Episode 79 Homes Under the Hammer

-When the going gets tough, the tough get going.

-Especially in today's property market.

This could be just the right time to buy at auction. Prices are lower than they've been in years.

Buying a property at auction should be a low-hassle way of buying.

However, you have to have done your homework or you'll find yourself in all sorts of trouble.

The place could be riddled with problems. Or be your dream home.

So let's find out what people bought on today's show.

The new owner of this burnt-out three bedroom house near Salford will need a good sense of humour.

No laughing matter.

In south-east London, I find a four-bed semi with a guide price as attractive as its staircase.

Calm down, Lucy. What a good start!

And in Salcombe, Devon, you'll need to think outside the box at this tiny property.

Not very big.

All these properties have been sold at auction and we'll find out who bought them and what they paid

when they went under the hammer.

I'm on the outskirts of Salford in the north-west.

I'm in Little Hulton, about 9 miles from Manchester city centre.

An interesting fact about this place was that Christopher Eccleston, the Ninth Doctor Who, grew up here.

But will the property I am here to see be a bit of a TARDIS or need a doctor to sort it out?

Well, it's a long way from Little Hulton to Gallifrey,

but with replacement and regeneration of its post-war local authority estates underway,

it could be about to move forward. So could a shrewd investor capitalise on that?

Well, the guide price was an almost unbelievable £5,000-£10,000.

Yes, you did hear right. It's no joke.

That's because the property...

Well, the state of it is no laughing matter.

If I was a Dalek, I know what I'd be saying.

Exterminate! Exterminate!

'You'll need more than a sonic screwdriver to fix this one.

'You'd probably be better knocking it down and starting again,

'but it gets tricky because this house is one of a group of three terraced properties.'

Now the property is in such a state that I can't even get inside.

As you can see...what can I say? It's been badly fire-damaged.

It's right old wreck. Burnt out inside, the roof's all gone.

It's a major work to get this place sorted out. And it gets more complicated.

Next door is in a similar state. So you can't do this property without sorting out next door

which gives all sorts of problems. So what, on the face of it, seems like a real nightmare...

is.

'With just one property up for grabs, your options are very limited here.'

But it's not all doom and gloom. The property came with a legal pack which included a mining report.

It thankfully says that this property is not within 200 metres of a coalmine.

That's good news, then.

'No mineshafts to worry about, then, but plenty of pitfalls and unknowns, too,

'with no clear idea of the layout. Can a local estate agent help fill in some of the gaps?'

It will have a lounge, dining room and kitchen to the rear.

First floor will have three bedrooms, bathroom and separate WC.

A lot of work to be done, depending on the structural level of what the fire has done as well.

It's got to be in the region of £30,000, subject to roofworks.

The sell-on value of the property in this current market is going to be about £40,000.

-In future markets, it should increase.

-'So a buyer would need to have bought this place

'for around the £5,000-£10,000 guide price to have any chance of making a profit.

'Prices in this area have gone as high as £80,000-£90,000,

'but unless the two adjoining properties are renovated, it will hold down the value of this one.'

Best-case scenario here is to purchase the two buildings adjoining with the aim of renovating them, too,

to own the whole block. In the short term, in this market,

selling isn't the best option, so I'd look to renting them out and selling in the future.

'Buying all three properties will have an impact on rental as well as resale values.'

If all three are renovated, they'll rent for £400-£425 a month.

If done by itself, without next door, it's going to be £300-£350.

'So research is the key here. Find out about the adjoining properties

'and you could be in with a chance of making a profit, long term.'

TARDIS NOISES

It would take Doctor Who and all his assistants, past and present, to sort this place out.

You've got to ask, is it worth it? I'm not so sure.

Let's see who fancied taking on the challenge.

Lot 101A, which is 55 Wildbrook Road, Little Hulton.

Vacant property, it's got fire damage. Needs work doing to it.

But on that basis, who will give me £1,000 for it? Someone give me £1,000?

Will you give me £1,000? 2? Can I say 2?

2,000 behind you. 3. 4.

5. 6. 7.

8? No. With you, sir, at 7. Looking for 8.

Are we finished at 7?

Will you give me 8, sir? 8, new bidder. 9.

10?

There's 10. 11?

No? I'll take 10 and a half.

No? 10 here, then. Going for the first time at 10.

Second time at 10.

Third and final time.

£10,000. Are we finished?

We are now, sir. It belongs to you. Number 951. Well done.

'So with his bid of £10,000, the new owner is Italian-born former banker Attilio.

'I met him outside the property to find out what he had planned for it.'

-Attilio, nice to meet you.

-Nice to meet you!

-I hope you like a challenge!

-Yes!

-So why did you want to buy this?

-I want to do something strange that I never did in my life.

When I had a reason about things, they always turned out to be wrong. This time I went by instinct.

-I saw there was a cheap property and I bought it.

-Did you see it?

-No.

-One of those things, you know.

-Right. So you just saw it in the auction catalogue.

I saw it and the name Little Hulton looks very pretty.

So I thought for that money I can't buy a second-hand car.

I tried twice to come over here and look at it, but always there was some incident

like I got lost on the road. In the end, I said I'll take a chance.

# Come on and take a chance with me. #

'Well, what a chance to take. Buying without viewing is risky.

'Buying property that's fire damaged verges on the reckless.

'So what does Attilio think now?'

I thought, "My God, what have I done?"

I asked a few friends to have a look and they said, you know, from their point of view

I'd got what we call a sole. In Italy, sole is when somebody flogs you something worth nothing.

-They think you were sold a pup. That's what we call it here.

-Yeah!

Throwing money away!

-But it's all your fault!

-It might be your fault!

-My fault?!

-Your programme encourage me to go to the auction!

-I always tell people to look first! Don't blame me!

I know, but it's away up here and it costs £100.

So I thought I'd take a chance for £10,000 and that's it.

'So Attilio didn't view the property or get a survey.

'He just took a chance on the name Little Hulton and spent 10 grand.

'I need to find out more.' Do you own other property?

-I have two properties in Italy, but in this country this is the first.

-Are they better than this?

The one I have is on the beach. You can just walk into the sea.

You dive, go back, have breakfast, then go back to the beach all day. Come and go as you please.

-So a bit of a change to here.

-A big change. But on the other hand your house is where your heart is.

You've got your daughters here, your grandchildren, you want six months and six months.

# Left your little daddy all alone... #

'He worked in the UK from the late '70s to the early '90s,

'but Attilio eventually decided to retire back in Italy. With three daughters in Britain,

'even the beach couldn't lure him away from being close to them. But not too close, apparently.'

I'm staying with one of my three daughters. Relatives are like shoes.

The tighter and closer they are, the more they hurt.

So I wanted a place of my own.

'But I guess this is not exactly what Attilio had in mind.'

Why not buy somewhere to move into?

I have been trying for two months. I went to all the estate agents.

"Can you find me a property for £80,000 cash?" They all offer me places nobody wants.

And they want to flog it to me because he's got cash and doesn't see the problems.

-And you bought this!

-I bought this. But I'm still looking for a proper property, something suitable.

In the area of, let's say, 5-10 miles from Stockport,

I will buy it if the price is right.

'In the meantime, Attilio is down 10 grand, plus his fees,

'and has saddled himself with this place.' So what are the options?

Well, either get rid of it straight away, in the next auction...

-And what...?

-Then you pay the fees and, if you sell, pay fees again. It costs another £1,700.

So if you don't get at least what you paid for, you'd be out of pocket.

I've been searching the local council to see who are the owners of the other two,

what intentions they have to refurbish, to sell or buy mine.

And, in the end, I will decide.

-I am hopeful somebody comes along. I can't be the only fool.

-You can't?

-There must be somebody else.

-But you did it with good intentions.

-The intention was good, yes, the action wasn't!

I know it hasn't turned out as you anticipated, but good luck.

Thank you very much! I need luck!

# Baby, won't you please come home? #

So, be honest, would you have paid even £10,000 for this place?

I'm not sure that Attilio wishes he had, and he's certainly got a lot of challenges ahead.

He's got to sort out next door and decide what to do with it. Pretty grim options.

Find out how he gets on later.

I'm in Penge, south-east London, an area that has had a mixed reputation over the years.

'What it lacks in fashion, it makes up for with lovely Victorian houses and decent transport links,

'soon to be further improved with the East London Line.'

The property I'm here to see today is a four-bedroom, semi-detached.

It's got a guide price - wait for it - of £190,000.

Anyone can see that is crazily low for a house of this size in London.

Haha! Unless it's derelict.

But no, here it is. At first glance, more of a gem than a shell, I'd say.

Let's have a look inside through the biggest front door I've ever seen. I love that.

'It looks as though they made them big and solid in Penge.

'Houses in this street all look pretty authentic. With luck, we'll get some original features,

'but with that guide price, let's hope I'm not disappointed.'

Well, what an impact!

Wow! from the outside, the house is certainly handsome, but inside...this blows me away.

I was half expecting the ceiling to be waiting for me on the floor, but no, it's intact.

It's absolutely amazing. Look at that staircase. You can just imagine Victorian ladies

sweeping down the stairs with a grand piano playing.

Calm down, Lucy. What a good start!

'Splendid, magical, opulent. All those words could describe this entrance,

'but I think WOW just covers it.

'The Victorians loved this part of London and what a legacy they've left us.

'Ceiling roses, original spindles and simple cornicing. Just look at that stairwell.'

This is the front reception room and the wonderful proportions continue. You've even got your own chandelier!

Putting my developer's head on, it's a shame the original windows have been replaced with UPVC.

But some people do prefer double glazing and these are sash at least.

The shutters have also disappeared. I'd get those reinstated.

And the fireplace - that's long gone. This colour scheme, though, is terribly oppressive.

Because of the scale of the house, you can almost take it.

I've yet to find a reason for that super-low guide price. Fingers crossed I don't.

'The ground floor covers a huge footprint. There's a small study with doors out to the back.

'I say small, but it isn't really. Just the smallest here.

'There's another big reception room with beautiful stripped floorboards leading to the modest kitchen.'

With three reception rooms and this small kitchen, the best thing would be to knock through

to create a kitchen diner. Now this is a large family home and, in my opinion,

you really need an open plan living/eating space. One thing - before your plans race away -

get a structural engineer in. This may be a supporting wall

and you have to factor in all sorts of steel support costs.

But it would really be worth it.

'While you're knocking down that wall for a fabulous kitchen diner,

'you may as well put double doors in to make use of that garden.

'And, yes, it's absolutely vast.

'Now I can't put it off any longer. I need to climb that grand staircase.'

The space is equally impressive upstairs. You've got four fab double bedrooms here.

And a bathroom and separate toilet. But the toilets let the house down.

At the moment, you've only got one.

Personally, I'd relocate this boiler, steal some of the bathroom space and create a shower room

with the loo next door. The bedrooms aren't big enough for ensuites.

Even if it would cost £3,000, it would be money well spent and worth it for family harmony!

'There aren't many changes I'd make and you wouldn't need to do them all to make it habitable.

'There's a bit of damp in some rooms, but that could be something as simple as leaky guttering.

'The place has been rented out in the past, so there's the usual wear and tear, but not too much.

'Get some neutral paint on the walls and it would be transformed.

'Well, I'm sold. Let's find out what a local estate agent thinks of it.'

This is a fantastic house to market. You just don't see them any more.

The house would normally be converted into two or three flats,

but it's still the original house, original features, the staircase, cornicing. Fantastic.

The feeling of it is space, which makes you feel very free in it.

There's room to move, which is fantastic.

'How much would it cost to bring this splendid place up to standard?'

You could probably spend £10,000 and get a really nice house. Or spend twice that for a fantastic house.

'There's a bit of work to do, but will the valuation be more than the £190,000 guide price?'

Looking at the house in its current state, I'd value it around the £360,000-£370,000 mark.

With a little bit of TLC, the wall taken down between the kitchen and the walk-through room,

bathroom done and just redecorated, I think you'd be looking somewhere between £450,000 and £500,000.

All in all, I can't explain the guide price. The house is tired, but amazing! The location is great,

it's on a pleasant road and near to good transport links. It could just be they had to sell at any price.

And with such a low guide, interest could be heightened.

Let's see who rose to the challenge at the auction.

5 Avington Grove, Penge, SE20.

Where do you want to start? 150 to you.

What's the next one?

160? You really think you're going to get it at 160?

175. Good.

180. 185. 190 at the back.

200. 205, yeah? 205.

210. 215. 220.

225.

230. 235. 240.

250. 251.

252, down here. 252.

253. 254. 255.

260. 265.

270. I'll take it down here. 275.

280. 285.

290. 295.

300. 305. 310.

315. 320. 325. 330.

335. 340.

345. 350.

351. 352? No.

351. First time.

Second time. Third and last time. Have you all done?

'For £351,000 - which was £161,000 over the guide price -

'the new owner of that fabulous Victorian house is Simon.

'It wasn't him bidding in the auction, so who was it?'

It was my sister, Sandra. She went for me. I had an away day at work and I had to go.

I had to miss the auction, unfortunately. But she did it for me.

When you saw this house for the first time, did you get her advice?

I did. I saw it in the catalogue. I saw it online.

Straight away I found it very, very striking.

I came down the next morning and had a look. It just blew me away. Then I phoned my sister

so she drove down an hour later with her husband and son and we all looked at it.

-And went, "Oh! Got to have it!"

-Absolutely.

'It's worth jumping for. This is a rare house that looks better in real life than in the catalogue.'

It was only when I viewed it as part of the official viewing that I appreciated the scale of it.

It's so big, which is great.

There was quite a low guide price. When I saw it, I was taken aback with the low guide price.

-Why do you think it was set so low?

-I presume to generate interest.

Some people thought they'd get it near to that price.

We had worked out that it would go well above the guide price

and, fortunately, my sister got the property for me.

But it had been undervalued by a surveyor,

which did present problems for me in terms of completion, but we were able to iron out those problems.

'Having sorted out the mortgage, how is Simon going to improve his new home?'

With the kitchen, there's a reception next door to that. I'll knock through to create a large kitchen diner.

-It really needs that.

-That's right. And there's no loo on the ground floor, so I need to sort that out.

Upstairs, there's just the one large bathroom so I'll be looking at creating two bathrooms,

possibly one with ensuite, which will be great for the master bedroom.

'Some grand ideas, and I think the right ones,

'but contact a structural engineer before removing walls.

-'Now over to Simon's sister.' How much do you love this staircase?

-It's fantastic!

-What did you love so much?

-The character, the space.

-The fact that there's so much that you can do.

-When you first walked into the house

-and you saw that, didn't it blow you away?

-I just thought, "Wow!"

-Gone With The Wind!

-Did you?

-Yeah, I thought it was fantastic.

-So, tell me, did you want Simon to buy this house as much as he did?

-Yes.

I thought, "If you don't, I will." I loved the space, the character.

Can't wait to help him restore it to its former glory.

'It sounds as if Simon has some willing help, but what budget does he have?'

Overall, probably, ballpark, £35-40K,

but that depends on me selling my apartment in Spain.

So phase one will probably be a couple of thousand on largely cosmetic work,

tidying it up. The phase two we'll be able to do the more major work, like knocking through walls,

doing up the kitchen, the bathroom and stuff like that.

Simon has to wait for the sale of his Spanish home before he can really get cracking. So frustrating!

I love his plans for the house, but his budget could easily double.

Fireplaces and features, they don't come cheap, but what a project!

And with his family on hand, I'm sure it'll be a huge success. Find out what happens later.

Still to come: a property in Salcombe with options, but not the obvious ones.

You couldn't use it to stay.

In south-east London, can Simon's dream become reality?

I'm thrilled with how it's turned out. It's unrecognisable from how it was.

But first, did Attilio get his fingers burnt by the Salford semi?

There must be somebody else!

Little Hulton near Salford is an area that's been undergoing some transformation of late

and there are good properties to be had, but Italian-born former banker Attilio didn't want one of those.

He wanted this - a burnt-out, three-bedroom, end of terrace house that he bought for 10 grand.

I saw the auction catalogue and the name Little Hulton looks very pretty.

So I thought for that money I can't buy a second-hand car.

'Now, like Attilio, you might think that at that price he can't go wrong,

'but with the two adjoining properties in a similar state,

'Attilio had to face up to some pretty tough choices.'

Get rid of it straight away in the next auction and pay the fees again, another £1,700.

So I've been searching the local council to see who owns the other two, what intention they have

to refurbish, sell, or to buy my property. And in the end I will decide.

'Well, five months on, just what did Attilio decide to do in the end?'

It was a big help, the internet. I went through there to find out who were the people responsible,

whether there was any plan in the area to redevelop the whole area,

and the main thing was who owned the other two houses?

I couldn't repair my roof without the other people concerned. The roof covered two houses.

So I find out that the local council owned the other two places and I got in contact with them.

'But the council had transferred those two houses, along with many others, to a local housing trust.

'Their commercial asset manager, Jennifer, explains.'

We were formed 12 months ago when the council did a stock transfer.

We're a brand-new company and we owned the two properties next door.

The third one had fallen into private ownership a number of years ago

and they had been a blight on the area for a number of years.

It's a big problem for the residents, a big issue.

When the opportunity came up for us to purchase it at auction,

we thought it was a great chance to deliver a big regeneration project to improve the area.

'So Attilio did eventually decide to put it back into an auction.

'He hoped to get the best possible price for it and cover his costs.'

I thought I'd thrown £10,000 away, but when I went to the auction and the outcome was positive,

I thought, well, I know, we have a saying in Italy that says... SPEAKS IN ITALIAN

Which is, "Not all the evils come for damage."

-After the evil, something good came and I made a profit.

-'Attilio bought it for £10,000.

'So just how much profit did he end up with when he put it back into the auction?'

I wanted 18 before the auction and when I went to the auction it was sold for £19,100.

'After covering his costs, Attilio is emerging from this with around £5,000 profit,

'but he knows he's been lucky. Now his advice to others will always be do your research.'

If you don't, you will end up with my problem, but whereas I made a profit, you will make a loss.

So think twice before the big step.

'Attilio actually bought another property at the same auction,

'but this time he's learnt his lesson.'

This one, I saw it, I took a builder along, we walked all around, looked underneath cabinets,

wardrobes, roof and everything. And it was worthwhile doing it.

The house is there. I can move in any time, but for the time being I have not made up my mind yet.

Whenever I want to move, I just furnish and that's it. Great. I can stay near my grandchildren,

come and go as I please and not be restricted in my movements.

'So it's a good result for Attilio. What about the poor old property? What's going to happen to that?

'Well, the housing trust have already started improvements to it and the others alongside it.

'Jennifer sees their latest purchase as a very positive step forward for the area.'

To improve the way the area looks by doing something fantastic to those

will not only improve those properties, but will have an effect on the others in the area, too.

So just how big an effect could this regeneration have?

We invited two local estate agents along to find out.

'In the area, there's a lot of housing trusts coming in, taking over properties, renovating them

'for rent or housing association sales.'

It's helping with the area to not have so many derelict properties. And it's leading to sales.

With the new build in recent years and now a major refurbishment

of the whole housing estate, that's only good for the future.

We've completed on two last week, selling two-beds in the region of £60,000.

So things have moved along.

'When I first visited, the estate agent estimated a resale value of £40,000

'for this three-bedroom property once renovated. What does he think now the housing trust's doing it?'

Now we're here for the second time,

things have changed quite a bit.

It's owned now by one vendor, they can deal with it in a totally different way and renovate correctly.

We'd put it on the market in the region of £75,000.

I'd estimate at £70,000.

'The agents both estimated rental income of £400-£450 per calendar month.

'The housing trust will need to put a considerable sum into this to renovate them,

'but by doing them simultaneously they will also save a lot.

'So what's the next move for Jennifer and the trust?'

We think the future looks really bright for Little Hulton. We're investing lots of resources

and developing strong relationships with our customers. We think we can deliver some great improvements.

# If you're fond of sand dunes and salty air

# Quaint little villages here and there... #

South Devon. The South Hams, to be precise.

As far as I'm concerned, Britain does not get more beautiful than this.

It's popular with holidaymakers, a fantastic place to live

and one of the most popular places in the area is Salcombe.

'You can get there by car, of course, but on a day like today,

'there seems to be only one appropriate way to head towards the town's quay.'

# If you're fond of sand dunes and salty air... #

Property prices in Salcombe are some of the highest in the country

and have gone up dramatically in recent years,

but it's easy to understand why. This fishing port is now a haven for yachties and the well-to-do.

So when you hear about a property on sale here which had a guide price of just 12,000 quid...

let me off the boat!

# Fresh off the boat! Fresh off the boat!

# Fresh off the boat! Fresh off the boat! #

This is the very heart of Salcombe. This is where the property is located.

It should give you a clue - it's not residential, it's commercial. It's round here somewhere.

It's not very big.

Well, that is an understatement.

In property terms, it's microscopic.

Um, let's just pace it out. It's about three metres that way

by about one metre that way.

Not much head height.

So...realistically, what could you use this for?

Well, it could be a small gallery.

I don't know. A business of some sort?

Maybe a taxi firm could set up here? I don't know.

You'd have to think quite carefully.

One thing for sure, you couldn't use it as somewhere to stay - well, maybe a blow-up bed.

Planners wouldn't like that.

Limited potential, I'd say.

# Ain't that a shame... #

'I wasn't expecting much for 12 grand, but even as a commercial property, this is very basic.

'There's no running water or toilet facilities. Just a few plug sockets, an electric heater

'and enough space for a desk.

'It used to be part of the adjoining shop, but was separated off as a long leasehold some years ago.

'It's been a jeweller's, a glass engravers and, more recently, a holiday lettings office.

'With no room to extend or to store stock, what could you do with it?

'Perhaps a local estate agent could offer some alternative suggestions.'

As you've seen, it isn't the biggest.

More than likely going to appeal to somebody who offers a service, more so than goods.

If you don't need to store things, it's be great.

I'd be using it as a base - a desk and a telephone. As simple as that.

'It's not much larger than a phone box, but with its frontage in a prime location in Salcombe,

'to the right business, this little space could be a big opportunity.'

Salcombe is a particularly nice coastal town.

Traditionally a holiday destination. A lot of second homes, London money is down here.

The businesses we see around us survive mainly on summer trade,

so when the sun's out they enjoy it and make good money.

'With that guide price of £12,000, would there be any money to be made from this as a property investment?'

If somebody developed the shop,

it would possibly go for middle to late 20s, maybe a little more. There would be good interest.

'If you got it at the guide price, you could double your money.

'With a possible rental of £500 per calendar month, this place could pay for itself in just two years.'

It's not exactly a holiday cottage overlooking the estuary, but this is a chance to invest in Salcombe.

However, you've got to be careful. It's very much a seasonal place.

Make sure your commercial opportunity is going to work year-round.

Let's see who went for it.

23 - 78 Forth Street. It is tiny.

Room for a desk, someone to sit and perhaps chat to 2 or 3 people without moving too much to the music.

Who's going to say £15,000?

10, then. Not going less than 10. Someone will put their hand up.

Thank you. 10 on my right. Do I have 12? 12. At 14.

16, thank you.

18. 19 - would that help?

20. At 20.

21 or not? OK, 20 half.

20 half. 21. Looking out for a half somewhere.

21 and a half. 22. 22 and a half.

At 23. Have a think. 23 and a half.

24? 24. Madam?

A half. 24 and a half.

25. At 25.

Nice little unit. Good spot. At 25 on the phone. Half.

26. 26 and a half.

27. 27 and a half. At 27 and a half. He or she is thinking.

27 and a half. At £27,500 for the first time.

At £27,500, second time. Looking to the phone.

At 27 and a half, the lady in the room's got it. At 27 and a half.

Well done.

'At £27,500, that small space went for a big sum,

'well over the £12,000 guide price.

'The new owners are Suzanne and her sister Angela. They own the sweet shop and the grocer's

'on either side of the property. It's easy to see why they were extremely keen to get it.'

-Angela, Suzanne, lovely to meet you both.

-And you.

Congratulations. What a fantastic place to meet you!

Tell me about this place before we talk about the place you bought.

-This shop we've had for 27 years.

-Yeah, just about.

27 years we've had this shop. Mike who owned it before us gave our dad a job.

He wanted to move out of the country, so Dad said, "Do you fancy buying the sweet shop?"

-So it's been in your family for 27 years.

-But we've known it all our lives. We were brought up here.

-This was our sweet shop.

-We called in when we were little.

# Sweet dreams are made of this... #

'How lovely. It must be every child's dream to own a sweet shop

'and Angela and Suzanne's dad made that happen for them.'

-So, coming on to what you bought...

-The postage stamp next door!

I'm glad you're realistic about it. Not that big, is it, really?

-No.

-No. It just seemed the most sensible thing to do.

We desperately needed storage room. That is our biggest problem, especially with the pantry,

for our deliveries, so it just seemed an ideal investment to use it for storage.

-So that's why you bought it. As a big cupboard.

-Yeah.

-Pretty much what it is!

With advertising in the window!

# Sweets for my sweet sugar for my honey... #

'With sweets, sugar, honey and all manner of other items vying for space, their current premises

'are bursting at the seams. Extra space will be extremely useful.

'And it seems that was enough to put some people off bidding.'

It was rather nice as far as local businesses were concerned, shops around here.

I had various proprietors come in and say, "Are you going for next door?" and I would say yes

-and they'd say, "Then we won't," which is rather nice.

-So the locals actually supported you?

-Yes.

-"We won't bid against you."

-Yes. In fact, there was someone down at the auction.

I was looking around to see if there was anybody from Salcombe that I knew. There was a person I saw.

And he didn't bid at all when he saw that I was bidding for it.

'Unfortunately for the sisters, with two telephone bidders and a desirable location,

'the price did rise considerably. But one local business that will benefit directly from their win

'is the laundrette right behind. That gives me a chance to talk to another member of the family.'

# Some of them want to get used by you... #

-Betty, you're Angela and Suzanne's mum?

-Yes.

-And you run the laundrette.

-This little laundrette!

-It's so tiny!

-Yes!

-Brilliant.

-But it does for the town.

-I've sure it's a very valuable service.

-What do you think about the girls buying...?

-I'm thrilled to bits.

I was thrilled to bits about it because the two girls have worked hard and they needed space.

With that coming up on the market, they were lucky.

How will it affect you here?

-It won't affect us at all.

-It might clear the corridor.

-It will.

The only thing that upsets me is the corridor. It never was like that.

I'm always moaning.

Do you think that even with this new place they'll have enough storage?

-Yes, they will.

-Really?

-Yes.

-For how long?

Well, how long is a piece of string?

Eh?

'How long, indeed? But at least for a while Mum won't have to nag her daughters to tidy up.'

# Sweet dreams are made of this Who am I to disagree... #

It really feels like the right people made the winning bid at the auction.

It seems like the local community agree. The only question is

even with this extra place will Suzanne and Angela have enough space for all their stuff?

I'm not so sure. You can find out later in the show.

The months have slipped by since we first met our intrepid buyers.

-How have they got on? Has it been a joy or a chore?

-Let's find out.

'Property developer Sandra had bought this four-bedroom Victorian house in Penge, south-east London,

'on behalf of her brother Simon.

'He didn't go to the auction and it went for £351,000,

'which was £161,000 above the guide price.

'With a rather wild garden and a bit of work required inside,

'this was a grand building in need of sympathetic maintenance.'

With the kitchen, there's a reception next door to that. I'll knock through to create a large kitchen diner.

'Well, that's the wall Simon was talking about removing.

'And what a difference it makes!

'Just look at all that open space.

'Has Man U fan Simon kept true to his colours? Or gone for something more neutral?

'Oh, good. He has gone neutral. And that space just keeps going all the way to that garden.'

I'm really thrilled with how it's turned out. It's unrecognisable from previously.

I've opened it up.

It's very airy, spacious, I really love the kitchen diner.

This is the room where people tend to congregate.

The fact now that I've got a really nice garden with the bi-folding doors means a fantastic backdrop to it.

'Wow. It's looking so much better.

'There are more doors and fewer walls.

'And it's not only in the kitchen that Simon's made his mark. He's had time for other stylish touches.'

The house is great, but I have to say this is my favourite feature of all - the fireplace.

I'd been looking on the internet for several months. Couldn't find anything that I liked.

Then I walked past a local shop and saw this in the front window. I had to have it.

It was quite expensive - about £3,000 in total - but I think it's worth it.

I just think it's a great feature and sets off this room really well.

'From flaming red to red flames. That will keep him warm in the winter.

'It's good to have home comforts.'

There was one day where we went without water and my dad and I were living here

and we had to have a toss-up as to who had the last of the hot water for a shower.

Fortunately, I won that.

'It wasn't only Simon's father who helped. His whole family and some friends mucked in.

'He hopes their hard work will be rewarded soon with barbecues in that newly-tamed garden.

'And surely Simon must have spent hours labouring to make it look so manicured now.'

To be frank, I've never had a garden before, I don't know anything about gardening,

I've been totally dependent on the gardener.

He was the one who made me, or persuaded me, to be bolder in what I wanted to do.

The patio, the work that was involved in doing that, I totally underestimated.

I had my two brothers. They helped me to do a lot of the work. And a couple of labourers.

With hindsight, I would have had professionals come in and do it.

'It may have been hard work, but it looks great.

'There's plenty of scope for entertaining. So the ground floor has certainly changed.

'Let's check out upstairs.'

As you can see, I haven't done much work up here yet, but I do have bold plans for it.

There's the back bedroom. What I want to do is chop off the bathroom

and use half of that for an ensuite. It'll be a nice master bedroom.

Then I've got a separate WC here. I'm going to knock through to create a nice, large family bathroom.

Then I'll put another ensuite in the next largest bedroom.

That will be phase two. And then phase three, perhaps, will be to convert the loft,

so maybe one large bedroom there, creating a five-bedroom house.

'Even with the loft conversion and ensuite bathrooms still to be done,

'Simon has brought this tired-looking Victorian house back to life.

'But I imagine he hasn't done it at Victorian prices.'

Ballpark figure, £60,000.

Originally, I thought I would spend between £30,000 and £35,000.

I sold my place in Spain so that's funded the refurbishment.

I think, basically, my vision became bolder and I was happy, therefore, to spend the extra money.

'Remember, it was his sister Sandra who started spending Simon's money at the auction.

-'I'd say it was a great buy.'

-He absolutely loves it. It's his baby. He's very proud of it.

He's lord of the manor now!

This great big house that he's rattling around in. He loves it, and he's very proud of it.

'And so he should be.

'With 60 grand already spent, on top of the £351,000 purchase price,

'we asked two local estate agents to come and have a look around.'

The actual appearance of the property is a period Victorian property and it's very attractive.

As you come in the door, then it's a gobsmacker. The work they've done is really good.

The kitchen is amazing. They need to do this throughout the property.

I'm pretty impressed. I could see that there was work going on

and a bit of building work.

As soon as you walk in, it's the wow factor. You can see straight through to the kitchen and garden.

High ceilings, the real character of these houses.

Vast volume spaces. Great.

'That all sounds very positive. With £411,000 already invested in this property,

'what do the estate agents value it at in its current state?'

As it stands now, probably around £480,000-£500,000.

You're probably looking around the half million mark.

They've done a cracking job downstairs and can do upstairs.

'With a valuation of £480,000-£500,000,

'that's a profit so far of £69,000-£89,000!'

Wow! That's fantastic. I'm really pleased.

Although I've spent about £60,000 already, clearly there's quite a big profit margin,

although I'm not looking to sell. And I've got plans for further work.

I did say when I bought it

that I wanted to return it to its former glory. Hopefully, I'm well on the road to doing that.

# Come with me

# And you'll be in a world of pure imagination... #

'With its pretty quayside and quaint streets, Salcombe in Devon attracts many visitors.

'For Angela and Suzanne, sisters with two shops catering to tourists,

'it was their childhood dream come true. The sweetshop has been in the family for 27 years,

'but carrying enough stock for it and the grocer's was a nightmare.

'So when the tiny property in-between came up for grabs, they spent £27,500

'to buy it at auction.

'Three months on, with a coat of sugar-pink paint on the exterior and a new awning,

'it feels much more in keeping with its sweetshop neighbour.

'With only a few square metres, it's more like a glass elevator than Charlie's chocolate factory,

'but as far as Suzanne is concerned, the sisters certainly got their hands on a winning ticket.'

I don't think we realised just how valuable it was going to be to us.

It's hard for people to understand the amount that was paid for it,

but if they were in our situation, not just the sweetshop,

but the big boxes, the deliveries come in, straight in out of the way, not blocking up the shop.

We can look at it when we want to.

If you're busy, you can unload it later on. It's much, much easier.

'That kind of flexibility has meant they can buy in bigger bulk and manage their stock more effectively.

'And it's made access to Mum's laundrette easier, too.'

Now we don't have to keep anything in this alleyway at all. It looks good,

it's better for the customers and is much better for everybody.

# The sweetest feeling... #

'The window is proving to be a useful display cabinet, too.'

People say, "Oh! I didn't know you could get those any more!"

They're amazed that there are still sweets they used to get still there in jars.

-It's been a good selling point.

-It has.

-Whether we keep it like that I don't know.

-I think we will.

# Loving you-ou... #

'At one point they considered renting out advertising space in the window to other businesses,

'but it doesn't sound likely now. They have spent just a few hundred pounds tying this property in

'with their others, mostly on the awning.

'It takes their total investment for this one small room up to just over £28,000.

'In the long term, it could be a very valuable addition to their other two businesses,

'but in the short term, has it increased in value at all?

'I invited a local property expert back to find out.

'Was £28,000 too much to spend on this small space?'

People might assume that the price per square foot was high.

But the advantage to them of having the extra storage space -

they had a couple of thousand pounds of stock lying around. It's secure.

Yeah, it's probably proved useful to them and beneficial and worthwhile.

'That certainly seems to be the view shared by their customers, but would it be worth anything to others?'

In this instance, they were the ideal buyer for that space

and they proved what it was worth to them by outbidding everybody else.

What it's worth really is difficult to say, on the day, if they were to resell it.

'It may not have much value to anyone else, but they know exactly what it's worth to them.'

-To us it is invaluable.

-Absolutely.

Worth its weight in gold.

That's it for today. Did our stories inspire you or put you off?

We hope you've enjoyed hearing these despatches.

-And there will be more on the next Homes Under The Hammer.

-See you then!

-Goodbye.

Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd - 2010

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