Episode 24 Homes Under the Hammer

Whether you're a seasoned property developer or a first-time buyer, you'll want to get value for money.

And that can be quite difficult in a fluctuating property market,

which is why more and more people are heading to the auctions

to buy their home under the hammer.

There are property auctions held all over the country

and throughout the year, so you really are spoilt for choice.

So let's take a look at which properties made our buyers

part with their cash on today's show.

'At this property in Wiltshire,

'it's not just the foliage that needs to go.'

For me, there are just too many walls.

'In Stoke, some of the fixtures in this two-bed house

'could be museum pieces.'

That generally means

the wiring hasn't been replaced for a long time!

'And this two-bed ground-floor flat in south-east London

'is harbouring a nasty surprise.'

This could be a very big problem for the new owner - dry rot.

All these properties have been sold at auction, and we'll find out

who bought them what they paid for them

-when they went under the hammer.

-That's your property, sir.

I'm in the heart of Wiltshire in the historic market town of Devizes.

Founded in Norman times, the town prospered during the Georgian era,

when many of its finest buildings were erected.

Today, it retains much of its old charm with museums,

independent shops, and some truly beautiful architecture.

Devizes in Wiltshire may not have its own train station -

the nearest one is six miles away in Melksham -

but what it lacks in transport links

it makes up for in historical buildings.

There are over 500 listed properties in this town alone.

'The property I'm here to see may not be a listed building,

'but it does have a lot of other things going for it.'

I'm here to see a semi-detached house

that had an exciting guide price.

The last house that sold on this road was for £240,000.

I'm here to see a similar three-bedroom property

that had a guide price of just £125,000.

Interested? I am.

# How, how

# Interesting, interesting Interesting #

'If adding value is your game, then picking up a property

'at a price below market rate should be your aim.

'That guide price does suggest it will require a lot of work,

'and not necessarily just on the inside.'

That hedge needs a bit of taming. You can hardly see what's in there!

I'm going to check it out.

# Welcome to the jungle

# We've got fun and games

# We've got everything you want... #

It really is a jungle in here.

However, once you've hacked your way through the undergrowth,

you get a much better idea of what's on offer.

A quick peek next door shows you what it could be like.

Both houses seem to have been built at the same time

and it gives a great idea of the possibilities here.

Look! This ivy is as keen to get in the house as I am!

Ooh, perhaps I'm not so keen now.

Bit of a disappointment on the inside.

Woodchip wallpaper absolutely everywhere,

although there is a little bit of character to the house.

You've got a nice newel post there. Not a bad-sized room here,

although the kitchen, a little bit on the small side.

I'm just wondering if you could perhaps open the space up.

For me, there are just too many walls.

# Too many walls have been built in between us

# Too many dreams have been shattered around us #

This 1920s semi has the potential to be a great family home,

but the downstairs floor plan just doesn't work for me.

The two reception rooms and kitchen all feel smaller than they are.

I think you need to knock some walls down and open it up.

Upstairs there are two spacious bedrooms,

one box room and a family bathroom.

There's a loft hatch, too,

which could mean potential to expand upwards.

But it's not the only way to make this place bigger and better.

Believe it or not, this property comes with a 100ft garden.

You would never believe it, standing here.

That's just perfect for lounging about.

And it's also great if you want to extend your home.

Losing some space in an already huge garden isn't going to bother you, really.

Take the lead from your neighbours.

They all seem to be enjoying their larger houses.

Plus, it will add thousands to the end value. Win-win.

'While we're taking inspiration

'from the neighbouring properties, what about the outside?'

I don't know whether you can see in there,

but that hedge certainly needs to go. Agreed?

But what do you put in its place?

A nice wall, some flowers perhaps,

a water feature, a rockery maybe.

Well, that is not what I see.

I see a way we can make some money - off-road parking.

Having spoken to local agents,

I know that could add as much as £15,000 to the sale price.

It's great to think that a £3,000 outlay could add

almost 7% to the end value.

And if that doesn't convince you, then these definitely should -

double yellow lines - a nightmare for both you and your visitors.

What would a local estate agent make

of this property, with its unruly garden and £125,000 guide price?

We invited one along to tell us.

I really like the property.

I think it's got a lot of potential, quite a lot needs to be done.

Kitchen and bathroom are both very old.

I imagine the heating is very aged.

The windows, whilst double-glazed, are old, too.

So you're pretty much starting again.

Let's talk figures. How much could you achieve on the rental market?

If you extended the property and added parking to it,

you could possibly get a rental of around £750 per calendar month.

What could it sell for?

If you extended the property at the back

and created a larger living space, you could sell it for up to £235,000.

If you went into the roof, creating a fourth bedroom,

it's possible to achieve a figure up to £250,000.

OK, so you'll need more than a strimmer

if you want to take this property on.

But, if you're green-fingered and fancy a challenge,

you could add real value here.

Let's see who wanted this when it went under the hammer.

130. Put me in.

At £130,000. I'll take 2. 132.

At 132. 134. And 6, may I say?

138. Do you mean 140? 140, thank you.

142. 144?

144 down here. 146 at the back, OK?

At £148,000.

The bid's over there. 150 I've got. 152.

At 154. 156. 158, sir, it's against you. 158.

At 160... Yes, or no?

159. OK. 160. 161. OK.

At 161. 162, sir.

163. 64. 65.

66.

67. 68.

69.

170. 171.

172.

I do mean it - for the first time, 172.

For the second time.

At £172,000. The third and last time at the back, are you done? 172.

It's yours, sir, at 172. Well done.

It was local lad Matthew who made the final bid of 172,000.

He's a self-employed electrician who bought

this property along with his girlfriend Amy

as their first home together.

Unfortunately, Amy couldn't make it today,

so I met up with Matthew to get the lowdown.

Matthew, congratulations, brilliant. Really good news.

Tell me, why did you want to buy this at auction?

Myself and my girlfriend have been looking for about a year for a property to move into.

We didn't specifically want it to be at auction,

but this house showed itself,

so we had to take a look and it worked out.

So were you nervous

about buying your first property in an auction room?

Yeah, actually, it got the pulse racing when it started.

But it was a great way to buy, I think. I quite enjoyed it.

What did you like about it?

I don't know. It was how it was fast-paced and you felt involved.

It wasn't dragged out. Once you've done it, you've done it.

When you view a house,

we've looked at a few before, and you go back and forth,

and it takes for ever, whereas that was it, it was done. Now we've got to live with it.

And you loved it enough to buy it.

We actually bought it on a ten-minute viewing.

We didn't see much of it, but we know the area and we like it.

-So you saw the house for ten minutes?

-Yeah.

-Seriously?

-Yeah!

What did you say? You walked in through the front door, then what?

We split. I went straight upstairs. She went to the back of the house.

We had a look round, met in the garden, which there isn't much of. We loved it straight away.

-What about that garden? What is that garden about?

-It's a monster.

It's almost a forest.

'Well, "forest" is one way of describing it,

'but I'm still getting more of a jungle vibe.'

# Jungle, jungle, jungle, jungle rock

# Jungle, jungle, jungle, jungle rock

# Jungle, jungle, jungle, jungle rock

'Matthew must be brave to take on a first property

'that comes with all of this.'

Matthew, were you looking for a project?

Yes, really. We wanted something we could put our stamp on as we're a couple getting our first home.

We did look at new houses, but they didn't take our fancy, really.

I want to know, is it your first home together?

Yes, our first home full stop.

We both live with our parents and it's going to be a real journey.

It's going to be so exciting for you both, but, of course,

you've got so much work to do. You only need to look around.

Every single wall needs to be stripped.

Where are you going to start?

We're going to empty the house out, clear the gardens,

get a blank canvas and work with that, really.

We've got quite grand plans, but you've got to start small.

Come on, tell me your grand plans. If you could have your wish list,

what would you do with this house?

For now, we're going from the kitchen through to the dining room, giving us one big living area.

We're going to close up the door and have a nice U-shaped kitchen.

Just gut the entire house. Redo the lot. Rewire.

It needs central heating. All the boring stuff.

We've got parking going in out the front,

and we'd love to do something good with the rear garden if we could.

What about extensions? I've been looking at the neighbouring properties.

Some people have extended out that way. Some people have gone into the loft.

We'd like a two-storey extension on the back,

but, for now, we'll keep it as it is.

We may go up into the loft, if the budget will allow. We'll have to see.

-What sort of budget have you got?

-We've allowed ourselves 15 to 20,000.

We are doing most of the work ourselves,

but it'll run over, as they do.

Have you got any contacts between you?

Yes, luckily her father is a builder

and I work in the building industry,

so we know enough people to get ourselves through.

-What do you do?

-Myself and my brother have set up an electrical installation company.

So we've got that side of things covered.

# Danger, danger!

# High voltage when we touch

# When we kiss When we touch

# When we kiss Lover! #

Having contacts is a huge advantage when taking on a project like this.

It's also a handy way of keeping the budget down.

We've talked about how much it will cost,

but how long does Matthew think it will take to iron out this lot?

We've given ourselves six to eight months to be completed.

We would like to be in after five or six,

but we'll see how things go being done on evenings and weekends.

You never know how long it can take.

Are you not going to move in until you've done it?

No, we want it quite nicely finished before we get in.

Oh, you see, you've got the luxury of living with Mummy and Daddy! Both of you.

They don't want to let us go!

-How will your parents be? Are they supportive?

-They are. I'm not sure how financially supportive,

but they're happy about the property.

We'll have to wait and see when we come back.

It's been fantastic meeting you.

I'm really excited you've got yourselves a fantastic house and a lovely first home.

-Excellent, thank you.

-Congratulations.

Matthew and his girlfriend are well connected,

so I can't really see this house posing too many issues.

But as we well know,

you're never quite sure what problems a house will throw up.

You can find out how, and if,

they tame this jungle later in the programme.

I'm in Burslem, one of the famous pottery towns -

actually undergoing a resurgence at the moment

of interest in ceramics and other fine art.

'Burslem is one of the six towns

'that make up the city of Stoke-on-Trent.

'And evidence of its ceramic heritage both past and present

'can be seen dotted around the town centre.

'It's also well located for reaching the surrounding areas

'and onto the M6 motorway.'

Close to the centre of town, in this really popular residential area,

is the property I'm here to see.

It's a two-bedroom mid-terrace.

Had a guide price of 45,000 quid. It looks pretty promising from the outside.

I do like houses which are in a slightly elevated position.

Clearly not that good for disabled access, but, in terms of things like damp,

you get an impression that you're probably not going

to suffer quite as much damp problems as you might if the house wasn't elevated.

Whether that's the case or not, I'm not sure.

But it certainly feels like that.

But fairly traditional layout with the property.

Corridor leading to this point where you've got a living room area

with a gas fire.

A few original features look like they've been left, which is good.

Through to the rear of the property,

where you've got your rear sitting room.

A fire there. I'd like to see that opened up

to give yourself a real focal point. So all good so far.

It's a little bit in need of more tender, loving care

when you come into the kitchen.

Not many units. They are pretty, ooh, creaky!

-HE LAUGHS

-And poor quality.

So you could certainly increase the initial impact of the house

by improving this area.

Again, very traditional layout for this kind of property.

The loo and bathroom are actually off the kitchen here.

Again, spend a little bit of time and effort in these two areas

and you would give the whole house a much-needed uplift.

# Give a little bit

# Give a little bit of your love to me #

'That's all it needs.

'Some cosmetic work and the ground floor will be smiling again.

'Although you may not be grinning from ear to ear about this backyard,

'at least the exterior of the house looks in good order.

'There's double glazing for the bathroom and kitchen windows, although the two large ones

'are single-glazed, so best get those upgraded.

'Upstairs, there's a decent-sized double bedroom to the rear

'with a swirly-whirly carpet and a hot water tank.'

At the front of the property, another good-sized double bedroom.

But one thing I am noticing is the electrics.

If you look at this, it's a really old-fashioned light switch.

It's called Bakelite. It's kind of like plastic stuff.

That generally means the wiring hasn't been replaced for a long time!

So that'll need to be checked out.

Something else in here which is not good news is this.

A horrible, nasty hole in the ceiling

and signs of water ingress.

Stained underfelt on the floor

and this bucket collecting water. Obviously a problem.

Without further investigation, I don't know why that is.

It's obviously something in the loft.

Maybe a slipped tile on the roof.

It could be the flashing around the chimney breast.

Either way, you need to check first the loft

and then get a professional up there on the roof to see what's going on.

Might not be expensive to fix, but it's certainly causing damage,

so it does need to be fixed soon.

'Step outside and it's obvious the roof is short of a few tiles, which could be the problem.

'But with two front windows double-glazed and the space out front just needing a tidy up,

'this seems to be a good, solid house with well-proportioned rooms.

'Although it's not the prettiest picture right now,

'it wouldn't need a great artist to bring it up to scratch.'

So, with a guide price of £45,000, does it look like a good investment?

We asked along a local estate agent to hear his thoughts

on this mid-terrace in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent.

Is it a disappointing lot, or does it have a lot of potential?

First impressions of this property are that it is a little tired

and it does need some modernisation.

Kitchen, bathroom, there are signs of old wiring in the property,

so there is a possibility it needs a new rewire.

But the majority of work is probably cosmetic.

So no dramatic work needed

to bring it up to a decent standard,

but how do the numbers stack up?

Bearing in mind its £45,000 guide price,

what could a resale achieve?

After renovation, depending on the standard,

I would suggest in the region of £70,000.

What about the rental figures?

The rental income, after modernisation,

would be in the region of £400-£425 per calendar month.

It just goes to show that your money goes a long way

when it comes to buying in certain parts of the country.

Here in Burslem you are getting

a lot of house for that £45,000 guide price.

Yes, a few bits and pieces to do to sort out the leak upstairs,

but other than that, a great one to go for.

Let's see who agreed when it went under the hammer.

40 to start me.

35, then, start me at 35.

It's got to be 35 to start. 35 bid. Thank you.

At £35,000.

36 can I say? At... 36.

At 36,000. 37? 37.

38. 39. 40.

41. 42.

New bidder, £43,000.

At 43. 44 now. 44...

45,000 on the back.

Against you there, if the bid is right. No mistakes.

At £45,000 for the first time.

At £45,000 for the second time.

Third and final time at £45,000.

Your lot, sir. Well done.

And the successful bidders who got the lot

for bang on the guide price of 45,000 were Geoff, on the right, and Adian.

But it wasn't them who I met up with, but Geoff's father-in-law

and business partner Bill.

He's a retired electrical engineer who came to tell me

what sparked their interest in the house.

-Bill, good to meet you.

-Hello there.

-HE CHUCKLES

-Congratulations.

Tell me why you wanted to buy this.

Well, really, it's for my foster son. He's been with us

for 11 years now.

He's originally from Albania and me and my business partner,

who were at the auction, sort of...were thinking about buying a property

and where better to go than to an auction, which is where they went.

I didn't actually go to the auction, but Adi, who is my foster son,

he's in Albania, seeing his parents, so here I am.

-Wow. So how did you end up fostering?

-Really, it was the wife.

She had this maternal instinct - as well as having her own family,

we wanted to foster kids, as well.

So we've been doing it - oh, how long now? - about 15 years.

Wow.

But we don't do it now, because we're retired.

-But why children from Albania?

-Well, not particularly.

We foster English children, as well, but there was Adi

and a friend who had recently come over from Albania, seeking asylum.

And we were asked if they could stay with us.

How old were they at the time?

Adi was 14 at the time,

so, mathematically, it will make him 25 now.

And how has the whole fostering experience been?

I think any foster parent will tell you it does have its ups

and its downs, but it is a rewarding thing to do.

# I can help

# I've got two strong arms

# I can help

# It would sure do me good

# To do you good Let me help #

Bill is a full-time carer for his wife

and also a local lay preacher in the church.

Along with his son-in-law, Geoff, they've bought

and renovated four properties and this is their latest purchase.

With a little bit of work, it will become Adian's new home.

They'd also hoped he could move in straight away - if it wasn't for a little misunderstanding.

When we came to look at it, the house was furnished

and in our naivete,

-we thought the furniture was included in the sale.

-Ooh-er.

What happened was when we actually had the key and came and looked,

all the furniture was gone.

So we naturally thought, "Have we been robbed?"

Or have we misread the...

-It did say fixtures and fittings.

-Ah. That's not furniture.

Perhaps it isn't, but, normally when we look at a property,

before we go to the auction, it's bare, like this.

With it having the furniture in,

we naturally assumed that the furniture was staying.

But it's a word of warning that you do have to check

if furniture is included.

Yes. We'll know that if we ever get involved again.

Tell me what you are going to do to sort it out.

We've got to sort the ceiling out in the bedroom,

so Geoff, who's my business partner, he's going to do the work upstairs.

As you can see, this room is Artexed,

which is not everybody's cup of tea.

I don't know how you feel about Artexing, but I don't like it, really.

But then again I'm not going to live in the house,

so we'll have to see where we go from there.

'So the Artex may stay or go.

'But Bill will look at the wiring,

'sort out that ceiling, put in double-glazed units at the rear,

'and possibly replace the kitchen.

'All in six to eight weeks and with a budget of £3,000 -

'but we should always remember this is still an investment,

'and with Adian starting up his own computer-repair business,

'this is going to be a massive financial help to him.'

He's got a lot of overheads. He's only 25.

He's setting his own business up,

so obviously he's got a lot of bills to pay.

He's just finished university, so he's got fees to pay there.

So just at the moment, he's not got the cash,

but, hopefully, if things go well and the business goes really well,

in ten years, he will be able to buy this house if he still wants it.

-Originally, he's going to rent it.

-Right.

-That's the idea.

-He's going to rent it from you?

-That's right, yes.

-Good. Congratulations.

-Thank you very much.

Well done, and I look forward to seeing how you get it sorted out.

Yeah, yes, thank you.

Well, people buy properties for all sorts of different reasons

and in this case, Bill doing a lovely thing for foster son Adi,

getting him on the property ladder and really helping him out.

Will he end up keeping the Artex or not,

and will that £3,000 budget go very far?

You can find out later in the show.

Still to come: In London, this flat needs a simple lesson about attracting buyers.

Look at the state of that! Zero kerb appeal.

In Stoke-on-Trent, has Adian

told Bill the truth about living on his own?

You can manage, can't you?

-Yes, he can.

-Yes, I can - on takeaways.

But first, in Devizes, Wiltshire,

did Matthew get help on the renovation?

The girlfriend did a lot of the decorating, but it's been mostly down to myself.

It's back now to the historic town of Devizes in Wiltshire.

It's a place with over 500 listed buildings,

but unfortunately, the property we saw earlier wasn't one of them.

It even hid from view behind its overgrown front garden.

But that didn't put off Matthew -

a local lad and an electrician,

who, along with his girlfriend Amy, bought this for 172,000.

It was to be their first home together.

He had grand plans to open it out

and bring it back to life.

We're giving ourselves six to eight months to be completed.

We'd like to be in after sort of five or six,

but we'll just see how things go with being done on evenings and weekends. Never know how long it'll take.

So, are you not going to move in until you've done it?

No, we want it quite nicely finished before we get in.

You see, you've got the luxury of living with Mummy and Daddy!

That's it. They don't want to let us go, so it was ideal.

But before Matthew and Amy could move in,

there was quite a bit to do.

And if you thought the front was a jungle, just check out the back.

We return seven-and-a-half months later to see if this house

was now good enough to show its face.

Well, the foliage has been exfoliated

and the stone wall removed,

to give Matthew a temporary drive to help get the works done.

And has he been busy?

The front living room has been renovated

into a cool, stylish lounge,

with new wood flooring and a traditional fireplace installed.

But what's happened at the back of the house?

Wow!

A wonderful open-plan kitchen dining area has been created.

I don't know if you remember, this used to be two rooms.

We've taken the wall down between the kitchen and living room,

fitted a new kitchen, we've taken the window out

and fitted patio doors.

Opened up the fireplace.

Pleased with how it's worked out, but still a few bits to do. Oak flooring to go in.

Very happy with the finish we've achieved and I really like the space.

The renovation certainly looks impressive so far,

and it continues upstairs, with the two main bedrooms fully refurbished

and just waiting for some flooring to be added.

And while the old bathroom was definitely not pretty in pink,

this stylish new suite is certainly a welcome replacement.

And the room is even bigger now, taking up the space of the old

airing cupboard that was formerly in the smaller bedroom.

Matthew has also found a way to add more square footage

to this house.

Well, this is the loft. We're going to convert it to a fourth bedroom and an en suite.

Just now it's used for storage cos it's a long-term project,

but I think it would be a good idea if we do it.

It would certainly increase the value,

but talking about maximising space,

have a look outside.

Now that the garden has been cleared,

its true size can be fully appreciated.

There's easily enough room for an extension,

but that's for the future.

For now, this first-time renovation for Matthew is looking good,

and he did it by starting from scratch.

We had to start with the basics. We had to clear the place out and clear the gardens,

get a fresh canvas to start with.

We removed old electrics and plumbing, a lot of plaster came off the walls.

So, it had a full rewire, new heating system, and got fully plastered.

We've knocked a couple of the rooms through,

taken the airing cupboard out the bathroom.

There's still some finishing off to be done inside and out.

There's a new driveway to be added,

the garden to be tidied

and the exterior re-rendered.

But fortunately for Matthew, this house had no hidden nasty surprises.

It was a straightforward, back-to-basics renovation.

-But, was this a one-man show?

-I've done everything I could.

Obviously, I had my brother to help me do all the plumbing work.

The girlfriend did a lot of the decorating, as those were her choices.

But, yeah, it's been mostly down to myself,

but everyone's mucked in as they can.

To do such a grand job here,

Matthew has devoted long nights and weekends to the project.

# You're a hard-working man, ye-e-ah!

# A hard-working man, ye-e-ah! #

Fortunately, the end is in sight.

Well, I've spent the best part of seven or eight months,

and we've got a lot of small work to do which takes up time,

so in another month, tops, we should be in the property.

Getting such a big job done in nine months is pretty impressive,

especially considering this is Matthew's first-ever renovation.

So, let's hope there's more good news about his handling

of the £15,000 to £20,000 budget.

By the time we'd got the driveway finished and the rendering done, it came to 15,000.

But we've just been spending it as we go,

but it's worked out all right, I think.

Add that 15 grand to the original price of 172,000,

and the total outlay is now £187,000.

And when the loft conversion is finally complete,

the changeover from a three to a four-bed house

will make this a good investment.

But turning a profit on this place isn't the ONLY thing that

Matthew and Amy are looking forward to.

We're quite excited to get in, being our first home.

It'll be a nice change, and hope it works out all right.

But would the local property market get excited

about Matthew's hard work and that £187,000 investment?

We asked two local estate agents for their thoughts on it.

From where the property was when they purchased the property to now

is a vast, vast difference.

I especially like what they've done upstairs going into the loft space.

I think that will add definite value to the property.

I think they've done a great job.

He's obviously put a lot of attention to detail.

Surprised, actually,

that he's gone into the roof rather than extend it out the back.

Looking at some of the other houses in the road,

quite a few of them have extended.

But will the place make money?

Remember, the couple have spent 187,000,

and though the plan is to live here,

what could they get if they sold it on?

As a three-bed, you'd be looking at £250,000.

I would look at, at the moment, around about 270,000.

And when the loft's converted into the fourth bedroom?

Four-bed, you'd be looking,

we think, at the 275-280 mark.

We'd be looking at 280-285.

Those are quite good figures. While we live here it's not an issue,

but for the future that's good to know.

Wow! As a three-bed, the couple could make

a potential pre-tax profit of between 63 and 83,000.

And as a four-bed, a possible 88 to 98,000,

minus the usual taxes and expenses.

So, has that turned Matthew's head?

All the effort we've put in we'd better live in it for a while.

But we'll always look for the next one.

So, after all that work, Matthew and Amy are going to enjoy the house as it is.

But get that fourth bedroom in,

and there's a potential rental income

of £775 to £800 per calendar month, IF they decide to let the house out.

So, what will be their next move?

Finish this property, and then, I think, we'd like to live somewhere

outside the town, so we'll have to see what we can find there.

I'm in Upper Norwood in south-east London.

It's a popular area as it's close to Crystal Palace,

with its beautiful parks and fantastic transport links.

# To live in a crystal palace

# Everyone will see... #

I'm here to see a two-bedroom ground floor flat

that had a guide price of £90,000.

Now, it's a property with a nice long lease -

it's 118 years.

So, that is great news, but there's also some bad news, I'm afraid.

Somebody is using the front of the property as a dumping ground.

Look at the state of that!

ZERO kerb appeal.

The new owner will have to find out who is responsible or clear it themselves.

Whatever happens, this lot has to be shifted.

Onwards and upwards, hopefully.

# Now, my old man's a dustman

# He wears a dustman's hat

# He wears cor blimey trousers

# And he lives in a council flat. #

First impressions of a property are all-important

when it comes to securing a buyer or a tenant.

And something as minor as this unsightly rubbish

can tarnish an otherwise perfectly presented home.

SHE LAUGHS

Forgive me, but am I missing something?

You're going to have to come with me.

Shouldn't there be a front door here? Shouldn't there be?!

It's really weird.

It's almost as if that's the front door and somebody's taken it.

Anyway, let's move on. I think that needs to be reinstated!

But a really generous, GENEROUS room.

It's very sunny, very spacious,

although a big downside...

single-pane windows.

You need to put double glazing in there,

because you've got a very busy road and it's going to be noisy.

But, big high ceilings, gas central heating,

a really good space to work with.

Yes, I like it. I think you could do a lot to improve it,

but so far, so good.

# You've got to accen-tu-ate the positive

# Eli-min-ate the negative. #

There are definitely more positives than negatives so far,

though this corridor feels a little narrow and dark.

But some clever decorating could make it feel much more spacious.

The first bedroom has good proportions,

and the bathroom is a decent size as well.

Overall, however, the property needs a dose of TLC,

and the kitchen isn't much better, I'm afraid.

There's definitely room for improvement.

If you can see through all the dinginess,

the kitchen's a really good size, so I'm happy with that.

Obviously, it needs a complete overhaul, but look at this.

This is currently the back bedroom.

I think there's a huge opportunity that's missed.

I would like to take down this wall,

open up that wonderful kitchen into this area...

Woah! Just going to walk the plank.

And, therefore, you could have kitchen, dining space, lounge,

put some BIG French doors there,

because you've got a wonderful garden outside.

It would be such a nicer way to live. I think whoever takes this on

should really think about looking into changing this space.

Because, currently, as it's laid out, it doesn't really work for me.

Yes, it will require some work, but I think it would be worth it.

This flat needs some wow factor, while at the moment it's got the "oh-no factor".

And the misery doesn't end there, I'm afraid.

Now, this could be a very big problem for the new owner.

Dry rot.

Now, I'm not an expert, so I'd have this checked out by a professional.

BUT, if it's what I think it is...

that could be a very costly job to cure.

It's a fungus that can penetrate timber and brickwork.

It may have just affected this room -

let's keep our fingers crossed - but who knows?

It could have worked its way through this whole flat,

causing serious amounts of damage.

I hope whoever took this on paid for a thorough survey,

because the cost of treating that could run into thousands of pounds.

# You're the devil in disguise

# Oh, yes, you are! #

Dry rot - a devil in disguise for any renovation project,

and potentially an extremely expensive problem to fix.

I know I'm always pointing out the benefits of having transport links

and close proximity, but I'm not sure I'd want them THIS close.

This bus stop is directly outside the property,

and a bus stopping then pulling off can be very, very noisy.

Plus, you've got members of the public waiting outside,

which might put some buyers off.

Not really ideal, if I'm honest.

# I don't want to cause no fuss

# Too much, Magic Bus

# Can I buy your Magic Bus? #

We asked along a local estate agent to see what he would make

of this property in Upper Norwood, guided at £90,000.

First impressions of the property, coming in,

is that it looks like it's been painted over a lot

to hide a multitude of sins.

So, anybody buying this,

I think they really do need to get a really detailed survey done,

timber and damp done, and really look into what they're going to have to do to the property.

How much could it sell for once renovated?

Once the property's been done,

it would be valued between £170,000 and £180,000.

And for rental?

If put on the rental market in good condition,

the property would gain a rental of between £800 per calendar month and £850 per calendar month.

This property is in the worst state it's ever probably going to be in.

There are a few positives, but unfortunately,

there are also a number of negatives.

This flat is going to require a lot of work and a lot of money,

but, if somebody can keep to a strict budget,

there COULD be some cash to be made here.

Let's see who fancied this challenge when it went under the hammer.

100,000, anywhere?

What about 90?

We'll try and work our way up from there.

Thank you, 90 I've got.

91, anywhere?

Thank you. 91...

92...

93...

94...95...

96...

New place, more competition. 96...97...

98...

99...

100,000...

101...

102...

103...

104...105...

106...107...

108...

109...

110,000...

111...

If not, 110 for the first,

110 for the second,

-110 for the third and final time... All done.

-HE BANGS GAVEL

Sold. 110.

The successful bidder who bought this lot for 110,000 was Caroline.

# Sweet Caroline... #

Caroline is a finance manager.

She and her husband Gary, a former fire investigator

who has retrained as a cabbie, plan to renovate the flat.

I met them in Upper Norwood to find out more.

Guys, congratulations. What was it like for you on auction day?

Caroline, explain to me.

Well, I wanted to go and Gary said...

"It'll probably go for more than we're prepared to pay."

But it didn't, it went for 5,000 less than we were prepared to pay,

so I rang him up and said, you know, "I've bought it."

-Na-na-na-na-na!

-Yeah.

-So what did you think when you saw it?

It was as I expected. It was a bit of a wreck, really.

Everything that could need doing looked as though it needed doing.

When I had a look round, all the floors were bouncing and it smelled of damp,

so it was the worst possible scenario.

But that's what I expected.

So, when you buy a property like this at auction,

there's a leasehold.

It's quite important to chat to the freeholder.

We'd like to buy the freehold, so that's why we approached him.

Is the landlord singing the right songs? Is it something he's willing to do?

He said he will.

We're just negotiating the price, really, now, so...

He asked us to make him an offer for the freehold and the flat,

which we did, and then, obviously, he said that it's not enough,

so he's going to think about it and come back to us.

So we hope to hear very soon.

# Let the price be right

# Come on down tonight

# If the price is right! #

Finding the money to pay that price wasn't easy, though.

Caroline and Gary had problems getting a mortgage

as the property had previously been bought and sold within six months.

Not only that, but the mortgage valuer had given it

a very high valuation.

They valued it at 190,000 in its present condition,

and 220 when it's finished.

That's really good news! And you paid...?

-110.

-Wow!

-Yes.

-I mean, that is incredible.

-Yeah.

-So guys,

does that leave many pennies left over in the bank for you to spend on this property?

Just about enough, I think.

We've budgeted we need to spend about 22,000 to bring it up to the sort of standard that we'd like.

So, Gary, what is that money going to be spent on?

Talk me through what you're going to be doing here.

Right, we're going to have new damp proof course.

So we've got to tack all the plaster off, reinstate the plaster.

New ceilings...

Going to have new floors,

because we have dry rot and some wet rot.

We're going to have new windows, new bathroom, new kitchen,

new plumbing and central heating, and of course, rewired.

-That's everything!

-And that new door.

-And the garden.

-The garden.

-Even more to the list!

So, basically, you're going to do everything inside,

-but just keep the walls up.

-Yes.

-Have you two ever done anything like this before?

-Yes.

We've moved quite a lot in our married life,

and we've bought places that are like this...

And actually lived in them and worked around it.

-So you're not fazed at all at the moment?

-No.

-No.

Caroline is going to stand back and tell me what she wants, and I'll get on and do it, I suppose.

-That's a good relationship! So how long have you been married?

-29 years now.

29 years!

-We look too young, don't we?

-You do.

-Thank you.

-Guys, congratulations.

-I bet you cut that out!

Congratulations, it's been fantastic meeting you.

-Thank you. Thanks very much.

-Thanks.

Will we come back to a front bedroom

and an AMAZING open-plan kitchen-lounge-diner?

You can find out how the couple get on later in the programme.

Well, there has been plenty of time for our buyers to have started work on their properties.

But have they actually done anything, Martin,

or have they been delayed by problems?

Yes, time is money, so they made any or lost out?

Let's go back and see what they've been up to.

We head back now to the town of Burslem in Stoke-on-Trent,

where this two-bedroom mid-terraced house sold at auction for 45,000.

Your lot, sir. Well done.

It was bought by Geoff on the right, and Adian.

But it was Bill - a retired electrical engineer and Adian's foster father -

that we met to find out more about the story behind getting this place.

Well, it really is for my foster son. He's been with us for 11 years now.

He's originally from Albania,

and me and my business partner who were at the auction...

were thinking about buying a property,

and where better to go than to an auction?

And how has the whole fostering experience been?

I think any foster parent will tell you it does have its ups and downs,

but it is a rewarding thing to do, you know?

Well, renovating a property also has its ups and downs.

While this place looked tired and dated,

the fact that no urgent works were needed was a huge advantage.

So, two months later,

we met up with Bill, and this time, Adian came along

to show us his new home.

Inside, the living room wallpaper has had a fresh lick of paint.

And, with new carpets laid, it's now a bedroom.

That reception room has become the sitting room,

and has also had the same treatment...

while the kitchen is still waiting for its changes, as Adian explains.

I've still got quite a bit to do in this room.

Got a new cooker,

new washing machine there.

I still need to tile the whole room.

Need to put new tiles on the floor.

In the bathroom, going to need to put a new bath, and in the toilet,

need to brick up the window, because it's quite close to the street.

But once all that is done, it should look really nice.

But for the time being, I just can't wait to move in.

With everything in working order, Adian feels there's no urgency

to get anything replaced. But that wasn't the situation in the main front bedroom.

Well, who'd have believed that three months ago,

there was a hole there?

And a big bucket to catch all the water?

What happened was, we went onto the roof.

I held the ladder, while a building friend of ours went on

and we found there was a lot of tiles

that had come loose.

We put the tiles back on, put them into place

and then we actually boarded the ceiling

and plastered it and hey presto!

It looks absolutely fantastic. We're dead pleased with it.

In fact, all the rooms have had a fresh coat of paint

and new carpeting to bring them back to life.

Out back, the yard has been tidied up and, most importantly,

the battered single-glazed windows

have been replaced, with two new double-glazed units.

Although the refurbishment's been kept quite simple

to make it comfortable for Adian to live in,

he and his foster dad, Bill,

have injected a freshness to the interior.

So, who can claim the credit?

Myself, I haven't done much.

I've been more involved in arranging, speaking to the builders,

speaking to the plasterer and everyone, arranging everything.

Because with me being so busy with my work,

I haven't had much time to get stuck in myself.

We have had a lot of team effort on the job, you know -

I think he's the team, and I'm the effort.

Bill checked out the wiring and with the thumbs up on that score,

it looks like those Bakelite switches will be around

just a little while longer.

The central heating also got a clean bill of health.

With the plastering and window fitting done by professionals, this makeover has meant

Bill stayed under his £3,000 budget by a couple of hundred pounds,

but there's still the kitchen and bathroom to do.

It's going to cost a bit extra,

but that's a cost for later on.

-At the moment, it's fine the way it is.

-Yeah.

-You can manage, can't you? Yes, he can definitely manage!

-On takeaways.

Add that to their purchase price of 45,000, and the total outlay here

is just under £48,000.

That's good value for a solid house

and a no-frills makeover.

And it seems like Bill's had second thoughts

on how to make money here.

Well, Adian's paying us back, so we won't be charging him a rent.

We're not working like that.

It won't be a rent, but I'll pay in towards the whole cost of the house.

It's a really good help, so I'm having to pay them

without having to take a huge mortgage on the house, which would have been really...

I would have been paying double or triple what it actually costs.

It's a very big help, thanks to Mr Bill and Geoff. I'm really pleased with that.

So, despite the property staying in Adian's hands for now,

it's time to find out what two local estate agents think of his new home.

The refurbishment of the property has basically been done

in a minimal way in order to make the property habitable

and although the property is very basic, it is habitable.

I think this property has had reasonable refurbishment work.

A little more attention could have been paid in parts, but you

can see that they've redecorated throughout and changed the windows.

But if Bill and Adian have a change of heart and decide to sell,

could they make a profit on their spend of just under £48,000?

The property, in its present condition,

would go on the market for £59,950.

With the basic improvements carried out, I would place this property

on the market in the region of £55,000.

Yes, that is really good. Straight away you can

see your money hasn't gone to waste.

That is brilliant. Straight away there's something there

but anyway, wouldn't be looking to sell it just yet.

So, even with the refurbishment not yet complete,

those estimates of the house's current worth could return

a potential pre-tax profit of £7,500 to £12,500,

which after a couple of months, is not bad going!

For now, however, Adian is looking forward to moving into his new home,

and he knows where the thanks for that are due.

They've helped me out so much.

I mean, they've helped me out in the past with lots of other things

and this is absolutely brilliant.

Because, as you know, it's very hard to be able to afford

something like this all on my own, so it's a great help.

I'm really thankful for everything they've done for me.

# Thank you for being a friend I want to thank you

# Thank you for being a friend I want to thank you. #

Back now to Upper Norwood in south-east London,

where finance manager, Caroline, and her husband, Gary, a former

fire investigator, now retrained as a taxi driver,

had bought this two-bedroom ground floor flat for 110,000.

And having experience of renovating houses before,

they were under no illusions about what to expect.

-What did you think when you saw it?

-It was as I expected.

It was a bit of a wreck, really.

Everything that could need doing looked as though it needed doing.

When I had a look round, all the floors were bouncing

and it smelt of damp, so that was the worst possible scenario,

but that's what I expected.

Gary may have been expecting a bit of a challenge,

but absolutely everything needed to be replaced, from the rotting

joists with dry rot to a ceiling which definitely needed looking at.

It wasn't TLC this property needed, but tough love.

Undaunted by the scale of the project,

Caroline and Gary set to work.

We visited just three months later, to see how they had got on.

This was originally a separate kitchen

and a bedroom with a hallway,

so you'd walk through that door

which was set back further, come along and there would be

a door for the kitchen, come through to the kitchen -

I'm actually standing where the wall had been,

and behind me, where the window is, was a door.

That was the only way out to the garden.

We knocked all that down, and we've reinstated a window and then towards

the end of the living area, we've opened the window, in what used to

be the bedroom, which is now French doors, to go out onto the garden.

It feels a bit more airy in here now.

# That's a good idea Yes, it is

# A real groovy idea. #

Gary and Caroline have created a good-sized open-plan

area at the rear, by taking the living space from the front.

What was the living room is now

the second bedroom at the front of the property.

I was worried that the front bedroom,

having had the hallway taking part of the room,

it would be too small, but with

the chimney breast taken out,

I think it's a reasonable-sized double bedroom, so I was

concerned about that and now we've got the double glazing,

it's not too noisy, so I think that sort of, was one concern that

seems to have turned out OK.

Caroline and Gary approached this project with a good idea

of the extent of the work required, but what was actually involved?

We knew there was a lot of rot, but we had to take the floors up completely.

It was down to earth on the floor. We had new timber floors.

Every bit of plaster was off the walls.

We've had the walls replastered.

All the ceilings were done, new ceilings. We've repositioned

some of the walls,

to change the internal layout a little bit. New windows,

rewired and replumbed.

We're nearly finished but we've still got the painting to do,

so another week or so and we should be finished.

Sounds like a pretty comprehensive makeover. As project manager,

did Gary take it all in his stride?

No, he's not particularly kept calm,

because I think the contractors did annoy him a bit,

because they wouldn't work together and Gary's quite a can-do person,

so when people say they can't, it really does aggravate him.

I did use to calm him down at times.

# Be calm

# Be calm

# I know you feel like you are breaking down. #

Deep breaths, Gary. Deep breaths.

But despite that, did he find project managing enjoyable?

Er... No.

I've done it before.

I enjoy it now we're getting to the end of it, but no, there

was other things I wanted to be doing rather than be here every day.

The couple did have plans to rent the flat out which depended on them

purchasing the freehold,

but failure to acquire that has meant they've decided to sell it on.

Their original planned timescale was three months,

which Caroline and Gary have managed to stick to.

Can the same be said for the budget?

We budgeted, I think Gary said 20,000 originally,

I thought 22.

We've not done a final calculation because we've still got

the floors to do, but it's in excess of £30,000 so,

quite a lot of money.

The couple paid 110,000 at auction for the property

and spent a further £30,000 on renovations.

So their total outlay is around £140,000.

We invited along two local property experts,

to find out if this was money well spent.

I think it's lovely.

From last coming here, it's a huge improvement.

The layout's been reorganised which gives a much better flow to the property.

They're now able to incorporate the garden

as part of the house, which is fantastic.

It feels very open, light, welcoming.

It's a very nice property. It's got a good feel to it.

First impressions of the property - they've done a very good job

with regards to the finish. Obviously, still a few things to be done,

but overall, the size and the condition, it's a good flat.

Now that Caroline and Gary are planning to sell the property,

what kind of resale values can they expect?

In terms of resale, selling the property, on the market,

price would be £179,000.

To put the property onto the market for sale, I would expect to be

achieving anything between £200 to £210,000 for the property.

So, with a total spend of around 140,000

and a sale price of between 179 and 210,000,

Caroline and Gary could make a potential profit

of between £39 and £70,000,

before taxes and other costs.

I think both of them are much higher than what we thought,

-so it's good news.

-That's good.

-Great.

-Worthwhile, hopefully.

-Yes.

Since filming, the property is now under offer

for £170,000.

That would give them a potential pre-tax profit of 30,000,

minus, of course, the usual selling costs.

So I reckon that sounds like a job well done

by Gary and Caroline.

Well, we'll have lots more auction stories for you next time

to warn or inspire.

-See you then for more Homes Under The Hammer.

-Goodbye.

-Goodbye.

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