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Hello. Welcome to the show! | 0:00:00 | 0:00:01 | |
The auction property market is worth billions of pounds each year. | 0:00:01 | 0:00:05 | |
They're quite big numbers, so don't be put off by that. | 0:00:05 | 0:00:08 | |
No. Auctions are a level playing field. Anyone can take part | 0:00:08 | 0:00:12 | |
as long as you've got the cash and the confidence. | 0:00:12 | 0:00:16 | |
Now, there are property auctions all over the country and throughout the year. | 0:00:41 | 0:00:46 | |
So you're spoilt for choice. | 0:00:46 | 0:00:48 | |
Let's see which properties made their buyers part with their cash on today's show. | 0:00:48 | 0:00:53 | |
In Cheshire, this house may hold the key to finally shutting me up! | 0:00:54 | 0:00:58 | |
And at last! Shutters! | 0:00:58 | 0:01:01 | |
Fantastic! | 0:01:01 | 0:01:03 | |
There's a property in Gravesend, Kent, that gives me the chills! | 0:01:04 | 0:01:09 | |
Hold on a minute - there's no radiators in here. | 0:01:09 | 0:01:13 | |
And in Hammersmith, west London, | 0:01:14 | 0:01:16 | |
a flat that can't be your home. | 0:01:16 | 0:01:19 | |
Wow! In English, that means if you buy it, you can't live in it! | 0:01:19 | 0:01:24 | |
All these properties have been sold at auction. | 0:01:25 | 0:01:28 | |
We find out who bought them and what they paid when they went under the hammer. | 0:01:28 | 0:01:32 | |
Yours! | 0:01:32 | 0:01:33 | |
I'm in the affluent village of Bowdon in Cheshire, | 0:01:37 | 0:01:41 | |
popular with celebrities and some of the north-west's successful entrepreneurs. | 0:01:41 | 0:01:45 | |
Unsurprisingly, it boasts some impressive properties. | 0:01:45 | 0:01:49 | |
The house I'm here to see occupies this corner plot. | 0:01:49 | 0:01:54 | |
And pretty impressive it looks, too. | 0:01:54 | 0:01:56 | |
Three bedrooms. Had a guide price of 300 to 350,000 quid, | 0:01:56 | 0:02:01 | |
which for round here I think is tremendous value for money. | 0:02:01 | 0:02:04 | |
Question is, can the interior match up to the grand exterior? | 0:02:04 | 0:02:10 | |
The house is on a busy main road and sits on a corner plot, | 0:02:11 | 0:02:15 | |
flanked closely by its neighbours. | 0:02:15 | 0:02:17 | |
But I love the look of it and prices here have been static in the last few years, | 0:02:21 | 0:02:26 | |
a good indication of just how desirable this area is. | 0:02:26 | 0:02:29 | |
Great sense of anticipation. | 0:02:32 | 0:02:34 | |
But unfortunately, very disappointing when you come in here. | 0:02:34 | 0:02:40 | |
It's a good-sized space, lots of light pouring in, | 0:02:40 | 0:02:43 | |
but very little character. Lots of woodchip wallpaper. | 0:02:43 | 0:02:47 | |
Big space, though, the main living area here. | 0:02:47 | 0:02:49 | |
Down this corridor, a rear entrance through to a small courtyard. | 0:02:49 | 0:02:55 | |
Then through into the kitchen. | 0:02:55 | 0:02:57 | |
But once again, you expect something grand to match the house. | 0:02:57 | 0:03:02 | |
But fairly standard, run-of-the-mill stuff. It could be so much more. | 0:03:02 | 0:03:08 | |
But the space is quite nice. A family kitchen/dining area here, which is good. | 0:03:08 | 0:03:13 | |
And at last! Shutters! Fantastic! | 0:03:13 | 0:03:18 | |
Some original features! | 0:03:18 | 0:03:21 | |
Maybe all is not lost! | 0:03:21 | 0:03:22 | |
So far, the inside is in need of a good makeover | 0:03:24 | 0:03:28 | |
to help it match the outside. | 0:03:28 | 0:03:29 | |
Upstairs is a bathroom and three good-sized bedrooms, | 0:03:29 | 0:03:33 | |
all of which are crying out for some love and attention. | 0:03:33 | 0:03:37 | |
But this is a house with some hidden depths! | 0:03:41 | 0:03:44 | |
In terms of extending this house, | 0:03:44 | 0:03:47 | |
your options to go either side of it are fairly limited | 0:03:47 | 0:03:51 | |
because it's on this corner plot. However, | 0:03:51 | 0:03:53 | |
great news down here in the cellar. The only issue is the head height. | 0:03:53 | 0:03:58 | |
Ideally, you want this to be about 2.4 metres | 0:03:58 | 0:04:01 | |
to give a feeling of space and loftiness. | 0:04:01 | 0:04:03 | |
That's what the average room is. | 0:04:03 | 0:04:05 | |
This isn't, it's just over six foot. So what are the options? | 0:04:05 | 0:04:10 | |
One thing, which is what someone's been looking at here, is to dig down. | 0:04:10 | 0:04:15 | |
Dig away the floor, thereby giving extra head height. | 0:04:15 | 0:04:19 | |
But that is a very labour-intensive process. | 0:04:19 | 0:04:22 | |
All the muck, dirt, soil, has to be carried out by hand. | 0:04:22 | 0:04:26 | |
So it can be quite expensive and it's worth employing a specialist cellar contractor. | 0:04:26 | 0:04:31 | |
You want the walls damp-proofed, et cetera, et cetera. | 0:04:31 | 0:04:35 | |
And in an old building, you've also got to let it breathe. | 0:04:35 | 0:04:39 | |
So a great property with an unusual but potentially promising way to extend. | 0:04:39 | 0:04:45 | |
And it had a 300 to £350,000 guide price. | 0:04:45 | 0:04:49 | |
We asked a local estate agent | 0:04:49 | 0:04:50 | |
to cast his expert eye over it and give us his thoughts. | 0:04:50 | 0:04:54 | |
The house is located in a conservation area. | 0:04:55 | 0:04:58 | |
Because of that, we'll find it very, very difficult indeed | 0:04:58 | 0:05:02 | |
to get planning permission to alter the external appearance of the property. | 0:05:02 | 0:05:06 | |
However, there's a super basement area | 0:05:06 | 0:05:08 | |
and I think that's the place that will increase the footprint. | 0:05:08 | 0:05:14 | |
If someone were to modernise this place, but leave the basement be, | 0:05:14 | 0:05:19 | |
how much could it be worth? | 0:05:19 | 0:05:21 | |
The house renovated would easily make £500,000. | 0:05:21 | 0:05:25 | |
What impact could converting the cellar have on the sale price? | 0:05:25 | 0:05:30 | |
Assuming a full and complete renovation of the house | 0:05:30 | 0:05:33 | |
embracing the basement conversion, | 0:05:33 | 0:05:35 | |
I would suspect that this house would achieve in the late 500s, | 0:05:35 | 0:05:40 | |
possibly up to 600,000. | 0:05:40 | 0:05:42 | |
And if it were rented out? | 0:05:42 | 0:05:45 | |
A typical rental value for this house | 0:05:45 | 0:05:47 | |
would be in the order of £1,500 per calendar month. | 0:05:47 | 0:05:50 | |
So, a lovely house in a great location with bags of potential. | 0:05:52 | 0:05:56 | |
Especially when it comes to sorting out that cellar! | 0:05:56 | 0:05:59 | |
I'm sure this was a fantastically popular lot | 0:05:59 | 0:06:02 | |
when it went under the hammer! | 0:06:02 | 0:06:04 | |
Now, ladies and gentlemen, lot four. | 0:06:08 | 0:06:10 | |
How much can we say for this? | 0:06:10 | 0:06:12 | |
250. Thank you. | 0:06:12 | 0:06:14 | |
He'll not buy anything, but he'll start me off! | 0:06:14 | 0:06:18 | |
250,000 I've got. Thank you, sir. | 0:06:18 | 0:06:20 | |
260 now. 260. | 0:06:20 | 0:06:22 | |
270. 280. | 0:06:22 | 0:06:24 | |
Bidding continued to inch up for the next ten minutes. | 0:06:24 | 0:06:28 | |
Unusually long for an auction. It finally crept up to £355,000 | 0:06:28 | 0:06:35 | |
where we rejoin it. | 0:06:35 | 0:06:36 | |
355? Yes? 355. | 0:06:36 | 0:06:39 | |
355 and a half? Yes. | 0:06:39 | 0:06:41 | |
355 and a half. | 0:06:41 | 0:06:43 | |
356. | 0:06:43 | 0:06:45 | |
At 355 and a half I'm selling once. 356. | 0:06:45 | 0:06:48 | |
At 356. Are you going again? No? | 0:06:48 | 0:06:52 | |
At £356,000, this is not a dear house. You're going again. | 0:06:52 | 0:06:56 | |
356 and a half. | 0:06:56 | 0:06:58 | |
At 356... And 357. | 0:06:58 | 0:07:01 | |
357 and a half? | 0:07:01 | 0:07:03 | |
At £357,000, once. Twice. Third and final time. | 0:07:03 | 0:07:08 | |
At £357,000. Yours. | 0:07:08 | 0:07:13 | |
Successful with his bid of £357,000, was kitchen designer, David. | 0:07:13 | 0:07:20 | |
He was bidding on behalf of his girlfriend, Suzanne. | 0:07:20 | 0:07:23 | |
She had been looking for the perfect property in this area for two years. | 0:07:23 | 0:07:27 | |
She'd finally fallen in love when she found this one | 0:07:27 | 0:07:30 | |
which she plans to renovate with David. | 0:07:30 | 0:07:32 | |
Suzanne, David, good to meet you. Congratulations! Well done on surviving that marathon! | 0:07:32 | 0:07:38 | |
-It was, wasn't it? -What was it like being in it? | 0:07:38 | 0:07:40 | |
A bit hot under the collar! A bit strange and pressured, but we stayed in there. | 0:07:40 | 0:07:48 | |
-When it started out, you had no idea what would happen. -No. | 0:07:48 | 0:07:51 | |
-We're not familiar with auctions. -I'd never been to an auction. | 0:07:51 | 0:07:55 | |
-I wanted David to do the bidding. -Before we went in, | 0:07:55 | 0:08:00 | |
I said to Suzanne what I thought we'd have to go to to get it. | 0:08:00 | 0:08:04 | |
And we weren't very far off on that. | 0:08:04 | 0:08:07 | |
Suzanne, why were you so keen to buy this house? | 0:08:07 | 0:08:10 | |
I went by my instincts. I was very excited about it. | 0:08:10 | 0:08:14 | |
I hadn't felt excited about any house I'd viewed in two years, so I though I'd go for it. | 0:08:14 | 0:08:20 | |
What got you going about this house? | 0:08:20 | 0:08:22 | |
I just could see it having a lot of charm once I'd finished with it. | 0:08:22 | 0:08:28 | |
I liked the look on the outside. It's 150 years old and it looks cute. | 0:08:28 | 0:08:33 | |
There's something about it. I love the brickwork. And I love the area. | 0:08:33 | 0:08:37 | |
Tell me exactly what you're planning to do. | 0:08:37 | 0:08:40 | |
We're going to completely transform the cellars downstairs. | 0:08:40 | 0:08:44 | |
-The cellars? -Yes. | 0:08:44 | 0:08:45 | |
We have two and a half rooms downstairs, and we've found a further room below this kitchen. | 0:08:45 | 0:08:50 | |
-What have you found? -Once we got the house and we brought a builder down, | 0:08:50 | 0:08:55 | |
they pulled away a wood panel and the whole area was doubled up. | 0:08:55 | 0:09:00 | |
The area under the kitchen has actually already been partly excavated | 0:09:00 | 0:09:05 | |
and hopefully it's not too big a job when you're doing all the work | 0:09:05 | 0:09:09 | |
to almost double the room that was downstairs when we first saw the house. | 0:09:09 | 0:09:14 | |
-What a find that was! -Yeah. | 0:09:14 | 0:09:16 | |
How fantastic. That, as well as the additional room the cellar already offered | 0:09:16 | 0:09:21 | |
means even more for Suzanne to work with down there. | 0:09:21 | 0:09:24 | |
That allows more freedom in what she chooses to do with the rest of the house. | 0:09:26 | 0:09:30 | |
And she's got further plans. | 0:09:30 | 0:09:33 | |
We're going to drop all these walls and have bi-folding glass doors | 0:09:33 | 0:09:37 | |
-so that all you see when you walk in is the courtyard. -Wow. -Yes. | 0:09:37 | 0:09:41 | |
So it'll all be open-plan in here? | 0:09:41 | 0:09:44 | |
Open-plan, but it's already open-plan as you walk through the front door. | 0:09:44 | 0:09:49 | |
We'll have a glass door to the kitchen. | 0:09:49 | 0:09:52 | |
Suzanne, convenient to hook up with a kitchen designer! | 0:09:52 | 0:09:56 | |
Yes! | 0:09:56 | 0:09:57 | |
-Was there a plan there? -No, absolutely not. | 0:09:57 | 0:10:01 | |
No, no plan. He's just got to prove himself now! | 0:10:01 | 0:10:06 | |
-David, what plans have you got for the kitchen? -In this case, | 0:10:06 | 0:10:09 | |
I have a very important client. So it's a trickier one. | 0:10:09 | 0:10:14 | |
The main thing is that this window is going to come out | 0:10:14 | 0:10:18 | |
and that's where the bi-folding doors will go across. | 0:10:18 | 0:10:21 | |
So there's a couple of choices. At the end of the day, | 0:10:21 | 0:10:25 | |
in this case, Suzanne makes those decisions. I want her to have the kitchen she wants. | 0:10:25 | 0:10:30 | |
But basically we're going to use this wall for the majority of the kitchen in terms of units. | 0:10:30 | 0:10:36 | |
We have a choice in terms of sink whether we use that window or not. | 0:10:36 | 0:10:40 | |
We'll probably get an island in here. But until we knock the wall down, | 0:10:40 | 0:10:44 | |
and get a feel for it, then we'll sit down and work it out. | 0:10:44 | 0:10:48 | |
There are always options and then it's personal choice. | 0:10:48 | 0:10:51 | |
I'm there to lend a guiding hand. | 0:10:51 | 0:10:53 | |
What kind of budget have you set aside? | 0:10:53 | 0:10:56 | |
-Probably round about 60 to 70,000. -Including the cellar and everything? | 0:10:56 | 0:11:01 | |
-Mm-hmm. It's a bit of a guideline at the moment. -Good luck. I look forward to seeing how you get on. | 0:11:01 | 0:11:07 | |
-Thank you. -Thank you. | 0:11:07 | 0:11:09 | |
So, will the property turn out to be worth that marathon battle at the auction? | 0:11:10 | 0:11:16 | |
David and Suzanne have certainly got some good ideas. | 0:11:16 | 0:11:19 | |
And discovering that additional bit of cellar | 0:11:19 | 0:11:24 | |
that has to be a great start. | 0:11:24 | 0:11:25 | |
Find out how they get on later in the show. | 0:11:25 | 0:11:28 | |
I'm in Gravesend in Kent, part of the Thames Gateway Redevelopment Zone. | 0:11:39 | 0:11:44 | |
That means it falls within the 70-mile stretch of land from East London | 0:11:44 | 0:11:48 | |
to Kent that's been earmarked for new homes, better infrastructure, new jobs and improved town centres. | 0:11:48 | 0:11:55 | |
It already boasts a high-speed train which transports you into the capital in under 30 minutes | 0:11:55 | 0:12:00 | |
so it's commuter heaven! | 0:12:00 | 0:12:02 | |
You're a couple of miles from the train station here on this 1950s estate. | 0:12:02 | 0:12:07 | |
It's a pleasant suburban spot, nice and green, | 0:12:07 | 0:12:10 | |
it's well-maintained, lovely gardens. | 0:12:10 | 0:12:13 | |
It gives you a positive feel for the place even before we reach the property. | 0:12:13 | 0:12:17 | |
I'm here to see a three-bed house with room for improvement. | 0:12:17 | 0:12:20 | |
Words we like on Homes Under the Hammer! | 0:12:20 | 0:12:23 | |
It doesn't look too terrible from the outside. | 0:12:23 | 0:12:25 | |
Certainly for the guide price of 95 to 105,000. | 0:12:25 | 0:12:30 | |
It's a very solid square box of a property. It's not instantly appealing | 0:12:39 | 0:12:43 | |
with no features to speak of, but I'm hoping a look inside will reveal some great living space. | 0:12:43 | 0:12:50 | |
A lot of brown tones with this house. | 0:12:50 | 0:12:52 | |
Brown front door, brown banisters, brown windows, | 0:12:52 | 0:12:55 | |
which tells me it's quite dark, a bit old-fashioned and needs modernising. | 0:12:55 | 0:13:00 | |
Get the white, bright paint out, I say! | 0:13:00 | 0:13:02 | |
But a very nice hallway. It's nice and wide. Very welcoming. | 0:13:02 | 0:13:06 | |
The kitchen, look, it's incredibly dated. All the units need replacing. | 0:13:06 | 0:13:12 | |
New cooker, new hob, but what I like is the space. | 0:13:12 | 0:13:16 | |
There is a lot you could do in here. | 0:13:16 | 0:13:18 | |
The same could be said of this room. It's dated, but it's spacious. | 0:13:18 | 0:13:23 | |
Lots of opportunity in here. | 0:13:23 | 0:13:25 | |
What you could do is knock down this wall and open up that kitchen. | 0:13:25 | 0:13:30 | |
Put your dining table there, a nice big family space. | 0:13:30 | 0:13:33 | |
But I'm not sure it would be worth spending the money. | 0:13:33 | 0:13:37 | |
And your whole ground floor would be open-plan, | 0:13:37 | 0:13:41 | |
so you can't get away from noise. | 0:13:41 | 0:13:43 | |
But there's a rather big room here. | 0:13:43 | 0:13:45 | |
A three-piece suite in here. It could be the hub of the family space. | 0:13:45 | 0:13:50 | |
Nice and cosy in the winter | 0:13:50 | 0:13:52 | |
You're not overlooked. Lots of mature trees out there. | 0:13:52 | 0:13:55 | |
Once somebody spent a bit of money in here, | 0:13:55 | 0:13:58 | |
you could have a really nice functional family space. | 0:13:58 | 0:14:01 | |
The benefit of a property like this is that what it may lack in charm | 0:14:01 | 0:14:06 | |
it makes up for in scope to do with what you like. | 0:14:06 | 0:14:09 | |
Clear it out, tidy it up and it'll feel like a brand-new home. | 0:14:09 | 0:14:13 | |
You know, it definitely feels worse up here. | 0:14:24 | 0:14:27 | |
I'm sure it's just cosmetic, but everything needs doing. | 0:14:27 | 0:14:32 | |
Two good-sized bedrooms and a really big bathroom. | 0:14:32 | 0:14:36 | |
This is the smallest room. You could think about moving the bathroom into here | 0:14:36 | 0:14:41 | |
and you have to think about the plumbing, so it's probably not worth it. | 0:14:41 | 0:14:45 | |
Hold on a minute. There's no radiators in here. | 0:14:45 | 0:14:48 | |
I'm sure I saw radiators everywhere downstairs. | 0:14:48 | 0:14:51 | |
Let's have a look and see if... | 0:14:51 | 0:14:54 | |
A-ha! Look! There's none in here. | 0:14:54 | 0:14:58 | |
That is something you could so quickly miss on a viewing. | 0:14:58 | 0:15:02 | |
You really need your wits about you when you view these properties. | 0:15:02 | 0:15:06 | |
You could miss something like that. | 0:15:06 | 0:15:08 | |
First thing I would do once moving in here | 0:15:08 | 0:15:10 | |
would be to get the plumber in and get the heating sorted. | 0:15:10 | 0:15:13 | |
I know there's double glazing, but you'd have been frozen in here judging by recent winters. | 0:15:20 | 0:15:27 | |
In fact, downstairs, there are only two radiators and an electric fire. | 0:15:27 | 0:15:31 | |
So another expense to add. | 0:15:31 | 0:15:33 | |
But if you wanted to take this project on for a profit, what about adding on somewhere else? | 0:15:33 | 0:15:39 | |
The garden is a lovely space. More than that, it's really big. | 0:15:39 | 0:15:44 | |
A proper family size with room for a shed, a trampoline, a paddling pool | 0:15:44 | 0:15:49 | |
and what about an extension? | 0:15:49 | 0:15:52 | |
You could push out to the side, the rear or both | 0:15:52 | 0:15:55 | |
without losing too much outside space. | 0:15:55 | 0:15:57 | |
But financially, I don't think it's really worth it. | 0:15:57 | 0:16:01 | |
In my opinion, let the family who end up living here | 0:16:01 | 0:16:04 | |
add that square footage if they want to. | 0:16:04 | 0:16:06 | |
It saves you doing the spending for little or no added return. | 0:16:06 | 0:16:10 | |
Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. | 0:16:11 | 0:16:14 | |
There's definitely space to go large here, but for your efforts, | 0:16:14 | 0:16:18 | |
I don't think you'd make large profits. | 0:16:18 | 0:16:21 | |
The property had a guide price of between 95 and 105,000. | 0:16:21 | 0:16:26 | |
We asked a local estate agent along for her opinion. | 0:16:26 | 0:16:31 | |
First impressions are that it's a great size, | 0:16:33 | 0:16:35 | |
there's a bit of work to be done, but it's purely cosmetic. | 0:16:35 | 0:16:39 | |
Other than that, a great family home. | 0:16:39 | 0:16:41 | |
How much will it take to spruce it up? | 0:16:41 | 0:16:44 | |
I think you could spend around the ten to £15,000 mark. | 0:16:45 | 0:16:49 | |
No need to be extravagant. It's a normal family home. So 15-ish. | 0:16:49 | 0:16:53 | |
Valuing this property as it is right now | 0:16:54 | 0:16:58 | |
I would say approximately £110,000 to £115,000. | 0:16:58 | 0:17:04 | |
Once fully renovated, I would say that this property is worth | 0:17:04 | 0:17:09 | |
150 to £160,000. | 0:17:09 | 0:17:13 | |
What's the possible return on rental? | 0:17:13 | 0:17:16 | |
Once fully renovated, | 0:17:16 | 0:17:18 | |
this property would achieve £750 per calendar month. | 0:17:18 | 0:17:22 | |
Sometimes, it's good to keep things simple. | 0:17:23 | 0:17:26 | |
At that guide price, I reckon this equation is pretty straightforward. | 0:17:26 | 0:17:30 | |
Nice road, good solid property, not too much to spend | 0:17:30 | 0:17:34 | |
equals good investment. Let's see who agreed at the auction. | 0:17:34 | 0:17:38 | |
Lot 19. | 0:17:43 | 0:17:44 | |
What shall we say on that one? Modern-looking house. | 0:17:44 | 0:17:47 | |
Start me where you will. Start me at £100,000. | 0:17:47 | 0:17:50 | |
100,000? Give me 95, then. | 0:17:50 | 0:17:53 | |
95, I'm on the way. I'm obliged. | 0:17:53 | 0:17:55 | |
At 95 I've got. 100 now, do I see? 100, may I say? | 0:17:55 | 0:17:59 | |
At 100. And two. | 0:17:59 | 0:18:01 | |
102 and five. | 0:18:01 | 0:18:03 | |
105 and seven. | 0:18:03 | 0:18:04 | |
And ten. Ten, may I say? 110 anywhere? 107 at the back. 110. | 0:18:04 | 0:18:09 | |
12. 15. 118. 118. 120. | 0:18:09 | 0:18:13 | |
And two. 122. And five. | 0:18:13 | 0:18:16 | |
125, may I say? 125. And seven. | 0:18:16 | 0:18:19 | |
130. 132. 135. | 0:18:19 | 0:18:22 | |
135 I've got. 137, sir? | 0:18:22 | 0:18:25 | |
137. 140? | 0:18:25 | 0:18:27 | |
At 137 I've got. 140 I'm looking for. | 0:18:27 | 0:18:30 | |
If not, at £137,000 | 0:18:30 | 0:18:33 | |
for the first time. | 0:18:33 | 0:18:35 | |
£137,000 bid for the second time. | 0:18:35 | 0:18:38 | |
Third and final time if we're all done at 137. Yours at 137. | 0:18:38 | 0:18:43 | |
Soaring above the 95 to £105,000 guide price | 0:18:43 | 0:18:48 | |
with their £137,000 bid | 0:18:48 | 0:18:50 | |
were golf club secretary Dave and his singing teacher wife, Christine. | 0:18:50 | 0:18:54 | |
They're hoping to make this property hit the high notes! | 0:18:54 | 0:18:57 | |
Chris and Dave, lovely to meet you. | 0:19:01 | 0:19:04 | |
You looked very serious while bidding for this at auction! | 0:19:04 | 0:19:07 | |
It was a very serious business, unfortunately! | 0:19:07 | 0:19:10 | |
Being our first one, it was quite serious but it was a real buzz. | 0:19:10 | 0:19:14 | |
Dave, why did you want to buy this? What's the story behind it all? | 0:19:14 | 0:19:18 | |
Unfortunately, Lucy, we've based all our research on Homes Under The Hammer! | 0:19:18 | 0:19:22 | |
-We are sadly big fans of the show. -I'm happy to hear that. | 0:19:22 | 0:19:27 | |
We've watched it quite a lot. And we thought it would be great to have a go! | 0:19:27 | 0:19:31 | |
So we had a go! | 0:19:31 | 0:19:33 | |
How long did you get to spend in this house before you decided you wanted it? | 0:19:33 | 0:19:38 | |
That intrigues me. People don't spend long enough in properties before buying them! | 0:19:38 | 0:19:43 | |
-We were here for ten minutes. -Ten minutes. | 0:19:43 | 0:19:46 | |
And did anything go unmissed? | 0:19:46 | 0:19:48 | |
-Yes! -Well.. -We didn't know there were no radiators upstairs! | 0:19:48 | 0:19:51 | |
-Really? See! -We didn't notice that. | 0:19:51 | 0:19:54 | |
And coming back now, it's worse than I remember it being. | 0:19:54 | 0:19:58 | |
But it's still cosmetic. Nothing to worry about. | 0:19:58 | 0:20:02 | |
It is cosmetic, but everything needs doing. | 0:20:02 | 0:20:05 | |
Everything needs doing. Everything is dirty. | 0:20:05 | 0:20:08 | |
Everything smells of cigarette smoke and it needs clearing out | 0:20:08 | 0:20:12 | |
and modernising. | 0:20:12 | 0:20:15 | |
What's the plan with this? You're intending to rent? | 0:20:15 | 0:20:17 | |
-Yes. -I'm glad you said that because you did pay at bit more at auction. | 0:20:17 | 0:20:23 | |
We knew we would because there must have been 20 people here on viewing day. | 0:20:23 | 0:20:28 | |
We knew, especially when there were so many people at the auction, | 0:20:28 | 0:20:32 | |
-we knew we wouldn't get it for a bargain. -Being at the auction, | 0:20:32 | 0:20:35 | |
we heard other people who were going to bid on it. | 0:20:35 | 0:20:38 | |
We moved - the people behind us were going to bid on it | 0:20:38 | 0:20:41 | |
and we moved seats just before the lot came up to get away from them! | 0:20:41 | 0:20:45 | |
-I didn't want to be bidding over my shoulder. -Wise move, Dave! I like it! | 0:20:45 | 0:20:50 | |
I've bought cars at auction in the past and I know it's a game. | 0:20:50 | 0:20:53 | |
So we decided to pretend we knew what we were doing! | 0:20:53 | 0:20:57 | |
And why not? Property auctions are often about a bit of bluff and bravado! | 0:20:57 | 0:21:03 | |
Christine and Dave do have another property they rent out | 0:21:03 | 0:21:06 | |
but this is the first time they've dipped their toes into renovation. | 0:21:06 | 0:21:10 | |
So what are you going to do and where will you start? | 0:21:10 | 0:21:14 | |
Get rid of everything and start again, basically. | 0:21:14 | 0:21:17 | |
The kitchen and bathroom are disgusting. | 0:21:17 | 0:21:20 | |
The trees at the front need to go. | 0:21:20 | 0:21:22 | |
Why get rid of the trees? That gives you privacy. | 0:21:22 | 0:21:25 | |
-I think it's too dark. -I think once you've painted this space, | 0:21:25 | 0:21:29 | |
once you've painted the window frames and given yourself some light and airy reflective colour, | 0:21:29 | 0:21:35 | |
you'll be so surprised at how it's not dark. | 0:21:35 | 0:21:38 | |
It depends on the cost. If it's £500 to cut them down, the trees will stay! | 0:21:38 | 0:21:43 | |
And YOU can cut them down! | 0:21:43 | 0:21:45 | |
We're doing nothing. We've decided that. | 0:21:45 | 0:21:48 | |
I believe in getting people to do things who know what they're doing. And we don't know. | 0:21:48 | 0:21:54 | |
So who's going to be doing all the dirty work for you? | 0:21:54 | 0:21:57 | |
I work at the golf club, and so does our builder, our decorator, | 0:21:57 | 0:22:02 | |
our plumber, our gardener. | 0:22:02 | 0:22:04 | |
When the sun's shining there won't be anybody here cos they'll all be playing golf | 0:22:04 | 0:22:09 | |
and when it rains they'll crack on here. | 0:22:09 | 0:22:11 | |
Christine, you'll have to pray for rain, chilly weather, | 0:22:11 | 0:22:15 | |
-so that some of the boys are here. -Released for renovations only! | 0:22:15 | 0:22:19 | |
It's not often people rely on rain, | 0:22:25 | 0:22:28 | |
but if it doesn't come, this will be a "fairway" to ever getting finished! | 0:22:28 | 0:22:34 | |
Let alone with their four to six week time scale, and that's not all that's ambitious! | 0:22:34 | 0:22:39 | |
-What's your budget? -We started off thinking it was going to be about 5,000. | 0:22:39 | 0:22:44 | |
-What?! -We then raised it up to about eight. So eight to ten. | 0:22:44 | 0:22:49 | |
Wait, I need to go through this with you. That does worry me. | 0:22:49 | 0:22:53 | |
Eight to ten thousand for a new kitchen, new bathroom, | 0:22:53 | 0:22:57 | |
and you've got to pay all your guys. | 0:22:57 | 0:22:59 | |
I run the golf club so if they want a free game in exchange for painting a radiator, then fine! | 0:22:59 | 0:23:04 | |
There's ways round it. | 0:23:04 | 0:23:06 | |
I'm going to hold you to that! I want to know exactly every penny you spend | 0:23:06 | 0:23:11 | |
-because if you do that on that budget, I'll be very impressed. -So will we! | 0:23:11 | 0:23:15 | |
Let's hope the sun doesn't shine until Christine and Dave's golfing team have finished the work! | 0:23:17 | 0:23:22 | |
Because there is a lot of work to do here and I hope the pair realise this. | 0:23:22 | 0:23:27 | |
Join me later to see if the refurb is below par or a hole in one! | 0:23:27 | 0:23:33 | |
Coming up, this flat in west London turns out to be much less simple than it seemed. | 0:23:34 | 0:23:39 | |
Will they turn it from a no-brainer into a bit of a head-scratcher? | 0:23:39 | 0:23:43 | |
In Kent, did Christine and Dave's hands-off approach pose more questions than answers? | 0:23:44 | 0:23:49 | |
You're wondering how are they doing and would they be finished in time. | 0:23:49 | 0:23:53 | |
But first, did Suzanne manage to make light work of this dark property? | 0:23:55 | 0:23:59 | |
It was like a dungeon down there. It was cold and miserable. | 0:23:59 | 0:24:03 | |
We're back in Bowdon in Cheshire | 0:24:10 | 0:24:12 | |
where Suzanne, who's only recently turned to property developing purchased this period house | 0:24:12 | 0:24:18 | |
for £357,000. | 0:24:18 | 0:24:20 | |
It has potential in spades. Holding her hand was boyfriend David | 0:24:20 | 0:24:25 | |
whose job was bound to come in handy. | 0:24:25 | 0:24:28 | |
Suzanne, convenient to hook up with a kitchen designer! | 0:24:28 | 0:24:31 | |
Yes! | 0:24:31 | 0:24:33 | |
-Was there a plan there? -No, absolutely not, no. | 0:24:33 | 0:24:37 | |
No plan. He's just got to prove himself now! | 0:24:37 | 0:24:41 | |
20 months later, did David live up to expectations? | 0:24:41 | 0:24:46 | |
And did Suzanne manage to take this tired interior | 0:24:46 | 0:24:49 | |
to a greater place she could call home? | 0:24:49 | 0:24:51 | |
Wow is not the word! | 0:25:08 | 0:25:10 | |
Suzanne has done an absolutely incredible job here. | 0:25:10 | 0:25:13 | |
Every room in the house has been cleared out and transformed | 0:25:13 | 0:25:17 | |
into something stunning and special. | 0:25:17 | 0:25:19 | |
The hidden gem here was the dark and dingy basement | 0:25:22 | 0:25:25 | |
which now looks anything but. | 0:25:25 | 0:25:27 | |
But the heart of the home and the place where David would be put to the test | 0:25:34 | 0:25:38 | |
was the kitchen. | 0:25:38 | 0:25:40 | |
Well, the biggest design decision was actually to use a central island | 0:25:45 | 0:25:51 | |
and to use the bi-folding doors and eliminate | 0:25:51 | 0:25:54 | |
the window and units which were going round in a U-shape up to there. | 0:25:54 | 0:25:58 | |
Once we'd decided that, then everything else fell into place. | 0:25:58 | 0:26:03 | |
Design-wise it all fits together with a beautiful view onto the patio. | 0:26:03 | 0:26:07 | |
David isn't moving in yet | 0:26:09 | 0:26:11 | |
but it sounds like Suzanne would have had a tough job on this mega project without him. | 0:26:11 | 0:26:17 | |
It was great working with David. | 0:26:17 | 0:26:19 | |
He helped me tremendously throughout the whole project. | 0:26:19 | 0:26:23 | |
He was always at the end of the phone when I had problems | 0:26:23 | 0:26:27 | |
which was probably 24/7. | 0:26:27 | 0:26:29 | |
With the kitchen he was very patient | 0:26:29 | 0:26:33 | |
and I absolutely love my kitchen, I really do. | 0:26:33 | 0:26:36 | |
It's exactly what I wanted. Not too many gadgets, not over the top, | 0:26:36 | 0:26:41 | |
not flashy. I love the oak and the simplicity of it. | 0:26:41 | 0:26:46 | |
It works really well and there's lots of storage and it's turned out exactly how I envisaged it. | 0:26:46 | 0:26:52 | |
She certainly needed to be looking through potential goggles when she first saw this place. | 0:26:52 | 0:26:58 | |
It was a very big mess, derelict, smelly. | 0:26:58 | 0:27:01 | |
But it had the most amazing charm when I first approached the house. | 0:27:01 | 0:27:05 | |
The double-fronted Victorian house with a certain charm and I knew when I walked in I wanted to buy it. | 0:27:05 | 0:27:12 | |
But what nobody saw on first viewing was that the cellar had not three but four rooms. | 0:27:12 | 0:27:18 | |
So after lowering the floor to give the extra headroom required, | 0:27:18 | 0:27:22 | |
Suzanne set to work on maximising the space. | 0:27:22 | 0:27:26 | |
It was like a dungeon down there. | 0:27:26 | 0:27:28 | |
It was cold and miserable and the head height was 1,900. | 0:27:28 | 0:27:33 | |
I transformed it to 2.4 metres so it feels very spacey now downstairs. | 0:27:33 | 0:27:39 | |
I've also added side windows to the side elevation of the house | 0:27:39 | 0:27:44 | |
and created a bedroom there which never existed before. It was very exciting! | 0:27:44 | 0:27:49 | |
With all the amazing work done here, was Suzanne able to stick to her timescale? | 0:27:49 | 0:27:55 | |
The timescale was expected to be four months | 0:27:55 | 0:27:57 | |
and it took about ten months from the start of the build to the end of the build, | 0:27:57 | 0:28:02 | |
although it was four or five months to get certain planning permission | 0:28:02 | 0:28:06 | |
with plans drawn up, et cetera, et cetera. | 0:28:06 | 0:28:10 | |
As this property was purchased as a home rather than an investment, | 0:28:10 | 0:28:15 | |
it was well worth taking the extra time to make everything perfect. | 0:28:15 | 0:28:19 | |
But perfection costs money. | 0:28:19 | 0:28:22 | |
The original budget was 60 to 70 and I spent 200,000. | 0:28:22 | 0:28:27 | |
But I got a better spec of house. | 0:28:27 | 0:28:30 | |
Everything that I've put into the house, certainly it's a great investment for me. | 0:28:30 | 0:28:36 | |
We invited two local estate agents along | 0:28:37 | 0:28:41 | |
to hear their thoughts on Suzanne's new home. | 0:28:41 | 0:28:43 | |
I think it's a fantastic house. | 0:28:45 | 0:28:46 | |
The work they've done sets it apart from a lot of other properties in this price range. | 0:28:46 | 0:28:53 | |
I think it's wonderful, having seen what it was like originally. | 0:28:53 | 0:28:57 | |
It's been positively transformed | 0:28:57 | 0:28:59 | |
from a very, rather tired, Victorian house | 0:28:59 | 0:29:03 | |
into a stunning contemporary house and it works really well. | 0:29:03 | 0:29:07 | |
It's very striking and it's quite rare to find a house at this price point | 0:29:07 | 0:29:11 | |
that's been specified to this level. | 0:29:11 | 0:29:14 | |
Suzanne purchased this property at auction for 357,000 | 0:29:15 | 0:29:20 | |
and spent £200,000 on the work | 0:29:20 | 0:29:22 | |
taking her total outlay to 557,000. | 0:29:22 | 0:29:26 | |
If she considered selling, would she get her money back? | 0:29:26 | 0:29:29 | |
I would put this on the market for a figure just under £600,000 | 0:29:30 | 0:29:34 | |
at £595,000. | 0:29:34 | 0:29:36 | |
I would put it on at a figure of around £650,000. | 0:29:36 | 0:29:41 | |
I'm delighted with that. I bought this for my home. | 0:29:41 | 0:29:44 | |
I intend to stay here for a very long time. | 0:29:44 | 0:29:46 | |
I'm really pleased with the valuation. | 0:29:46 | 0:29:49 | |
Those valuations would give Suzanne a potential pre-tax profit | 0:29:49 | 0:29:54 | |
of between 38 and £93,000, minus the usual selling expenses. | 0:29:54 | 0:29:58 | |
And if she was thinking of going down the rental route? | 0:29:58 | 0:30:02 | |
Just under £2,000, at 1,950. | 0:30:02 | 0:30:05 | |
I'd be looking at a rental of £1,950 per calendar month. | 0:30:05 | 0:30:10 | |
That's probably what I'd have guessed it would be. But I don't intend to rent it out! | 0:30:10 | 0:30:15 | |
And I can't blame her. | 0:30:15 | 0:30:17 | |
She really has created something spectacular here. | 0:30:17 | 0:30:21 | |
I wouldn't want to leave it, either, and as they say, there's no place like home! | 0:30:21 | 0:30:25 | |
I love it all. | 0:30:25 | 0:30:27 | |
It absolutely feels like home. | 0:30:27 | 0:30:29 | |
I feel for the last five years I've rented | 0:30:29 | 0:30:32 | |
so I've built this house really. | 0:30:32 | 0:30:34 | |
I've put so much into it, every finest detail, | 0:30:34 | 0:30:40 | |
and so it really does feel like it's mine. | 0:30:40 | 0:30:42 | |
# As the winter winds | 0:30:50 | 0:30:53 | |
# Litter London with lonely hearts | 0:30:53 | 0:30:56 | |
# The warmth in your eyes swept me into your arms. # | 0:30:56 | 0:31:02 | |
This is Hammersmith in west London. | 0:31:02 | 0:31:04 | |
Affluent, desirable, convenient and - you guessed it - expensive! | 0:31:04 | 0:31:09 | |
Still, I reckon if I look hard enough, there may still be a property bargain | 0:31:09 | 0:31:14 | |
lurking under the snow ready to thaw out any frozen bank accounts! | 0:31:14 | 0:31:18 | |
This really is a prime London location. | 0:31:18 | 0:31:23 | |
Hammersmith tube just ten minutes' walk, the river a short stroll | 0:31:23 | 0:31:28 | |
and a Michelin-starred restaurant on your doorstep. | 0:31:28 | 0:31:32 | |
It probably comes as no surprise that property prices round here | 0:31:32 | 0:31:36 | |
may well make you see stars! | 0:31:36 | 0:31:38 | |
£245,000 was the guide price for a one-bed flat in need of work. | 0:31:38 | 0:31:45 | |
Wow! | 0:31:45 | 0:31:47 | |
The property is on the first floor of this attractive Victorian terrace | 0:31:52 | 0:31:56 | |
on a lovely street just steps from the shops. | 0:31:56 | 0:32:00 | |
But for your 245,000, you don't get any outside space | 0:32:00 | 0:32:04 | |
so it's what's on the inside that counts. | 0:32:04 | 0:32:07 | |
You don't have to venture too far inside | 0:32:08 | 0:32:11 | |
to see that it's in a shoddy old state. | 0:32:11 | 0:32:14 | |
At least things like carpets have been removed so that'll save a bit of time. | 0:32:14 | 0:32:18 | |
A tiny little bathroom definitely in need of a good seeing to. | 0:32:18 | 0:32:23 | |
A good-sized bedroom, although there is only one bedroom. | 0:32:23 | 0:32:26 | |
It would be nice if there was a feature fireplace. | 0:32:26 | 0:32:29 | |
Worse than that, though, is the kitchen. | 0:32:29 | 0:32:31 | |
That is microscopic. But I have a solution to that. | 0:32:31 | 0:32:35 | |
But through into a really good-sized room. | 0:32:35 | 0:32:38 | |
The main living room. Big windows, | 0:32:38 | 0:32:41 | |
lots of light. Again, I'd like to see a feature fireplace. But not a bad-sized space. | 0:32:41 | 0:32:46 | |
The solution to the problem is take out this wall | 0:32:46 | 0:32:49 | |
to create a kitchen/living room area. | 0:32:49 | 0:32:52 | |
That's very acceptable round here. It would totally change the feel of the flat. | 0:32:52 | 0:32:56 | |
It wouldn't be hard to bring this place back to life. | 0:33:02 | 0:33:05 | |
There are a few cracks lurking here and there, | 0:33:05 | 0:33:07 | |
but I think they're most likely to be superficial. However, | 0:33:07 | 0:33:12 | |
as with any purchase, I advise getting a surveyor's expert opinion. | 0:33:12 | 0:33:15 | |
It has wooden floors, so you could sand them down to bring back some character. | 0:33:15 | 0:33:20 | |
Open up that kitchen, put some colour on the walls, | 0:33:20 | 0:33:23 | |
replace the bathroom and it's sorted. That's it, then. Or is it? | 0:33:23 | 0:33:28 | |
So you don't get a garden for your 245,000 | 0:33:28 | 0:33:32 | |
but what you do get is that! | 0:33:32 | 0:33:34 | |
It's a loft hatch and above it is a loft. | 0:33:34 | 0:33:38 | |
And that is potential for adding on an extra bedroom. | 0:33:38 | 0:33:43 | |
You'd have to go through planning | 0:33:43 | 0:33:45 | |
and get consent of the freeholder | 0:33:45 | 0:33:49 | |
but by adding an extra bedroom up there, | 0:33:49 | 0:33:51 | |
you could add on about £100,000 to the value of this place. | 0:33:51 | 0:33:57 | |
I think it's worth the effort, don't you? | 0:33:57 | 0:34:00 | |
You wouldn't just be increasing the space. | 0:34:00 | 0:34:03 | |
Making this into a two-bedroom puts it into a whole new league of potential buyers | 0:34:03 | 0:34:08 | |
and appealing to the widest market possible is the key to successful selling. | 0:34:08 | 0:34:13 | |
But just as things are looking up, | 0:34:13 | 0:34:15 | |
the small print rears its ugly head! | 0:34:15 | 0:34:18 | |
You always get that sinking feeling | 0:34:18 | 0:34:22 | |
when you see a clause or a covenant attached to the purchase of a property. | 0:34:22 | 0:34:26 | |
But this one takes the biscuit! | 0:34:26 | 0:34:28 | |
In the auction catalogue, it states that "The seller of this property | 0:34:28 | 0:34:32 | |
"cannot sell the property to a purchaser who intends to occupy it | 0:34:32 | 0:34:37 | |
"as his or her principal home." | 0:34:37 | 0:34:42 | |
Wow! In English, that means if you buy it, you can't live in it. | 0:34:42 | 0:34:47 | |
It's something councils are introducing to do with how they account for the sale. | 0:34:47 | 0:34:52 | |
Whatever the reason, it basically means that whoever buys this | 0:34:52 | 0:34:55 | |
can rent it out, | 0:34:55 | 0:34:57 | |
or if they do it up, they can sell it on to another person | 0:34:57 | 0:35:01 | |
and that clause is then nullified. | 0:35:01 | 0:35:03 | |
Either way, if you missed that, | 0:35:03 | 0:35:05 | |
it would be a very nasty shock. | 0:35:05 | 0:35:08 | |
Well, it's a strange one, but it just goes to show | 0:35:12 | 0:35:15 | |
how important it is to do your research. | 0:35:15 | 0:35:18 | |
And there are more shocks to come. | 0:35:18 | 0:35:20 | |
The service charge for this place is - wait for it - £8,000 a year! | 0:35:20 | 0:35:26 | |
So a whopping £666 a month! I think I need to sit down! | 0:35:26 | 0:35:31 | |
We asked a local estate agent what he thought of this pickle of a property. | 0:35:36 | 0:35:40 | |
First impressions are it needs a bit of work. It's very well located. | 0:35:40 | 0:35:45 | |
It's an affluent part of London. | 0:35:45 | 0:35:47 | |
You'd see houses for a family in the region of £1.2 million. | 0:35:47 | 0:35:50 | |
You'd also see first-time buyer flats at around £250,000. | 0:35:50 | 0:35:54 | |
Such as this one with its guide price of 245,000. | 0:35:54 | 0:35:59 | |
The potential here is that you would extend up into the loft, | 0:35:59 | 0:36:02 | |
create a new top floor. | 0:36:02 | 0:36:04 | |
If you were lucky enough to incorporate a bathroom, | 0:36:04 | 0:36:07 | |
you could get a good two-bed, two-bathroom property. | 0:36:07 | 0:36:10 | |
How could these changes affect the figures? | 0:36:10 | 0:36:13 | |
Value today, you'd be looking in the region of £250,000 in current condition. | 0:36:13 | 0:36:18 | |
If it was upgraded as a one-bedroom I'd expect to achieve in the region of £300,000. | 0:36:18 | 0:36:24 | |
As a two-bedroom, I'd look to achieve £450,000. | 0:36:24 | 0:36:28 | |
Wow, that's some jump! | 0:36:28 | 0:36:30 | |
What about rental figures? | 0:36:30 | 0:36:33 | |
You'd be able to rent this out for 1,200 to £1,300 per calendar month. | 0:36:33 | 0:36:38 | |
If this property came to the market as a two-bed, | 0:36:38 | 0:36:40 | |
I'd see it achieving £1,600 per calendar month. | 0:36:40 | 0:36:44 | |
Well, this is a classic auction property. | 0:36:45 | 0:36:48 | |
It teases you with an attractive guide price and the promise of quick profit | 0:36:48 | 0:36:52 | |
but scratch the surface and it's not quite that simple. | 0:36:52 | 0:36:56 | |
That restrictive clause and the huge service charge | 0:36:56 | 0:36:59 | |
turn it from a no-brainer into a bit of a head-scratcher. | 0:36:59 | 0:37:03 | |
Still, I think there are profits to be made. | 0:37:03 | 0:37:06 | |
Let's see who fancied it when it went under the hammer. | 0:37:06 | 0:37:09 | |
Where would you like to start? | 0:37:13 | 0:37:15 | |
200. Thanks(!) 205. | 0:37:15 | 0:37:18 | |
205. 210. | 0:37:18 | 0:37:20 | |
215. 220. | 0:37:20 | 0:37:23 | |
225. 230? | 0:37:24 | 0:37:27 | |
226? | 0:37:27 | 0:37:28 | |
Yeah? 227? MOUTHS | 0:37:28 | 0:37:31 | |
240? 240. | 0:37:31 | 0:37:33 | |
241. 242. | 0:37:33 | 0:37:35 | |
245. | 0:37:35 | 0:37:37 | |
250? | 0:37:37 | 0:37:38 | |
250. 251. | 0:37:38 | 0:37:41 | |
252. | 0:37:41 | 0:37:42 | |
Bidding continued apace for this particular property. | 0:37:42 | 0:37:46 | |
We rejoin as it reached 276,000. | 0:37:46 | 0:37:49 | |
276? | 0:37:49 | 0:37:51 | |
277? | 0:37:51 | 0:37:53 | |
278? | 0:37:53 | 0:37:54 | |
279? | 0:37:56 | 0:37:57 | |
280? | 0:37:57 | 0:37:59 | |
279 sitting down. | 0:38:02 | 0:38:04 | |
280 elsewhere? | 0:38:04 | 0:38:06 | |
279 first time. Second time. | 0:38:06 | 0:38:09 | |
Third and last time. Have you all done? | 0:38:09 | 0:38:12 | |
Sold 279. Well bought. | 0:38:12 | 0:38:14 | |
Successful with their £279,000 bid | 0:38:14 | 0:38:18 | |
were local married couple John and Lisa. | 0:38:18 | 0:38:21 | |
Since we know this place can't be for them to move into, | 0:38:21 | 0:38:25 | |
I was keen to find out why they wanted to get their hands on it. | 0:38:25 | 0:38:28 | |
-John, Lisa. Lovely to meet you. Thanks for coming out in the cold! -It sure is! | 0:38:28 | 0:38:33 | |
-Tell me why you wanted to buy this place. -This is a first one for us. | 0:38:33 | 0:38:37 | |
I've done it for a living for 20 years and Lisa wanted to do something with me. | 0:38:37 | 0:38:41 | |
-So I said, "Why not do something together and go to the auction?" -Yeah. | 0:38:41 | 0:38:47 | |
-What do you do when you're not doing this? -Look after the kids. Three of those. | 0:38:47 | 0:38:51 | |
Bit busy. Also I was a freelance journalist and I've taken time out to spend with the kids. | 0:38:51 | 0:38:57 | |
And I help John with his business, so bits and pieces, really. | 0:38:57 | 0:39:01 | |
-You like the idea of property developing? -Now the kids are a bit older | 0:39:01 | 0:39:05 | |
and I've watched John do what he's doing | 0:39:05 | 0:39:07 | |
and watching TV programmes that are all the rage, | 0:39:07 | 0:39:11 | |
I thought, "Maybe it's something I can learn about and get into." | 0:39:11 | 0:39:16 | |
Tell me more about what you do, John. | 0:39:16 | 0:39:18 | |
I build houses for very rich people. | 0:39:18 | 0:39:21 | |
A couple I've just built in Hampstead, one just sold for 44 million! | 0:39:21 | 0:39:25 | |
44 million?! | 0:39:25 | 0:39:27 | |
Yes! 15,000 square feet and the most expensive house in Hampstead. | 0:39:27 | 0:39:32 | |
We built another one in St John's Wood that just sold for 31 million. | 0:39:32 | 0:39:36 | |
So I'm pretty good at what I do - I hope I am, anyway - | 0:39:36 | 0:39:40 | |
so I'm downgrading to this one-bedroom flat | 0:39:40 | 0:39:43 | |
and hopefully it won't be too much hassle! | 0:39:43 | 0:39:48 | |
So, yeah, it's exciting. I'm looking forward to it | 0:39:48 | 0:39:52 | |
and it's for ourselves, so I don't have to answer to clients or anything. | 0:39:52 | 0:39:56 | |
That's the key to this project for John and Lisa. Something small | 0:39:56 | 0:40:01 | |
in relative terms for them to get stuck into. | 0:40:01 | 0:40:04 | |
But when it came to auction day, it very nearly wasn't this place. | 0:40:04 | 0:40:08 | |
I had a budget at a point of where I wasn't going to go over. | 0:40:09 | 0:40:13 | |
It was 280,000. | 0:40:13 | 0:40:16 | |
-So... -That's what the budget was. | 0:40:16 | 0:40:18 | |
That's what the budget was. So everything we'd looked at previously went over by ten, 20% | 0:40:18 | 0:40:24 | |
than anything we'd done. | 0:40:24 | 0:40:25 | |
So I wasn't expecting to win it. When we did, I was shocked! | 0:40:25 | 0:40:29 | |
And I had to go and write a cheque out as well! | 0:40:29 | 0:40:32 | |
It was first-time nerves and it was adrenaline. | 0:40:32 | 0:40:36 | |
It was very good, very exciting. | 0:40:36 | 0:40:38 | |
Yeah, very happy. | 0:40:38 | 0:40:40 | |
So let's talk about the potential for this place. The numbers, the profit. | 0:40:40 | 0:40:44 | |
It really is extraordinary, isn't it? | 0:40:44 | 0:40:46 | |
Apparently, a one-bed sells at quite a good price | 0:40:46 | 0:40:50 | |
but it really leaps up if you can turn it into a two-bed. | 0:40:50 | 0:40:53 | |
That's the reason why we thought this would be perfect. Two-bed really adds value to it. | 0:40:53 | 0:40:59 | |
It certainly does. | 0:40:59 | 0:41:01 | |
John and Lisa plan to convert that fantastic loft space | 0:41:01 | 0:41:05 | |
into a second bedroom and bathroom and bring the rest of the property up to date | 0:41:05 | 0:41:09 | |
with a few original features thrown in. I like the sound of that. | 0:41:09 | 0:41:14 | |
Their provisional budget is £53,000. | 0:41:14 | 0:41:17 | |
They aim to complete the work in under four months then sell the property on. | 0:41:17 | 0:41:22 | |
But there's one last thing that's bothering me. | 0:41:22 | 0:41:25 | |
Now, there is a big service charge, isn't there? | 0:41:25 | 0:41:28 | |
A lot of that was to do with the roof, | 0:41:28 | 0:41:30 | |
which was a pretty high price to replace the roof. | 0:41:30 | 0:41:34 | |
So we were aware of that and we can do it cheaper. | 0:41:34 | 0:41:39 | |
-So... -It's not cheaper. | 0:41:39 | 0:41:41 | |
With the loft conversion, half the room is a mansard | 0:41:41 | 0:41:44 | |
so it's going to be renewed anyway. | 0:41:44 | 0:41:46 | |
-The front half is shared costs with below. -That should cut most of the service charge anyway. | 0:41:46 | 0:41:51 | |
Also I've spoken to the owner below | 0:41:51 | 0:41:54 | |
and we're going to approach to buy the freehold as well. | 0:41:54 | 0:41:57 | |
So to sell the property with the freehold is more attractive, bringing more buyers in. | 0:41:57 | 0:42:02 | |
The council is going to give us a price. | 0:42:02 | 0:42:04 | |
They seem to have covered every angle. | 0:42:04 | 0:42:07 | |
Isn't it great when you've got an expert on hand? | 0:42:07 | 0:42:10 | |
With John's experience, | 0:42:10 | 0:42:12 | |
I think giving this place the high-tech and high-spec finish it deserves | 0:42:12 | 0:42:17 | |
won't be a problem. | 0:42:17 | 0:42:19 | |
But will they sort out the issues regarding the service charge | 0:42:19 | 0:42:22 | |
and will they manage to sell in this frosty climate? | 0:42:22 | 0:42:26 | |
Find out later in the show. | 0:42:26 | 0:42:29 | |
There's been plenty of time for our buyers to have started work on their properties. | 0:42:31 | 0:42:36 | |
But have they actually done anything | 0:42:36 | 0:42:39 | |
or have they been beset by problems? | 0:42:39 | 0:42:41 | |
Time is money. Have they made any or just lost out? | 0:42:41 | 0:42:45 | |
Let's go back and find out. | 0:42:45 | 0:42:47 | |
We're going back to Gravesend in Kent | 0:42:55 | 0:42:57 | |
where golf club secretary David and singing teacher wife Christine | 0:42:57 | 0:43:01 | |
purchased this three-bed semi for 137,000. | 0:43:01 | 0:43:05 | |
This was going to be their first development project. | 0:43:05 | 0:43:09 | |
But they'd taken tips from a very reliable source! | 0:43:09 | 0:43:12 | |
We've based all our research on Homes Under The Hammer | 0:43:12 | 0:43:16 | |
-because we are sadly big fans of the show. -I'm happy to hear that! | 0:43:16 | 0:43:20 | |
We've watched it quite a lot and we thought it would be great to have a go. | 0:43:20 | 0:43:24 | |
So we had a go! | 0:43:24 | 0:43:26 | |
Hopefully, they were watching carefully! | 0:43:26 | 0:43:29 | |
This property may have been good and solid, | 0:43:29 | 0:43:32 | |
but inside it required everything from new heating to desperately needed decor. | 0:43:32 | 0:43:37 | |
So have they done it all in the three months since we last saw them? | 0:43:37 | 0:43:41 | |
After clearing everything out of the property, | 0:43:46 | 0:43:49 | |
Christine and David re-plumbed, rewired, | 0:43:49 | 0:43:52 | |
sorted out the windows and radiators and decorated it from top to toe. | 0:43:52 | 0:43:57 | |
We all know that two of the major selling features of a property | 0:44:11 | 0:44:15 | |
are the kitchen and bathroom. So what did they do with those? | 0:44:15 | 0:44:19 | |
So everything here needed replacing. The cupboards were really awful. So everything was ripped out. | 0:44:19 | 0:44:26 | |
Then we decided what to replace it with. | 0:44:26 | 0:44:28 | |
It's easier to keep things where they are, like the sink and the plumbing, as much as possible. | 0:44:28 | 0:44:33 | |
Our builder selected the best units he could. | 0:44:33 | 0:44:37 | |
They're good strong units that will hopefully last for ever. | 0:44:37 | 0:44:41 | |
So it was a case of getting rid of all the rubbish, | 0:44:41 | 0:44:43 | |
tiling it and painting it so it's lighter and brighter. Good flooring. | 0:44:43 | 0:44:48 | |
We're really pleased with the results. | 0:44:48 | 0:44:51 | |
I'm not surprised. This looks so much fresher than before. | 0:44:51 | 0:44:55 | |
Let's hope the bathroom follows suit! | 0:44:55 | 0:44:57 | |
We've done a few things in here. | 0:44:58 | 0:45:01 | |
We stripped all the old suite out | 0:45:01 | 0:45:03 | |
and gone for a nice plain white neutral suite. | 0:45:03 | 0:45:05 | |
Took the shower cabinet out, which was disgusting, and replaced with an on-the-wall shower. | 0:45:05 | 0:45:10 | |
New tiling, accent tiles on the walls. Towel rail. | 0:45:10 | 0:45:14 | |
New flooring. It looks a million times better. | 0:45:14 | 0:45:18 | |
Dave and Christine have also tidied up the back garden | 0:45:18 | 0:45:21 | |
by painting the fences, repairing parts of the patio | 0:45:21 | 0:45:24 | |
and trimming the lawn. | 0:45:24 | 0:45:26 | |
In the front garden, I liked the fact that the trees gave privacy. | 0:45:26 | 0:45:29 | |
But David thought they made the property too dark. | 0:45:29 | 0:45:32 | |
Lucy suggested we keep the trees. | 0:45:32 | 0:45:35 | |
We were going to get rid of them to bring more light in. | 0:45:35 | 0:45:38 | |
But it was a couple of days' work and a four-figure sum to get rid of them. | 0:45:38 | 0:45:43 | |
We decided that wasn't cost-effective. | 0:45:43 | 0:45:45 | |
Especially given their planned budget | 0:45:45 | 0:45:48 | |
of just eight to 10,000, | 0:45:48 | 0:45:50 | |
which as I told them at the time was mighty ambitious! | 0:45:50 | 0:45:54 | |
About 12.5 in total, it's cost us. | 0:45:55 | 0:45:58 | |
We could have spent a lot more, but we've tried to do the house to a budget. | 0:45:58 | 0:46:02 | |
We've done the minimum, but to a good standard. | 0:46:02 | 0:46:05 | |
It looks great. So much better now. | 0:46:05 | 0:46:08 | |
We're quite pleased with the results. | 0:46:08 | 0:46:10 | |
They'd also hoped to get the work completed in six weeks. | 0:46:10 | 0:46:15 | |
It's taken a couple of months from start to finish. | 0:46:15 | 0:46:18 | |
It wasn't helped by the fact that a lot of our guys went on a golfing holiday for a week! | 0:46:18 | 0:46:22 | |
But once back, they had renewed enthusiasm | 0:46:22 | 0:46:25 | |
and they got on and got the job done in a reasonable frame of time. | 0:46:25 | 0:46:29 | |
It took a little bit longer than we anticipated. | 0:46:29 | 0:46:32 | |
Christine and David decided that as novices, they'd best leave the work to the experts | 0:46:32 | 0:46:38 | |
which occasionally was a challenge in itself! | 0:46:38 | 0:46:41 | |
You're always wondering how they're getting on, whether they'll be finished in time. | 0:46:41 | 0:46:46 | |
Not worried, but it's always on your mind. | 0:46:46 | 0:46:49 | |
It's been funny for me working at the golf club and seeing our builders turning up to play golf | 0:46:49 | 0:46:55 | |
and I'm, "Is that the time? Have you finished?" | 0:46:55 | 0:46:57 | |
But I never said it because I know they've done a day's work first. | 0:46:57 | 0:47:01 | |
They've gone that bit further and done that bit extra for us. | 0:47:01 | 0:47:05 | |
We'll use them again. | 0:47:05 | 0:47:07 | |
It sounds to me like the project has been a success overall. | 0:47:07 | 0:47:11 | |
We invited two estate agents to look at the property | 0:47:11 | 0:47:15 | |
and give us their take on it. | 0:47:15 | 0:47:17 | |
The main changes to this property since I saw it last | 0:47:18 | 0:47:21 | |
is that they've decorated throughout, | 0:47:21 | 0:47:24 | |
put in new kitchen, new bathroom, new carpets, so it's all refreshed. | 0:47:24 | 0:47:28 | |
Good first impressions. | 0:47:28 | 0:47:30 | |
Nice new carpet throughout, neutral walls. | 0:47:30 | 0:47:33 | |
A nice dining space and living room. | 0:47:33 | 0:47:36 | |
A good area close to local schools and shops. | 0:47:36 | 0:47:39 | |
Not too far away from Ebbsfleet, so it's 20 minutes into London, which is really popular. | 0:47:39 | 0:47:46 | |
Christine and David paid 137,000 at the auction | 0:47:47 | 0:47:51 | |
and the work set them back a further £12,500 | 0:47:51 | 0:47:54 | |
making their total outlay £149,500. | 0:47:54 | 0:47:59 | |
Would they make their money back if they decided to sell? | 0:47:59 | 0:48:02 | |
I would say the resale value in the current market would be around £160,000 | 0:48:04 | 0:48:09 | |
The resale value of this property would be £180,000. | 0:48:09 | 0:48:13 | |
-It's about what we thought. -Pretty much. | 0:48:13 | 0:48:15 | |
We were looking at, at the time we bought it, about three months ago, | 0:48:15 | 0:48:19 | |
that when it was done up we thought about 170, didn't we, to sell. | 0:48:19 | 0:48:23 | |
We paid a bit more at the auction than we intended to, but that's fine. Pleased with that. | 0:48:23 | 0:48:29 | |
After spending a total of £149,500, | 0:48:29 | 0:48:33 | |
Christine and Dave could be looking at a pre-tax profit | 0:48:33 | 0:48:36 | |
of between 10,500 and £30,500, | 0:48:36 | 0:48:41 | |
minus the usual selling expenses. | 0:48:41 | 0:48:43 | |
The plan here was never to sell, though. | 0:48:43 | 0:48:46 | |
It was to refurbish, then rent it out. | 0:48:46 | 0:48:49 | |
I think the rental value of this property is around 750 to £800 per calendar month. | 0:48:49 | 0:48:54 | |
We would rent this property at £800 per calendar month. | 0:48:54 | 0:48:58 | |
That's pretty much what we were expecting. | 0:48:58 | 0:49:00 | |
But after it had all been done and I asked an estate agent to look at renting it, | 0:49:00 | 0:49:05 | |
he thought about 800, so we put it up for 850 and got 825. | 0:49:05 | 0:49:10 | |
-So we're really pleased. -Yes. | 0:49:10 | 0:49:12 | |
So the house is already rented. At £825 per calendar month, | 0:49:12 | 0:49:17 | |
it's giving them a rental yield of over 6.5 per cent. | 0:49:17 | 0:49:21 | |
Christine and David have already bought their next property, | 0:49:22 | 0:49:25 | |
so it seems they've been bitten by the development bug! | 0:49:25 | 0:49:29 | |
This has worked out really well. We're pleased with the results. | 0:49:29 | 0:49:33 | |
-We've learned a lot. -Learned loads of lessons. | 0:49:33 | 0:49:36 | |
Hopefully next time we'll make less mistakes. You never know. | 0:49:36 | 0:49:39 | |
Time to head back to affluent Hammersmith, west London, | 0:49:46 | 0:49:51 | |
where husband and wife John and Lisa purchased this one-bed first-floor flat for 279,000. | 0:49:51 | 0:49:58 | |
Small change compared to some prices in London. | 0:49:58 | 0:50:01 | |
I build houses for very rich people. | 0:50:01 | 0:50:04 | |
One I built in Hampstead has just sold for 44 million! | 0:50:04 | 0:50:08 | |
44 million?! | 0:50:08 | 0:50:11 | |
Yes! 15,000 square feet and the most expensive house in Hampstead! | 0:50:11 | 0:50:16 | |
So, working on a somewhat smaller scale here, | 0:50:16 | 0:50:19 | |
they set themselves the challenge of taking this place from tired to top-drawer. | 0:50:19 | 0:50:24 | |
We've come back six months on to find out how they've fared. | 0:50:24 | 0:50:28 | |
The property had a tiny kitchen and a wall begging to be knocked down, which they did. | 0:51:04 | 0:51:09 | |
The last time when you were here, you might remember there was a wall here, with a tiny kitchen. | 0:51:23 | 0:51:29 | |
Door there. | 0:51:29 | 0:51:30 | |
So we've knocked the wall down | 0:51:30 | 0:51:33 | |
and it's really opened it up. | 0:51:33 | 0:51:35 | |
It's opened up the living area and made it look much more homely. | 0:51:35 | 0:51:40 | |
Obviously spacious | 0:51:40 | 0:51:42 | |
but still homely and a nice place to be rather than cramped. So it's lovely. I'm pleased with it. | 0:51:42 | 0:51:48 | |
But the biggest task here was to take the dark and dingy loft | 0:51:48 | 0:51:52 | |
and turn it into something special. | 0:51:52 | 0:51:54 | |
And it's a job very well done, by the look of things. | 0:52:02 | 0:52:07 | |
It's worked out really well, actually. | 0:52:07 | 0:52:09 | |
We didn't realise it was going to come to this size. | 0:52:09 | 0:52:13 | |
We've got double doors here and to get the ceiling height, we dropped the floor | 0:52:13 | 0:52:18 | |
to give more ceiling height. | 0:52:18 | 0:52:20 | |
We managed to get the en-suite shower and toilet in as well. | 0:52:20 | 0:52:23 | |
A big bonus, actually. | 0:52:23 | 0:52:25 | |
It's looking very fresh and a lot better than we originally thought. | 0:52:25 | 0:52:29 | |
Great as it looks and positive as he sounds now, | 0:52:29 | 0:52:33 | |
there was a nasty shock in store for them not long after completing on the flat. | 0:52:33 | 0:52:37 | |
We did have a bit of a problem. | 0:52:37 | 0:52:40 | |
We were talking about perhaps buying the freehold. | 0:52:40 | 0:52:43 | |
The people downstairs were interested as well. | 0:52:43 | 0:52:46 | |
Then we discovered that the loft didn't actually belong to us! | 0:52:46 | 0:52:50 | |
So that was a bit of a shock, to say the least! | 0:52:50 | 0:52:55 | |
I phoned to ask the solicitor why he didn't tell us! | 0:52:55 | 0:52:58 | |
Anyway, the demise of the loft we now own. We had to pay the council for the demise. | 0:52:58 | 0:53:03 | |
All in, they wanted an extra 30,000 on top of what we paid for the flat. | 0:53:03 | 0:53:06 | |
It was a shock. | 0:53:06 | 0:53:08 | |
We're the only ones up here and who else is going to use it? | 0:53:08 | 0:53:12 | |
But we were more cross that the solicitor didn't pick it up. | 0:53:12 | 0:53:17 | |
And a bit upset when he said, "You should have known, surely?" | 0:53:17 | 0:53:21 | |
You sort of think, "Well, no! We're asking your advice." | 0:53:21 | 0:53:27 | |
But we thought there's no point in worrying about it. We just had to get on. | 0:53:27 | 0:53:32 | |
We needed to do it as quickly as possible. And that's what we did. | 0:53:32 | 0:53:36 | |
That's the spirit! But there's definitely a lesson to be learned. | 0:53:36 | 0:53:40 | |
When purchasing a property, it's dangerous to assume anything. | 0:53:40 | 0:53:44 | |
Make sure you check the small print and if you're unsure of anything, ask questions. | 0:53:44 | 0:53:49 | |
Lisa had been hoping to take the reins here, | 0:53:49 | 0:53:53 | |
but you know what they say about the best-laid plans! | 0:53:53 | 0:53:57 | |
I was going to do a lot more than I did, but I got two new jobs come up | 0:53:57 | 0:54:01 | |
which I didn't want to turn down. | 0:54:01 | 0:54:03 | |
So I went on to do my own work | 0:54:03 | 0:54:06 | |
and left John to it cos he knows what he's doing! | 0:54:06 | 0:54:09 | |
-I'll do the next one! -I don't know about that! | 0:54:09 | 0:54:12 | |
Surprises aside, it's good to hear they're not put off taking a property plunge again. | 0:54:12 | 0:54:17 | |
Their aim was a four-month timescale | 0:54:17 | 0:54:20 | |
and after two months to resolve the issues with the loft and to get planning permission, | 0:54:20 | 0:54:24 | |
the work did, in fact, take four months to complete. | 0:54:24 | 0:54:28 | |
But what about that £53,000 budget? | 0:54:28 | 0:54:30 | |
We've done well. Apart from the demise for the loft, | 0:54:30 | 0:54:33 | |
which was obviously 30,000, | 0:54:33 | 0:54:36 | |
the full conversion comes to 45,000, so we're 8,000 under budget. | 0:54:36 | 0:54:41 | |
We asked two estate agents to come to the property and give their assessment | 0:54:43 | 0:54:47 | |
on whether the couple will make their money back. | 0:54:47 | 0:54:50 | |
First impressions are good. | 0:54:50 | 0:54:52 | |
It's light, bright, a new finish. | 0:54:52 | 0:54:54 | |
They've done well with the space that they have. | 0:54:54 | 0:54:58 | |
It was a good idea to do the loft conversion to utilise the space | 0:54:58 | 0:55:02 | |
in the roof. | 0:55:02 | 0:55:03 | |
It will increase the overall square footage of the property as well as the value. | 0:55:03 | 0:55:08 | |
John and Lisa are undecided whether they should rent or sell. | 0:55:08 | 0:55:11 | |
What returns could they see for each option? | 0:55:11 | 0:55:15 | |
If you put this property on the rentals market, you'd achieve between 16 and £1,700 per month. | 0:55:15 | 0:55:20 | |
I'd expect this to achieve for rentals around £1,600 a month. | 0:55:20 | 0:55:25 | |
-Yes, that's the feedback we've been having. -Yeah. | 0:55:25 | 0:55:28 | |
A couple of people have said it could be more. | 0:55:28 | 0:55:31 | |
So we're fairly happy with that. | 0:55:31 | 0:55:33 | |
They purchased the property for 279,000 plus £30,000 to buy the loft. | 0:55:33 | 0:55:40 | |
With the work costing £45,000, that's a total spend of 354,000. | 0:55:40 | 0:55:47 | |
What could they make if they decided to sell? | 0:55:47 | 0:55:50 | |
This would achieve in the region of £400,000. | 0:55:50 | 0:55:53 | |
If you put this up for sale, you'd expect to achieve between 460 and £470,000. | 0:55:53 | 0:55:58 | |
-OK. -That's a big difference. | 0:55:58 | 0:56:00 | |
The offers that we've had are in the middle of that, anyway. | 0:56:00 | 0:56:04 | |
-That's nice. -It's about right. | 0:56:04 | 0:56:05 | |
I don't think that we would hold out for 460 or 470 if we're definitely going to sell. | 0:56:05 | 0:56:11 | |
But it's nice to know. | 0:56:11 | 0:56:14 | |
But also to have that middle ground as well is fine. | 0:56:14 | 0:56:18 | |
So they could be looking at a pre-tax profit | 0:56:19 | 0:56:22 | |
of anywhere between 46 and £116,000, | 0:56:22 | 0:56:25 | |
minus the usual selling expenses. | 0:56:25 | 0:56:28 | |
No wonder they're happy. | 0:56:28 | 0:56:30 | |
Would their top tip for success be team work? | 0:56:30 | 0:56:33 | |
-Yeah. -Yeah! | 0:56:34 | 0:56:36 | |
-She does the research, I do the building. Works perfectly. -Fair enough! | 0:56:36 | 0:56:40 | |
-No, we've had a good time together. -Yeah. -Absolutely fantastic. | 0:56:40 | 0:56:44 | |
That's it for now. We'll have more auction stories to warn or inspire you next time! | 0:56:46 | 0:56:53 | |
-Make sure you join us then. -Goodbye! -Goodbye! | 0:56:53 | 0:56:56 | |
Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd | 0:57:18 | 0:57:20 |