Episode 77 Homes Under the Hammer

-Hello. Welcome to the programme.

-Property auctions used to be

the domain of builders and developers, but not any more.

Loads of people are realising their potential.

Even in this difficult market,

people are still buying their homes under the hammer.

Even for the most experienced buyers,

auctions can be nerve-wracking and exciting

but you've got to be careful not to get carried away.

Did today's buyers keep a cool head and bag a bargain?

Here's what they bid for.

I serve up a garden flat in Wimbledon but it is not yet an ace.

There's definitely room for improvement.

In this two-bed bungalow

in Borrowash, Derby, things take a dramatic turn!

And then... # Dun, dun, da! #

In Blackhall, Co Durham, it's worth remembering to look up

in a property as well as around.

I need to find out what's going on with the ceiling here.

All these properties went to auction.

255. And we'll find out who bought them...

-32.

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

I'm in a part of London

that's famous for holding an annual sporting event.

No, it is not football, cricket or rugby.

If you are lucky enough to bag a ticket,

you'll more than likely be eating strawberries and quaffing champagne.

That's right, I'm in Wimbledon, south-west London.

It's a truly fabulous part of the city.

And a popular commuter suburb

with both mainline and underground trains to central London.

A very short walk from the tube and train station,

and I'm here to see today's auction lot.

The last property to sell on THIS road sold for a staggering £905,000.

I'm here to see a property that went to auction

with a much smaller price tag.

Now, this is it.

It's a ground floor flat with two bedrooms and the guide, £260,000.

The garden flat is leasehold and has a healthy 125 years remaining.

I think it's got plenty going for it.

A welcoming front door and lovely ornate mouldings at the front.

OK, it could do with a lick of paint buy I'm not put off just yet.

Through the communal hall to its own front door.

It's a bit of a squashed, awkward entrance.

This wall is coming out too far, there is nowhere to go here.

You have got a wonderful large room to the front of the property -

that could be a bedroom.

A nice sized bathroom, it's all tiled. Maybe a little dated.

Second bedroom here, which is incredibly small.

That is quite a disappointing size.

Then, you walk through the flat to an open kitchen.

There is a window, so it is nice and bright but it is small.

Right at the back, thank goodness, you have got a lovely open space.

You can almost forgive what's going on back there.

This is a fantastic, light and bright space.

But I am wondering why they haven't opened up this wall -

it's only a partition.

You could get this wall down and have a lovely open-plan kitchen.

There is enough room for your table

and there are lovely doors leading out to your garden.

So this flat? Well, there's definitely room for improvement.

# There ain't nothing wrong with this old house

# It just needs a little home improvement. #

I'm confident that with some minor tweaks,

you could turn this ground floor, garden flat

that went to auction guided at £260,000, into something special.

Down these stairs in the hall, there's more space.

Basements are in high demand in London. If you can't go up,

everybody is going down.

Dig out and add pounds.

I'm not saying this should be a luxury home cinema,

but you could utilise this space.

An all-important utility area, - hide the washing machines -

or how about a walk-in wardrobe?

I know I've got enough pairs of shoes to fill THIS space.

But tread carefully,

footing the bill for basement conversions can be pricey.

# Toe the line for sure

# And toe the line for good. #

If you plan to tank the walls and add plumbing and ventilation,

you have to know where to toe the line.

And there's more potential outside.

You may think this flat is a little tired on the inside, you'd be right.

It does have an awful lot going for it.

Number one, it's got its own private garden.

How lovely! What a selling point!

Number two, there's off-road parking, another real asset.

Number three, planning permission to create a single-storey extension.

This auction lot comes with full planning permission.

What it means is, you could utilise the side return there.

You could come right out.

Adding this extension would transform the flat.

The kitchen would turn into the bathroom,

the second bedroom would gain so much more space

and the kitchen and living room,

that would be one large open area at the back of the property

with lovely big doors leading out to the garden. Fantastic!

The best news is that the extension doesn't just give you more space

it increases the value significantly.

It could add as much as £50,000 to the sale price.

So, I think, well worth doing.

There is one flaw in the plan,

while that tiny second bedroom

would steal much-needed space from the original bathroom,

the plans allow for the rear living area

only to be extended into the side.

The second bedroom's French doors would open out to

a bit of dead space.

We invited a local estate agent to have a look at the flat

that went to auction guided at £260,000.

How does she think it presents itself as it stands now?

# First impressions are lasting impressions

-# I know, I know, I know. #

-First impressions of the property

are a little tired,

needs a little bit of help, a little bit of care and attention.

What about the plans that came with a flat?

The proposed plans are excellent

either for the developer to do themselves,

or to offer the property with those plans for future sales.

Does she agree with me that the extension

will add significant value to this property?

With a little paint, I suggest that you could

probably sell this property for around £375,000.

Once developed, I would market the property around £425,000.

I would seriously look at any offers over and above £410,000.

Without the extension,

the agent's rental valuation is £1,400 per calendar month.

She suggests that could increase to £2,000 per month

if the extension is built.

A great little flat in a prime location

with planning permission to extend and add value.

This is a fantastic one to go for.

Let's find out who fancied this Wimbledon winner

when it went under the hammer.

Lot 15, ground floor flat, Wimbledon SW19.

Great location, you are just near the underground and shops.

Let's start at 250 then. 250. 255.

255, because I can see you. 260? 260. 265. 270. 275...

Well, lots of interest in the auction room

we rejoin the bidding at £350,000.

..350. 351. 352? 352.

353? 353 in the aisle. 354.

It's Wimbledon! 355. Not far from the tennis courts. 356.

356 standing up.

357 sitting down. 358. 359.

360? 360. 361.

362? 361, first time, second time, third and last time.

Are you all done? Sold! 361 sitting down. Sorry everyone else.

That final successful bid of £361,000 was made by Frank.

He owns a property developing and construction company

with his son James.

I met up with James at the flat to find out the plans for this place.

James, congratulations. What a great flat.

Yes, we're quite happy with it.

Who spotted it in the auction catalogue?

-My father.

-Did he?

-Yes.

-Tell me about your dad and the business.

Basically, it's a family business.

My father goes round, he buys the properties.

He finds them and I build them for him. We work as a family team.

It's not just me and my father, my wife's involved.

Can you lend your hand to most things,

or do you have a specific trade?

I am actually a qualified gas engineer.

I have that behind me but I do know every man's trade.

I can tell if any man's trying to pull the wool over my eyes,

or not doing a good job.

I make sure that the best job is done at all times.

James started working with his dad when he was 17.

He got his gas qualifications and has worked on their building sites.

Over the years, they have made many different redevelopment projects

and even built eight new properties.

Now, they are turning their attention to this place.

This flat definitely gets better as it goes on.

You walk in the door, it's a bit disappointing,

and then it gradually gets a bit better. What did you like about it?

I think it's because with the plans that has come with it,

we'll open it right out to the back.

As you come in, it is going to get better.

Our new plans, we'll try and make the front half better as well.

Hold on! So, you've changed the plans?

Yeah. We weren't too happy with what it came with,

so we're going to try and put an amendment in with planning.

It's got a funny little dogleg on it at the moment.

We're going to go straight across which will give us slightly more room

and, hopefully, with a bit of luck, we'll get that.

What'll it cost you to do the build? To do the extension?

Considering we own our own construction firm,

I would say around the 30 mark.

Is anything worrying you? Anything keeping you up at night?

To be honest, no. We have been doing this for a long time.

It's not a large project, so I've kind of seen it all before.

Hopefully, it should all go smoothly.

Depending on the time it takes

to get the revised planning application through,

James hopes to get the flat completed in three to four months.

His intention is to convert the basement into a utility room.

If his amended plans are approved,

he'll extend out into the void space at the side of the kitchen

and relocate the bathroom to the original kitchen space.

But I can see that you've decided to call that void area, the kitchen.

Surely, that's going to be the same size as THIS kitchen,

which currently is a bit of a negative.

It's not big enough for the property.

Yeah, I would agree with you on that.

What we're going to do is build the shell first.

We are going to look at re-evaluating it.

It might end up being a large bathroom, possibly an en suite

for the second bedroom

and we might do a kitchen-diner.

We're going to get the shell up first and see where we go from there.

James, good luck with this.

I hope you are successful with the planners.

Thank very much.

So, James has encountered

nearly every problem a property can throw up.

In my experience, there's always something

that surprises you when renovating.

Will he find any? And how will he get on amending those plans?

You can find out, if he does it all

in three to four months, later in the show.

Today, I'm in the East Midlands

heading for the outskirts of the bustling city of Derby.

I'm going to a little village

that sits within chanting distance of the Rams -

that's Derby County Football Club to you and me.

Just three miles from Derby city centre,

in the suburbs is the village of Borrowash -

a very popular place with commuters and a nice residential area.

You've got yourself a cul-de-sac here, that's great news

because the property I'm here to see is this.

It's a two-bedroom semi-detached bungalow

at a guide price of £70,000 plus.

It looks OK, tender loving care needed at the front.

Let's see what it's like inside.

So, a nice secluded location and a neat little bungalow.

A great property for a down-sizer or for an investor.

Unless there are any nasty surprises, it bodes rather well.

So, what's the layout? Interesting...

Through the front door and on the right hand side, the loo.

It looks like that hasn't been replaced

since the property was built.

A bit of time and effort in there would pay dividends.

Interesting location. I don't know why I didn't expect to find it

right by the front door, but that's where it is.

Cupboard there, fairly old looking water heating system.

You could create some space in the bathroom

by taking that out and putting a combi boiler in.

That would give you a bigger size family bathroom.

A small single bedroom there

and, on the other side, a reasonable size double.

And then, a bit of a saving grace here, into the main living area.

As soon as you walk through the door,

you're struck by the big patio doors looking out into the garden.

Really nice to see that. It lets loads of light into this room.

We like that. Here's a classic from that era -

sliding door leading to the kitchen. Not a bad size.

Again, looks like it hasn't been replaced for a very long time.

Spend a bit of money in there and in the bathroom.

It is what it is. It's a well-proportioned bungalow.

But to get the most out of this bungalow,

you would need to drag it out of the 1960s.

# And it's all just a little bit of history repeating... #

These sliding patio doors really are a lovely feature.

They lead out onto a half decent size garden

with some good shrubs. A great space.

Nothing untoward until you come over this way and then...

# Dun, dun, da! #

..it's a garage.

That would be OK but, unfortunately, it is an asbestos garage.

It would probably be OK

as long as you don't break any of the asbestos panels.

If you do decide to get rid of it,

it has got to be done by a specialist.

# ..Yes, I've seen it before

# Just a little bit of history repeating. #

I did say this was a nice place IF there were no nasty surprises.

This is IT. But, garage aside, this is a property with possibilities.

At the rear of the property, let's talk extension options.

If you look down the row of bungalows,

you can see somebody has done a classic thing for a bungalow,

stick on a dormer. That is one option.

The planning people would be approving of that

especially if it was on the rear.

The other option is to do what the neighbour here has done

which is to stick an extension on the back.

Either of those options are available.

That kind of extension you could get away with

without getting planning permission,

although you would need building regulations,

as long as it was within permitted development rules.

A dormer, you would have to apply for planning permission.

It would come down to whether or not it was financially worth it,

or, if you're looking to live here,

whether it gave you that extra space that you can't live without.

A little beaut of a bungalow with not too many issues to address.

Guided at 70,000 plus,

let's see what the auctioneer who sold it, thinks about it.

First impressions are, we have got a clean and tidy bungalow.

It is not large and not up-to-date but many of these places aren't.

It wouldn't take a lot of money to bring it into the 21st century.

The kitchen is quite small

and this would benefit from being larger.

Other than putting a conservatory on the back of the lounge,

it cries out for that,

there isn't a lot you can do other than upgrade what's here.

Keeping a close watch on your spending will be the key

to turning this bedraggled bungalow into a little belter.

Once renovated what could it sell for?

I think this might fetch quite a good price

because you don't need a lot of money to renovate it.

It's already got double glazing.

The kitchen is old-fashioned, it would be easy to refit this.

I would say if you spent modest money on it,

it would probably be worth up to £125,000.

What about the rental market in this area?

Would that be a sensible option?

Renovated, it's got a rental value in the order of

£450 to £475 per calendar month.

One of the tricks with auctions

is to spot those little properties that are good and honest.

Yes, they need a bit of sorting out but, primarily,

do that and you've got yourself a great house.

That's exactly the situation here.

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

Lot 25, two bedrooms, semi-detached bungalow.

Who's got 72 to start me?

72 he has, thank you. £72,000.

73 is bid. At 73. 74. 75.

75. 76. 77...

There was a great deal of interest in this bungalow

with offers flying in from all over the room.

We rejoined the bidding at £96,500.

..96,500. 97. 97,500. 98.

98. 500.

99. 500, sir? 500.

99,500 against you. No?

At £99,500 once, going twice.

100. 500. 100,500. It's against you. No?

At £100,500. Sold at the back.

# You can call me Mr Fix It whoa now... #

That successful bid of £100,500 came from Rob.

# ..They call me Mr Fix It. #

He is a self-employed property maintenance expert.

Rob plans to renovate the bungalow with help from his girlfriend,

Camilla, who is an office administrator.

I met with them to hear about their plans.

-Camilla, Rob, good to meet you both.

-Thank you.

Tell me why you wanted to buy the bungalow?

Basically, to make some money...

-OK!

-..to refurbish it and make a profit.

So why this particular place?

I thought it seems a very innocent property,

not been messed about with. You know, good area.

-And I could make a profit on it.

-What's your background, Rob?

I actually work in property maintenance in Newport Pagnell,

where I live.

-Newport Pagnell?

-Yes.

Right, as in, quite a long way away.

75 miles away, Newport Pagnell, yes, that's right.

I advertise locally as property maintenance

and I'm employed in people's private houses

to do anything property maintenance -

kitchens, bathrooms, decorating.

So, you've got a bit of experience in the whole sort of property world?

-Ten years, yes.

-So what tempted you up to Derby?

You couldn't afford things in Milton Keynes.

Yes, it's mainly the prices in Derbyshire

that brought me up this way.

Tell me about your background, Camilla?

I just do admin and I'm a mother with two kids.

-And much property experience?

-Not really.

I've got a degree in architecture, so I like design.

Tell me what you're going to do to this place to sort it out.

Basically, a complete refurbishment from top to bottom.

New kitchen, new bathroom. Central heating.

Or change the boiler, it's got radiators. Decoration, carpets...

What about outside? You've obviously got this slightly dubious garage.

I think I'll keep the garage.

I think it's OK, as long as you don't create dust from it by drilling holes

in it or anything like that.

Yes, it does look like asbestos.

It's better to have a garage than not have one.

And I'm just going to trim the trees, cut the grass,

tidy up the flowerbeds.

And how are you going to do that when you live 75 miles away?

I'm going to be coming up here during the week, on Monday,

-staying here until Friday and going back for weekends.

-Right.

# They call me Mr Fix It... #

Sounds like Rob and Camilla have done their homework.

Rob has really thought through the logistics

of how he's going to work here. Top marks from me.

-What is the timescale?

-Four to six weeks.

-Oh, wow.

-So, what's the budget?

-£8,000-£10,000.

And if you do it for that,

what kind of profit do you think you might be on for for this one?

I'm hoping to make a £10,000 profit.

Anything more than that would be a bonus.

And what is the plan for the future, Camilla?

Is it to sort of carry on with this whole thing?

Yeah, I think just to keep buying properties

and make the profit a little bit bigger every time. That's it.

-So you're just right at the beginning, really.

-Yes.

-Just a year into it.

-Property number two.

So, with this second property,

it might look like a fairly easy profit on the face of it.

But there's a lot of time and money to be spent here.

They looked at 24 properties before deciding on this one

and if time is money, you can add that time to the real costs so far.

Rob paid upfront for a broker fee and a mortgage arrangement fee,

as he needed to borrow to buy this property.

Add to that a valuation survey fee.

So, how much is his outlay so far, before any work begins?

I think about £800.

So, had you not got it, then, that would have just been...?

Absolutely. That's the gamble.

-The previous auction, you did that for a different property.

-Yes.

And you didn't get it.

Better to gamble wasting £800, than bidding on a property

and paying a 10% deposit that I would lose if it was un-mortageable.

-Well, congratulations. Good luck.

-Thank you very much.

-And I look forward to seeing how you get on.

-Thank you very much.

So, architectural experience and practical property experience,

a very good combination.

How will Camilla and Rob get on sorting this place out?

You can find out later in the show.

Coming up, in Blackhall, County Durham,

this lean-to might make you worry about the inside of the house.

It's actually really pleasant!

We return to Derby, where Rob's refurbishment

of this bungalow went down well with Camilla.

I'm quite impressed, actually, with what he's done.

And back in Wimbledon, James faced a dilemma.

Do we go for a standard specification, or do we try

and push the market a bit, go up on the spec?

Wimbledon in south-west London is synonymous

with the tennis championships.

# Anyone for tennis?

# Wouldn't that be nice? #

But it's not just Andy Murray fans who love the area.

With the station serving up good rail links to central London,

local properties are in high demand.

The two bedroom, garden flat in this property

was bought for 361,000 by James and his father, Frank,

who own a construction and property developing company.

The flat had planning permission to add an extension at the rear,

but James wanted to tweak that.

Hold on a minute! So, you've changed the plans?

Yeah, we're going to try to put in an amendment in with the planning.

Hopefully we'll get it.

It's just got a funny little dogleg on it at the moment -

we're going to try to go straight across with it,

which is going to give us slightly more room.

But would the planning department

say James was barking up the wrong tree?

Well, eight-and-a-half months later, back in Wimbledon,

it's game, set and match to James.

Because, after a delay, the plans were approved.

This super extension looks really great.

I love this decking and those bi-fold doors.

And look at the effect inside!

In the extra space James has gained,

this very high-tech kitchen has been installed.

James is understandably delighted with it.

Right, what we've done here is we've done this side return,

the infill back over here. The extension, as you can see,

the beam that comes all the way along here

is the line of the original building.

It stopped around about here, the existing building.

So from there on is a rear extension.

And then that's your site extension coming along there.

So it's added considerable square footage to the property.

We've got a very nice big open living area.

A nice, luxurious apartment.

Plenty of open space outside as well, once this is all opened up.

Definitely have some good parties here, I would say!

With the new kitchen located in the extension,

the original kitchen is now this five-star bathroom.

I'm really impressed with the finish in this flat. Top spec, for sure.

The second bedroom benefited, too,

expanding into the original bathroom and gaining two windows.

The master bedroom at the front has kept the same dimensions.

James had hoped to get this Wimbledon project

completed in three sets.

But it ran to a five set thriller, as he explains.

We're now quite a few months down the line,

but we lost coming up for four months due to party wall complications.

At one point, we just completely had to stop here.

James faced more delays and expense as the foundations

had to be increased due to the clay subsoil.

With the costs rising,

he called a meeting to discuss the next move for the interior design.

We sort of had to make a decision,

do we go for a standard specification,

or do we try and push the market a bit, go up on the spec?

And that's what we decided to do.

Well, a good call, I reckon.

On the original planning, there was a pair of patio doors,

as opposed to a set of sliding, folding doors.

And I just thought if we could open that up as much as possible

so, in the summertime,

you can almost feel like you're sitting in the garden.

So after the delayed start, once work began,

how often has James been on site?

Every day! Hands on, as well.

I did the heating system myself.

That's my trade, a heating engineer, along with my son.

I run the team of guys myself, so, every day.

The basement has been boarded

and will be the utility room with valuable extra storage space.

How much has the conversion cost?

We were going to spend 30, and I'd say we're closer to 60 now.

So quite a big increase, but hopefully worth it.

With the 361,000 James's father paid at auction,

that makes their total investment 421,000.

We invited two local property experts to view the flat.

What do they think of the finish James has achieved?

The kitchen and the living area are superb.

Nice, open-plan living, which is very common nowadays

and very sort of desirable.

The living space is very modern.

Good natural light. Bi-fold windows, very popular these days.

The bedrooms are both a very good size.

The bathroom is really, really nice, modern, very clean finish.

You can tell that there is good quality that has been

used in the bathroom as well.

How much could the flat sell for?

More than the £421,000 invested here?

I would market this property at £630,000

and look to achieve between 600 and 630,000.

If we were asked to market this property,

I would be hopeful of achieving £575,000.

That range of between 575 and 630,000 could mean a gross profit

of between 154 and 209,000, before tax and expenses.

OK. Yeah, we've actually turned down a figure over the six already.

But, yeah, very happy.

I mean the sort of 630-ish, or just below that,

we'd be quite happy. If not, we'll go for rentals.

OK, let's talk more figures.

How much rental income could the flat earn?

For rental per calendar month,

I'd put this between £1,700 and £1,800 per month.

If we were to let this property,

I'd expect to achieve £1,600 per calendar month.

Perhaps £1,700 per calendar month.

So a potential yield of 4% to 5% on the 421,000

they've invested here.

I thought it might be a bit higher.

I've had a couple of quotes around the 2,000 mark.

But 1,700 to 1,800, we'd be quite happy with that, really.

It's not bad at all.

Clearly, James's hard work will pay off

for the family development company.

But is his dad Frank happy with the end result?

He comes here all the time, has a little check up on what I'm up to.

No, he's over the moon. Very happy. He thinks we've done a good job!

And the latest news?

The two bedroom flat is currently under offer

at £591,500 from a cash buyer.

Today, I'm near the beautiful north-east coast of England,

in the village of Blackhall,

which developed around the colliery there before it closed in 1981.

It still has the hallmarks of a life built around the mines

and a really strong community spirit.

It's now a commuter village just off the A19

within easy reach of Durham.

# It's just a hop, skip and a jump

# To where my baby's at! #

Well, just a hop, skip and a jump from the centre of Blackhall,

is a two bedroom, end-terraced house with one of those guide prices

that just stops you in your tracks.

19,950 quid.

In 2012?!

# Isn't it cheap?

# Isn't it cheap? #

So, for that amount of money, a good roof and four walls,

and I think you'd be quids in. But, no, it's actually really pleasant.

You've got a little porch area there, keep the cold out.

And then through into a really decent-size living room.

A bay window there, you've got an open fire. Nice high ceilings.

Not seeing anything I don't like so far.

Through to this slightly green middle part of the house.

You've got a downstairs bathroom there. Upstairs to your bedrooms.

And then through on into the kitchen.

And again, nothing here I'm seeing I don't like.

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

but a half-decent size.

Door out to a little sort of lean-to area there

and on into the back garden.

For that amount of money, this is great!

# That is excellent!

# Oh, yes, that's excellent! #

For that guide price of 19,950,

this really does look like an excellent buy.

I hope I'm not going to be disappointed.

The bathroom suite's in good condition. It just needs re-tiling.

I wonder if the first floor's going to be excellent, too?

So, upstairs and, sadly, no bathroom or loo here,

it is just the one downstairs. So, would you move it? I don't know.

It's certainly an interesting layout. Quite a small rear bedroom.

And then a really big front bedroom.

For a family, this might actually work quite well.

But maybe you could think about playing around

with some of the walls.

Feels like it might be a stud partition.

So something you could potentially do there.

But before you do that,

you need to find out what's going on with the ceiling here.

Hopefully, it's just a bit of loose plaster.

Worst case scenario, something going wrong with the roof.

That could be expensive.

Touch wood, it's nothing serious.

Maybe not this wood, it might all come crashing down.

But judging by a quick look from outside,

the roof doesn't look too bad.

Although I'd always advise getting it checked out.

The front of the house has a very pleasant outlook

across to this church.

And the windows and rendering seem in good nick, too.

Well, at the rear of the property,

a bit of a mishmash of this sort of lean-to, conservatory thing,

some outbuildings, some outdoor storage as well.

You might consider doing what the next-door neighbours

have done and put a really nice kind of extension on here.

But you've got the space to do it,

and the fact you've got these buildings here means

that you wouldn't have to apply for planning permission.

Building regulations, yes, but not planning permission.

It is always wise to talk to your local planning department

before you do anything.

But with the neighbours' extension as a precedent

and the buildings that are already here,

''it's looking pretty promising.

As does this whole house for that guide price of just under £20,000.

We asked along a local property expert to tell us

what he thought of this auction lot.

What does he make of the upstairs layout?

Would he recommend altering it?

I suppose you could separate the two rooms to create three bedrooms.

The bathroom is downstairs. A lot of people like a bathroom upstairs now,

so you could move the bathroom up there.

Assuming no major configuration but a new central heating system

and a general refurbishment were carried out,

what could this end of terrace fetch on the open market?

I would expect it to achieve between £70,000 and £75,000.

What rental return could it earn?

In the current rental market,

I would expect to achieve about £450 per calendar month.

If you're looking for a property bargain,

it's clear where you have got to come.

Blackhall.

Let's see if this place went for

anything like that £19,950 plus guide price

when it went under the hammer.

We're going to move now down to Blackhall. This is lot number two.

Two bed, end-terraced house.

It's got the off street parking, solid fuel heating,

enclosed garden and a yard.

We've got this in with a price guide of £19,950 plus.

Can I ask for £20,000 to start anywhere?

£20,000 on the left-hand side. 22? 22 bid.

24? 24 bid. 26? 26 far right.

28? 28 bid. 30.

No? I will take one if it'll help.

Lady standing, £29,000. 30. 31? 31 bid.

32? 32 bid. 33? I'll take 500.

32,500 bid. 33 new bidder. 33,500? No?

33,500 bid. 34? 34 bid. 34,500?

34,500 bid on the telephone.

35? 35 bid.

35 in the room. Are you both out on the phone?

35,500 from either? No?

I am selling once at 35, and I am going quick.

I'm selling for the second time at £35,000.

Sold to the gentleman on the right-hand side.

That final bid of £35,000 was made by Kami,

who was at the auction with his daughter.

High-fives all round.

Kami is a property developer from Newcastle with a large portfolio.

He has been on the programme before

when he bought another property in Blackhall.

I met up with him back at his latest purchase

to hear about his plans for it.

-Kami, great to see you...again!

-Time flies.

-It does indeed.

-How did you get on with the last project? How did it go?

-Good.

It's done and dusted. The tenants have moved in and are happy.

-So, you're obviously a fan of the area.

-I love the area.

Blackhall's the place to be, nice people. That's the main thing.

Tell me why you wanted to buy this house?

This is the posh end of Blackhall.

Where you went last time was the colliery's.

They were built for the men down the mines. This is the top end,

this is the posh end.

-Remind me how many properties do you have?

-I've lost count.

-More than 10, less than 100?

-Something like that.

Kami's been a property developer for over 10 years

and frequently buys

both commercial and residential properties at auction.

He has a team of tradesmen he uses to carry out quick refurbishments.

So, this one in the posh bit, apart from that, why this house?

To be honest, I had never seen it. This is the first time I've seen it.

I saw it advertised as a two-bedroom and freehold.

Had you looked into it before the auction?

-I got the papers, the magazine.

-Had you read the legal pack?

-I never read the legal pack.

-Oh!

-Isn't that bad?

-Yes.

But I buy them all in the same area,

all legal packs are the same if you buy in the same area.

-Not necessarily.

-Is it not?

-No.

-Ah, well.

Kami is pretty laid-back about buying property

and doesn't seem to worry about taking a chance.

# Breaking the rules

# Reckless and taking chances just the same. #

Essentially, this is a good basic house

but you could change the layout.

So, will Kami be getting his sledgehammer out?

What are you going to do to sort it out?

A total refurb. Windows, doors, kitchen, floor and bathroom.

What about layout? Is that big wall behind me coming down?

No, I never take any walls down. Keep them all in.

Once you start taking walls out, you're talking major work.

It's a strange situation with a very small

bedroom and a big bedroom.

Have you thought about equalising the sizes?

No, I'm going go leave them the way they are.

So, what sort of budget have you got for this one?

I think 12 to 13,000 max.

-Eight week turnaround.

-Eight weeks?

-So, a bit longer for this one?

-Yeah.

I think some of the back walls need taking out,

-which might take a couple of weeks.

-Right!

Ah! So, some walls will be coming down after all.

Kami's taking a cautious route here by not over-spending.

After all - these ARE tough times.

But that's not holding HIM back.

Nobody's got any money, have they? And prices are dropping.

If you can borrow money, it's time to buy really.

-And rent's pretty good.

-Rents are still the same. £400, 440 a month.

And this one will get a little bit more rent?

No, I'll charge the same.

-Even though it's the posh bit?

-Even though it's the posh bit!

Kami has found a niche at the more affordable end of the housing market

and it's a strategy that's served him well.

So, how was the auction? Were you happy with what you paid for it?

Yeah. I thought it was a really good price.

I thought it might have gone for about 50.

I was quite prepared to go to 50.

And what do you put the low price down to?

Cos it's a lot of house for the money, isn't it?

I think it's just luck at the end of the day. Sometimes you can go to

the auction and get nothing. The last one I bought was a proper bargain.

As opposed to this, which is just a medium bargain?

Last one was 27 grand for a two-bedroom house with a garden.

-Right!

-That's a bargain, isn't it?

-A proper bargain.

-A proper bargain, that!

# I call that a bargain

# The best I ever had. #

Kami might believe that the £35,000 he paid for this house

isn't such a bargain but, considering its condition,

I reckon that's exactly how it looks.

So, another property in Kami's property portfolio cap

and, once again, breaking all the rules -

not reading the legal pack, not visiting beforehand.

You can get away with it but if it goes wrong, it goes wrong big time.

How will he get on sorting this place out?

You can find out later in the show.

Once you've bought your property, the hard work really starts,

and you have to be prepared for some surprises along the way.

So, have our buyers unearthed any hidden treasures,

or uncovered any pitfalls? Let's find out.

We return now to the East Midlands village of Borrowash,

a suburb of the city of Derby, where Rob had bought this two-bed,

semi-detached bungalow for £100,500.

He lives 75 miles away in Newport Pagnell near Milton Keynes,

where he works, self-employed, doing property maintenance.

But he was attracted to the property prices in Derby.

His girlfriend Camilla is a trained architect and set designer,

currently doing admin work.

But her skills were going to come in handy for Rob

as he planned to refurbish the bungalow.

He hoped to make £10,000 profit,

which he'd reinvest into another property.

So, tell me what you're going to do to this place to sort it out.

Basically, a complete refurbishment from top to bottom.

New kitchen, new bathroom, central heating,

change the boiler, it's got radiators, decoration, carpets.

And how are you going to do that when you live 75 miles away?

Cos I'm going to be up here during the weeks on a Monday,

staying here till Friday, and going back for weekends.

# I just stay

# A long way from home. #

Rob set a budget of £8-10,000 and was going to take a six-week break

from his normal business to concentrate on the bungalow.

Well, seven weeks later, we're back.

The old paving slabs have been replaced by new shingle,

which gives a much improved kerb appeal.

I'm not sure if I like the bathroom being the first room that greets you

in the hall, but I do approve of Rob's new suite and choice of tiles.

At the front of the bungalow,

Rob's gone for a classic, neutral colour scheme

in the front bedroom.

Replacing these dark doors has made such a difference throughout.

The neutral tone continues in the master bedroom.

It's no coincidence

that so many new-builds go down that route as well.

And it's the look Rob's chosen for the lounge as well.

So in here, I stripped off all the wallpaper that was woodchip,

painted magnolia walls, white ceiling, white doors, white skirting

and had a neutral carpet fitted.

The lounge and the whole house,

I'm really pleased with how it's turned out. I really like it.

The bungalow has been rewired and Rob's invested in quality sockets,

which add to the overall polished effect.

OK, so the kitchen is not massive but, again,

he's maximised what was here.

So, in the kitchen, all new cupboards, new tiles,

new hob, new oven, new flooring,

and this cupboard was a problem before because the worktop

couldn't come across in front of it, and so I made the doors to suit.

I'm very pleased with how the kitchen's turned out.

Apart from the odd day off and a week's work back in Newport Pagnell,

Rob and his friend, Ash, have worked five days a week on the bungalow.

So he did only take six weeks as he'd planned.

He had to employ a qualified electrician

and gas fitter for the boiler.

How much design input has Camilla been able to give?

Well, I thought I might be able to have a bit of input with

the design but, to be honest,

I think you had that all sussed anyway.

It seems Rob's got a good eye for design.

He wants to dress the bungalow as a new-build show house.

I thought when you buy a new house,

the house is dressed as if you could move straight in, so I thought,

without going too far, I wanted to give that look. So I bought

some second-hand furniture and a few cushions and things to dress

the house cos I thought that'd help make it sell.

It has such a nice feeling to it. And I like all the colours.

You've done purples and beiges and soft blues.

I'm quite impressed actually with what he's done.

Outside, Rob's tidied up the garden but has decided to leave

the asbestos garage as it wasn't damaged

and will be useful storage space.

How much has the work cost?

Did Rob manage to stick to his £8-10,000 budget?

I've come in at 10,000. So on budget.

That takes Rob's total investment here to £110,500.

Time to hear what the auctioneer who sold it and viewed it originally

and another local property expert think of the finished bungalow.

The change is quite dramatic from when I last saw it.

It's tidy, clean and very appealing.

The look of it is pretty well what I expect. The finish looks good.

It's obviously been done to appeal to a certain market,

which is fine, and I think it's been pretty successfully done.

This is a nice location. It's a quiet cul-de-sac.

It would appeal to all markets but probably,

because it's a bungalow, mainly older people.

So what rental potential can these two local property experts

predict for the bungalow? How much income could it generate?

I think they would be able to rent it

in the region of £550 per calendar month.

The rental value would be about £525, £550 a calendar month.

So a rental yield of over 5.5% if Rob decided to let

but his plan has always been to sell.

So, how much is the bungalow now worth?

More than the £110,500 he's invested here?

An appropriate asking price would be around £139,950.

I would estimate selling it in the region of £140,000.

The top valuation only differs by 50 quid,

so Rob could make a profit of around £29,500 before taxes and expenses.

Spot-on.

That's what I thought, that's what I hoped for, so very pleased.

Considering he was hoping to come out with a £10,000 gross profit

to carry forward to his next project, it sounds like

there could be another £19,500 to put into the equation.

-This was a good scale project for you, wasn't it?

-Yes.

Not too big cos you've got other work to do and you can make a little

bit more money every time, and it will just grow and grow.

Like Camilla, I think Rob's being very sensible to start small

and think big.

I'd like to become a developer and I'd like to do three or four a year.

Earlier in the programme we visited the north-east of England.

With its beautiful beach, it's no surprise that the former

mining village of Blackhall is popular with commuters,

as it also offers good road links to the nearby A1.

It was at this end-of-terrace that we met or rather re-met Kami,

a property developer who has featured on

Homes Under The Hammer previously.

This time around, he'd paid £35,000 for this house

to add to his growing buy-to-let portfolio.

Kami likes to take a high-risk strategy approach to property.

-Did you read the legal pack?

-I never read the legal pack. Isn't that bad?

Yes!

But I buy them all the time in the area

and all the legal facts are the same if you buy in the same area.

-Not necessarily.

-Isn't it?

-No!

Oh, well.

Boy! Fortunately Kami does have expertise

and a team of reliable builders to do all the work.

His plan was to replace the kitchen and bathroom

and decorate throughout, but not much else.

What about layout?

You've got a big wall behind me. Is that coming out?

No, I never take any walls out.

Once you start taking walls out, you're talking major work.

Kami had set a budget of £12-£13,000

and eight weeks to do the work.

But it's now 17 weeks later,

and we've returned to see the completed property.

The house has a new front door and porch.

The garden's had a tidy-up but is still work in progress.

At the back, Kami's kitchen is a real eye-opener.

He's chosen mid-range units and appliances, which look good.

And losing units from one wall does make the room feel bigger.

The laminate flooring through to the living room opens the house up too.

And that dated fireplace went to the skip.

The new bathroom suite includes a shower and it works well.

Beside the kitchen was a timber extension known locally

as an off-shot, but Kami decided there was only one type

of timber he wanted outside the back door.

The decking, we got in because we got rid of the off-shot

and it was wasting time not doing anything.

We knocked it down and we put the decking in.

It was quick, it was easy. Took about three or four hours to put it in.

In the summertime, it's really nice when the sun's shining,

-you can get your deckchairs out and just chill.

-Yes.

Pop a few flowerpots out there, get the barbie on the go

and it could be very nice.

The work's taken around 12 weeks but the start was delayed

as Kami needed to get the gas supply relocated.

This is the gas meter which was originally in the kitchen.

It took 12 weeks for the guys to come and change the gas meter

from the kitchen to outside. Apart from that - no delays.

That was the only thing that kept us back.

As well as the new back door,

the rear windows have also been replaced.

And upstairs, the neutral colour scheme continues.

Kami has installed new central heating and had a new combi boiler

put in the big bedroom.

However, I don't think that's an ideal position as, even if

you follow all the regulations and have a carbon monoxide alarm,

there's the noise issue.

Also, apart from anything else,

it's not the most attractive bedroom feature.

I think he'd have been far better off putting it in the kitchen

and after all, there is room now.

But what about the problem with that hole in the ceiling

in the front bedroom?

There was a hole in the ceiling upstairs in the main bedroom.

The guy I bought the house off did fix the hole but never skimmed

the ceiling, so we skimmed the full room so we got rid of the hole.

The house has been rewired throughout,

and all the walls have been skimmed. But in the smaller rear bedroom,

it's still going to be a challenge to squeeze in much more than a bed.

Kami always uses local tradesmen on his property refurbishments,

so what skills did his team bring to this project?

I've got a plumber, electrician, a joiner, plasterer,

and a painter as well. They're called the BBC - Bad Boy Crew.

They're a good set of lads and they've been with us for a while.

How much has the refurbishment cost?

Did Kami stick to his initial budget of 12 to 13,000?

The budget I had was 11 grand for the house.

I think I went about 300, 400 quid more. That's it - tops.

Well that Bad Boy Crew have done him proud.

He's come in under his initial budget, and that £11,400 he's spent

takes his total investment here to £46,400.

We invited two local estate agents to come

and have a look at the house and the work that Kami's team have done.

What are their impressions of it?

First impressions of the property are quite good.

It's been done to a moderate standard.

Kitchen's good, bathroom's good

and I'd expect it to rent out straight away.

I particularly like the kitchen area.

It has been refurbished to a good standard. It's a good size.

Because there isn't a separate dining area,

it's good that the owner has put a breakfast bar in there.

There's a ceiling price with these properties,

you can't go over that. If they spend too much money,

it would've been a white elephant.

I feel there are still some works to be done externally.

The front garden area would be nice if it was laid to lawn

and just finished off.

Kami has £46,400 invested in the property so how much do

the estate agents think the house could sell for

if it was put up for sale?

I would advise to put it on the market for £65,000.

If I was to place the property on the market currently,

I would look to market it at offers around £70,000.

That valuation range of 65 to 70,000 would generate a gross profit

of between £18,600 and £23,600 before taxes and expenses.

If you asked me before, that's exactly what I would've said.

65 to 70. That's fair.

But Kami's going to add this house to his growing buy-to-let portfolio.

He's already got a tenant lined up,

so what sort of rent could he be charging?

If the owner's looking to put the property on the rental market,

I'd hope for it to achieve somewhere around £450 per calendar month.

I would suggest to put the property on for rental at around £450

per calendar month.

Those rentals would yield over 11.5% on Kami's investment.

So, is his tenant paying over £450 a month?

I've done it for 440, 110 quid a week. My tenant is nice, young lady.

She's moving in later today. She is very, very happy with the property.

And so is Kami.

It looks as though his high-risk strategy of not looking

at the property before purchasing it has paid off again,

but, please, don't try this at home.

Clearly he's going to continue in his own sweet way,

and see a silver lining in today's tougher property market.

Since filming, he's bought another three properties.

While the properties are cheap, I can't help buying them.

Even though I don't want to buy a property, the estate agent

rings me up and says, "I've got this for sale," and I just can't say no.

The Bad Boy Crew love it as well

cos they've always got work to do, so it's all good.

We hope you've enjoyed watching Homes Under The Hammer.

We will have more stories from the auction rooms for you next time.

-Look forward to seeing you then.

-Goodbye.

-Goodbye.

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