorted out now

and will come back in good shape once it's painted.

This wall will be all painted in cream

and the ceiling will be painted in white.

The bathroom suite will remain as it is, for now,

but in future we'll think about replacing it.

So, to start with, Joshua's done all he thinks is necessary

to attract a tenant to the whole house and he's not had to wait long.

The tenant we've got so far,

which is a family, has accepted it partly furnished,

so they're going to bring in their own furniture.

They were quite pleased with the size of the property.

They're a big family and they needed many rooms.

They did, you know, comment that the property needs some decoration,

which I've accepted to do

and I hope that after all this is done they'll be quite pleased with the condition of the property.

It's all a bit back to front.

Joshua's got the tenant lined up

and is now about to freshen up the house, starting in the attic rooms.

In this bedroom, again, we'll paint all the walls in cream,

we'll also replace the carpet with laminate flooring

and paint the ceiling white.

He also plans to put a laminate floor in the basement bedroom.

Once that's done, he'll get the necessary safety tests carried out on the gas,

electricity and the fire alarm before his tenant can move in.

What does he now think his spend will add up to?

Initial budget was about £7,000, with a lot of work in the list,

and so far I've only spent £1,600 on the tiling

and repairing of the windows upstairs.

Next job, which will be flooring, will cost me about £900 in total.

So, altogether, I'll have spent a lot less than the initial £7,000.

Remember, he paid £75,000 for the property

which came with the potential to rent out rooms to students

but to start with he's letting out the whole house to a family,

so how much income will he earn?

The tenants we've found have agreed to pay £650 per month.

I'm quite happy because my mortgage payment is much less than that.

Time to get some property advice from two local estate agents.

How do they rate Joshua's work?

First impressions are that this property needs a tremendous amount

spent on it before it could even be used for letting.

What's changed is very little since I was here last.

There has been a minimum amount of money spent on the property.

I'm surprised to hear that the flooring's been changed.

If it has, it needs a good clean.

And I understand there's talk of laminating the first floor

which I strongly recommend against, as it will cause problems with sound.

It needs to be completely decorated from top to bottom - new carpets,

could replace the kitchen, the bathroom

and look at the front door.

If all those improvements were carried out,

how much income could the house generate if it was let to a family?

If this property had a basic renovation, decoration throughout,

new carpets and was cleaned,

I would expect it to achieve in the region of £450 to £500 per calendar month as a family let.

As a family let you're going to be looking between around £500 to £600 per calendar month.

Well, it's nice that I managed to get something more

than the agency's valuation but you never know.

If I make the house better, I might even get more than 650 in the future.

Well, he's already covering his mortgage.

He paid £75,000 at the auction and spent just £2,500 on the makeover.

So, how much is the house now worth in this state

and what could it fetch once refurbished?

In its current condition,

I would try marketing it at an asking price of 85,000.

If we were to put this on the market in its current condition, it would be a minimum of 90,000.

If this property had been fully renovated, I would probably put it on the market in the region of 105.

If the money was invested on the property,

we could be achieving around about £107,000.

Wow! At least £10,000 profit after just one month

and potentially a lot more if Joshua does the place up.

That's encouraging. I think it might even make me think about

doing up the kitchen and bathroom if it doesn't cost too much, really.

Joshua's a shrewd investor who has spent well.

Even with his minimum investment, he's already seeing a profit.

I'd invest some of that money back into the house

to make it a more welcoming new home for his first tenants.

So, there you have it, the highs and the lows of buying at auction.

So, join us next time for more auction room action on Homes Under The Hammer.

-See you then.

-Goodbye.

-Goodbye.

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