Episode 12 Homes Under the Hammer

Welcome to the show.

All sorts of people go to the auctions these days.

They attract buyers from all walks of life.

And that's because if you know where to look,

there are certainly bargains to be had under the hammer!

There's a wide variety of buyers and a big range of property on show at an auction.

Sometimes it's a race to get the best bargains.

But you have to be in it to win it.

So, what attracted the buyers on today's show?

First of all, in Durham. Now, I've seen some odd things at properties over the years...

but this one is way up there with the oddest!

I find real potential at this Fulham flat in London.

Any central London property developer will be thinking of ways

how to extend over that.

And will this cottage in Cornwall capture someone's heart?

It's just one of those properties straightaway. Someone will definitely fall in love with this.

All these properties have been sold at auctions

and we'll find out who bought them and what they paid for them

when they went under the hammer.

Sold!

Today I'm in Newton Hall, a suburb just a couple of miles from Durham city centre

with all the amenities you're ever likely to need.

The house I'm here to see is on one of the biggest estates in the area.

Well, in the 1960s, this area started to sprout housing

and sprout and sprout and sprout and sprout

and soon it was one of the largest housing estates in the whole of Europe.

The property I'm here to see was built around that 1960s period.

It's a three-bed semi. Let's take a look.

Although the guide price for this property was £100,000 plus,

it was dropped to just under £85,000 just before the auction.

I always think it's wise to expect the unexpected.

Sometimes a property you've had your eye on can be withdrawn or sold prior

or, as in this case, its guide price greatly reduced.

So I always recommend checking things out before you go to the auction.

So, has the property been improved in the years since it's been built?

Let's find out.

Through the front door. Nice entrance area here. Stairs up to your bedrooms.

Kitchen facing you and then into your front living area here.

It's a very simplistic layout

and it flows well. I really like it.

You come through into this room which is double aspect.

So large windows at the front, some more windows out into the back

which I'd like to see opened up into maybe some double doors out into the garden.

But a really nice-sized space.

It feels really open-plan and I love it for that.

Into the kitchen.

Again, very dated. The cooker there and the units, and that!

An air-blower central heating system.

That was the kind of thing that was in my house when I was growing up.

A very comforting kind of rumbling noise at night,

but not terribly efficient.

But a good sized kitchen, nicely leads out onto the garden.

Rear end of the garage there to give you extra space.

Nothing particularly that I'm seeing that worries me.

And it's just a nice... A nice house!

This place has a '60s retro feel

but it really needs to be brought up to date.

That old sofa really needs to go!

Upstairs there are three bedrooms.

A double at the back, plus a small single

and another double at the front.

Someone with a taste for kitsch would love it here!

There's another reminder of the past here as well.

A separate toilet and bathroom.

These days, I expect most people would prefer a larger, family-sized bathroom,

so that wall between the two needs to go.

And there's scope for a bit more structural work outside.

So it's all fairly straightforward inside. New kitchen, new bathroom,

redecorate, change the central heating et cetera.

There are some other options when you come out here.

It's really nice to see a traditional built-in garage, which is good.

Now, above, as you can see, there is space to do something.

A traditional thing to do here

would be to build some kind of extension if you needed it.

If you're not looking to move, a good way of expanding the size of the property.

There are lots of rules and regulations about building above garages.

You could even consider ditching the garage altogether

and creating a two-storey extension.

You'll have to get building regulations approval.

As it's above the garage, you'll need planning permission.

But I think you wouldn't have too many issues

given there's no windows in the adjoining properties.

It could give you that extra space. It comes down to who bought it and why they bought it.

If it's somewhere to live, that extra space might be really important.

If it's something to rent out or sell on,

the finances might not quite stack up.

Round the back, there's a good-sized little garden in which to soak up the sun

or let the kids run around.

There's certainly plenty of room for girls, but I think there are already plenty of "buoys"!

Now, when I visit houses,

I do see the oddest things that people leave behind.

But this one is way up there with the oddest!

In the back garden, a collection of fishing buoys.

Cue a music link.

Is it going to be Duran Duran, Wild Boys?

Sabrina, Boys, Boys, Boys?

Don Henley, Boys of Summer?

No, it's got to be Thin Lizzy!

# The boys are back in town

# The boys are back in town... #

Well, let's separate the boys from the men, here.

What does our man from the local estate agency make of this number

from the swinging '60s?

# The boys are back in town,

# The boys are back in town... #

Some areas of the property haven't been improved since it was built in the 1960s.

The kitchen appears to be original and would require replacing.

I would recommend that the bathroom and toilet be knocked together,

as well as French doors giving access from the patio to the dining room.

A lot of people on the estate have extended to the right or left

depending on the hand of the property over the garage.

But in all likelihood, it wouldn't yield the best return in terms of values

should you put the extension on the side.

Without the extension but after full redecoration,

how much could it be worth?

There is a demand for rental property on Newton Hall.

If it were placed on the open market for rent,

I'd recommend an asking price of somewhere between

about 575 and £600 per calendar month.

And what if it were put back up for sale?

Once renovated, I would suggest the property be placed on the market

in the region of 145 to £150,000.

Well, a property that needs bringing into, well, 2012, for sure.

However, a great opportunity. I like the house, I like the space,

I like the layout, I like the location.

What's not to like? Let's see who agreed when it went under the hammer.

Take my arm and say, anyone want to start me at 100?

Right. How about 85?

Bid of 85.

Thank you very much(!)

85 bid. 85 bid. We're up and going at £85,000.

Do I have 86 anywhere else?

I have one bid right in the middle at £85,000.

86,000 bid. I see you at 86. 87?

87 bid. 88?

88 bid. 89?

89 bid. 90?

No? Shaking your head.

I'm here at 89,000.

Try again at 90. I want to sell on here at 89. I'll take one more.

No?

89,000. I have 90,000 anywhere else?

I'm selling at 89,000 in the centre of the room.

It's going once at 89.

Going for the second time at 89,000.

Sold to the gentleman in the middle.

That final bid of £89,000 came from Richard,

a chartered surveyor.

But it was his wife Lynne who met me at the house.

She is a full-time property developer

and used to be an estate agent

so she's certainly seen a few properties in her time.

What are her plans for this one?

-Lynne, great to meet you.

-You, too, Martin. Thank you.

Congratulations. Why did you buy it?

To do it up and make a profit on it!

-That's it?

-Yeah. I started doing properties up with my husband when my children were small.

I didn't want to go back to work and it was something we could incorporate round the children.

And we've built up our portfolio.

And now the children are in university

and I've got two children to put through university

so this is going to fund that for a year. Hopefully!

With university fees in England and Wales on the rise,

it's a very sensible plan indeed.

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

-Right.

I'm going to do double glazing,

new kitchen, new bathroom,

knock the wall out in the bathroom to make it a big family bathroom,

take out the air-ducted central heating,

because that's quite a major job.

Obviously replaster some of the walls,

take out the door to the kitchen so we only have one door so I can utilise the space

for more kitchen units.

Utility room, put new flooring, new ceiling, plasterboard it out,

bring it up to fire regulations because obviously it goes onto a garage.

Decking out the back,

garden, and just sort the garden out, really.

-Right.

-And rewire and central heating.

Right. What about the idea of an extension over the garage?

No. Financially it wouldn't be worth me doing that.

But certainly the new people that buy the house it would be of benefit to them,

because in Durham, properties are quite expensive to buy

so it's quite nice to buy a property that you can extend yourself.

It's an overwhelming "to do" list.

However, given Lynne has 30 properties under her belt,

and that her husband Richard is a chartered surveyor,

there were no surprises as far as this house was concerned.

And it seems unlikely there will be any.

What's the kind of budget for what you're planning?

26,500.

-Approximately!

-Approximately!

-That's quite a lot.

-Yeah, it is.

You're going for a very high-end look?

That's what I'm going for,

because I want somebody to come to the house and be able to say, "I can move straight in."

-Has experience taught you to go higher end cos you do get it back?

-Yes.

-Is that the case?

-Yes.

-Do people notice?

-Yes, they do.

They do tend to notice.

Just, it's to me, I want to try and get the wow appeal.

Obviously I have a budget that I've got to stick to with this property.

I can't go too high. But I want them to walk in

and just think, "Great. I just need to put my furniture in and it's a home."

Lynne doesn't just develop property. She also has another job

which meant she wasn't the one doing the bidding at the auction.

So why weren't you at the auction?

Because I, on an evening,

the mad Lynne appears and I'm a zumba teacher.

-A zumba teacher?!

-Yes. While my husband is shaking and buying a property for me

-I was shaking on stage in front of my zumba ladies!

-Right!

What is zumba, for somebody that doesn't know?

-Zumba is just Latin dancing.

-Right.

Having a wiggle and a giggle.

-Fantastic. Congratulations.

-Thank you.

-Good luck with it and I look forward to coming back and seeing how you got on.

-Thank you.

Well, Lynne certainly seems to know what she's doing.

Will this be a quick step to success

and will she be dancing away to a profit?

You can find out later in the show!

London is well known for being one of the greenest capitals in Europe

with plenty of parks and public spaces.

This is Eel Brook Common.

In the late 1800s, the then amateur football team, Fulham,

played some of their home games here

before moving on to Craven Cottage.

The property I'm here to see is literally a minute that way.

On such a beautiful sunny day,

you can see why Fulham is a very sought-after part of London

and it's not just the parks that look wonderful in the sun.

In the sunshine, these town houses look simply gorgeous.

We're also just a five-minute walk from the nearest tube station

and very close to lots of shops, restaurants and cafes.

So, as London locations go,

this really is spot-on.

And therefore a little bit pricey.

The average house price on this street is over 1.5 million quid!

But we're here to see something a little cheaper.

It's a ground floor one-bedroomed flat

and it had a guide price of £300,000.

I'm going in!

So what exactly are you getting for your money?

The outside appears to be well kept

but what about inside?

As you can see, it's a little bit tight on the entrance

and with flats like this, there's almost wasted corridor space.

But you have got a decent bedroom and a more than decent lounge area.

Look at this. This really is spectacular.

If you look up there, you can still see the ceiling rose intact,

some beautiful cornicing, although there's quite a lot paint splodged over the top.

So with some gentle brushing, hopefully you could restore them to their original splendour.

They could look beautiful.

But what I love the most are these old traditional windows.

Original sashes. Beautiful. It's so nice to still see those intact.

So a wonderful space.

Not so much a wonderful fireplace.

Hopefully whoever moves in will get something that's attached to the wall!

You could do much better than that.

But so far, so good. I'll have a look around.

It really is a great-sized front room

and has a lovely sunny disposition.

The double bedroom is a reasonable size

and has a period feature or two.

But the period feature that has to go is this avocado bathroom suite.

It's pretty pokey in this bathroom.

How to increase this space?

Well, changing to a modern combi-boiler system

would mean that big water tank could go.

The compact kitchen is definitely in need of an upgrade as well.

However, I've got my developer's eye on other things.

This could be a big opportunity in a small property in a good area.

How would I add value?

When you're developing a flat, the easiest way to add value

is to add square footage.

Now, you can't extend upwards here, but often, the option with a one-bedroomed flat

is to convert the kitchen into a bedroom

and turn the lounge into an open-plan dining/living space.

You could do that here, but you would end up with a very small second bedroom.

But - look outside.

You own that flat roof.

Exciting. Any central London property developer

would be thinking of ways of how to extend over that.

At that £300,000 guide price,

I reckon this was well worth going for.

But what does a local property expert think?

Firstly, what about the area?

Definitely in the last 18 months

we've seen an enormous growth of interest in this area.

A lot of our buyers are people that are coming down from South Kensington, Chelsea,

looking for more affordable properties of the same nature

and getting better value for their money.

When I walked into the flat, I could instantly appreciate

the potential that the flat offers.

There's great room for improvement here.

You've got a great flat, an excellent footprint offering great development potential.

Outside space, you've got a large roof terrace

which, subject to the right planning permission,

could be incorporated into the flat to make it a large two-bed.

But as a one-bed, it offers the end user excellent living accommodation.

He estimates that, as a one-bed flat, the rent could be around 1,500 a month,

and that it could sell for £400,000 once refurbished.

But what if there was an extension at the back,

creating another bedroom?

As a two-bed flat, this would rent for £2,000 per calendar month.

And what if they were to sell it on?

As a two-bed flat I believe this would sell for in the region of

475,000 to 500,000.

Well, this Fulham flat is in a great location

the park is at the end of the road

and there is potential to possibly make some money on this with that flat roof.

So who was tempted by this tasty tit-bit?

Let's find out when we head to auction.

Where can I start? 250? Not going to go below 250.

250. 250 on my right.

255?

255.

260?

265?

Don't drink, bid!

265. 270?

275?

Hope it's a strong espresso!

275?

270 on my right.

275? 275.

280?

285. 290?

295.

300.

305?

310.

315?

320.

320. 325.

330?

335.

340.

345?

350?

345 to you.

346? Try and help?

Might be the... Might just do it.

346?

Yep. 347?

348?

Have a think. 347 to you, madam.

348 elsewhere? If not, 347.

First time, second time,

348 at the back.

349. 350.

351. 352.

353. 354.

355.

356.

357. 358.

359.

360.

361. 362.

363.

364?

363. Back to you.

364 elsewhere?

If not, 363 first time.

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

Sold 363. Well bought.

That fast flurry of bids saw the property finally sell

for 363,000.

It was bought by Rachel, a hairdresser.

So can she give this flat a fancy new look?

I caught up with her there to find out.

-Rachel, congratulations.

-Thank you very much.

I love the area. I love the flat.

How did you stumble across this?

I hadn't actually seen it before I bought it,

but I'd sent my parents to check it out because I was busy with work.

They gave it the thumbs up and so off I went to auction!

So they viewed it on your behalf.

And you went to bid for it on auction day.

I knew the area. It wasn't completely blind.

But, yeah.

Did your mum take lots of photos for you,

-or did you take her word for it?

-Not at all. I took her word for it.

She's a good judge, so it's fine.

When you saw this for the first time, what did you think?

I was really happy about the character features

and the ceiling roses and the picture rails.

So it's nice to still have some features in here

and so I was pleasantly surprised, yes.

-So who is this flat for?

-Me.

-You are going to live here on your own.

-Yes.

-Is it something you've been longing to do?

Is this a dream, to get your first rung on the property ladder?

I already have a flat. I'm in central London, in Pimlico at the moment.

So this is moving a bit further out. It's a little bit greener.

Just a bit different.

Rachel has recently given up her salon job to go freelance

so she sees this flat as one of the changes in her life.

So, what are her plans for it?

I was here this morning with somebody who's going to do some work

and we want to brush down the original ceiling rose

and the rope work around the edge

and just bring out the character in this room

and do very sympathetic colours and stuff like that.

And the kitchen and bathroom, there's no period features in those,

so we'll keep them really minimal and put a hint of luxury in the bathroom.

Um...

Hopefully, anyway! That's the plan!

Are you nervous? You seem nervous about that. I think it's exciting.

Not really. It's exciting. It's just... It's going to take time.

I want to do it properly. I'm a bit of a perfectionist.

Are you going to knock any walls down? Do any structural work here?

I may get an architect just to cast his eye over it.

Just to be 100%, before we go ahead with what we think we're going to do.

But I think it's fairly straightforward.

It's a one-bedroomed flat and the proportions are great.

This room, you wouldn't touch it at all.

But have you thought that you could perhaps turn this into a two-bed flat?

-What about that option?

-I've thought about it

but it would detract from this room. I wouldn't want to carve this room up.

My aesthetic head is kind of overruling the business one, maybe.

As it's just her, Rachel isn't too concerned about gaining that extra room,

even though it could add value.

She just wants to make a lovely new home for herself

and who can argue with that?

She's got a budget of around 20,000.

But how long does she estimate it will take her to get it just right?

I would hope inside of three months.

I was originally thinking two,

and that might be quite ambitious.

I mean, it needs to be dressed as well.

So I think that takes longer than doing the actual physical stuff.

As a hairdresser, Rachel has to have creative flair.

So that bodes well for this flat's interior design.

It's going to be her home, after all,

so she's right to take time to make it perfect.

Is the prospect of having a new job and this at the same time

a little bit daunting for you?

No. I feel completely ready for it.

I think, you know, things change,

and you need to shake things up every now and then

and come out of your comfort zone and push yourself forward

and move on.

I love this area and I'm really happy for you. Well done.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

Rachel is taking a lot on, going freelance as well as doing up her new flat.

Will she be able to create the beautiful new home of her dreams

or will her perfectionist design plans blow her budget?

You can find out how she gets on later in the show.

Coming up: Is this cottage in Cornwall hiding any secrets?

I wonder what's behind it. Time to investigate!

Back in Fulham, London, how's the restoration work been going?

Slightly problematic in that we had a couple of leaks.

But first, it sounds like there's been a top quality job in Durham.

I try and do them to a high specification

so that I want the wow feeling.

Back now to Newton Hall.

Lynne and her husband Richard bought this semi for £89,000

and planned to pluck it from the era of pop art

and plunge it into the present.

I started doing properties up with my husband when my children were small

because I didn't want to go back to work and it was something we could incorporate round the children.

And then we've built up our portfolio.

And now the children are in university.

I've got two children to put through university

so this is going to fund that.

This was the 30th property for Lynne to put under her belt.

So let's catch up with her three months on

to find out what she's done with it.

And judging by the results, they've certainly gone to town on the work.

They've redecorated throughout, replacing all the internal doors

with high-end new ones

and there are new windows and central heating.

All the carpets have been replaced

with this good quality wood flooring.

At first, it wasn't the floor I was going to go for.

And then the supplier had just got this stock in

and I thought a walnut floor would be nice.

It will complement the doors. And yes, it works very well. I'm pleased with it.

What a change from the old '60s decor that was here before.

I'm so glad to see that Lynne has modernised the central heating system.

That's a very attractive selling point for potential buyers.

When we bought it, the property had ducted air central heating.

It meant that we wanted to remove that,

so we had to supply a new boiler, all new central heating pipes,

radiators in the property.

Any old pipes or ducts that were in the property had to be removed.

The only structural change in the house has been the new kitchen.

The door's been blocked up, leaving more space for units on the walls.

And she's picked a really striking kitchen.

I try and do them to a high specification

so that I want the wow feeling.

It makes it different from the other properties that are on the market at the moment.

I want somebody to walk in the door,

see the doors, the walnut, that everything flows.

And this is why I always go for the higher top end bracket

for my fittings and flooring and everything, really.

Out at the back, they've made a great little decking area

to go with the new patio doors leading out from the dining room.

There was a difference in level, so I just put a couple of steps down

and then put the decking in

because I wanted to feel that the house and garden could become one

as a utilised space.

Even with the high-end kitchen and high-spec shiny new floors,

Lynne's still managed to come in under budget at 25,000.

Her original budget was 26,500.

There was no problem with the time frame, either.

The work was actually done in eight weeks rather than nine.

But it does help when there's a reliable team of workers on hand.

The gentleman who did the work is my friend's husband.

He has a team that work with him.

So he has an electrician and a plumber

and plasterer and everything like that.

So it really was very good because I was able just to say to him,

"This is the criteria, this is what I want you to stick to."

And he did. As far as I was concerned, he did an excellent job.

And I could come in at the end of the day with my cleaner, clean the property up

and there we have it.

A stress-free renovation, then.

It certainly looks to me as though

they've done a cracking job.

What will two local property experts make of it?

First, the one who saw it before.

The property's certainly been transformed out of all recognition

from when I last saw it.

The addition of the patio doors

onto the decking area at the back

really adds another dimension to the lounge/diner.

I think the changes to the kitchen layout

have provided ample storage space for the family buyer.

And also the useful utility room shows there's plenty of space.

The actual finished product of the property

is certainly a very high-end quality finish.

It's nice for a change to see rather than the blank magnolia colours

a more opinionated colour running through the property.

For me, the highlight of this property is certainly the bathroom.

It's been finished to an excellent standard.

The suite is modern and the tiling has been finished to

an excellent standard.

This will certainly appeal to a wide range of buyers.

The result is winning compliments all round.

So how much profit do they think Lynne and Richard have made?

They bought it for 89,000 and have done around £25,000-worth of work.

So is it worth more than their total outlay of around 114,000?

For this property, I would expect to achieve £150,000.

If the property goes onto the open market,

I would recommend an asking price in the region of £150,000.

Looking at the standard of the interior of the property,

then yes, I can say that 150 is what I'd be looking for.

If it does sell for this price,

that's a great little earner of 36,000 excluding the usual tax and expenses.

That's definitely going to help with those university fees.

Lynne's set on selling this one,

but what will she do now this project is complete?

Will she seek more properties for her portfolio?

I will be now looking for a new property.

I'm going round looking around the auctions like I did to find this little gem.

Liskeard in Cornwall is a busy market town

just 20 miles from Plymouth.

It offers good road and rail links

and even on a damp day such as this

is a hive of activity.

Today's auction lot is just three miles away

in the rural hamlet of Tremar Coombe.

I'm here to see a property which had a flowery write-up in the auction catalogue.

Character cottage, two-storeys.

Had a guide price of 70 to 90,000 quid.

Looks pretty good from the outside.

I've got high hopes for this one.

There's parking opposite the cottage, a decent slate roof

and a porch, perfect to shake that rain from my umbrella.

Oh, dear. A bit wet today,

but you can imagine on a sunny day the view out the front would be really lovely.

Straightaway you can tell this is definitely a cottage with character.

An open fire, which is nice, some beams you could strip back.

It's not huge, but look at the thickness of the walls.

Absolutely marvellous. One thing it probably won't have, therefore, is damp proofing.

So, properties like this, what I'm looking for is signs of damp.

One thing that will dry the damp out is getting some heat in here

and one thing to provide that is this old Rayburn.

It would be lovely to keep that.

But probably whoever takes this on will replace it with something more modern

which is a shame because it does give character.

Likewise, this sink. A little Belfast sink with this old draining board.

I mean, it's charming. Could you keep it? Again, probably not.

These units, strangely, are back in fashion these days, but again, they'll probably go.

It's just of those properties straightaway somebody will definitely fall in love with this.

Yes, it might have no central heating.

It's single-glazed and there's no real kitchen to speak of.

There's a rear extension that's certainly seen better days

and downstairs, overall, it feels rather boxy.

But already I can feel it exerting its charms on me.

Upstairs and - hold the front page! -

it has been a very long time

since the two rooms have had any work done on them!

I don't know why, but the more I see, the more I like this cottage.

The good news is that the bathroom is upstairs.

You might not expect it in a property like this.

Carrying on with this theme

of being a cottage with character, the shape is really interesting.

It's kind of triangular.

It sort of works.

You'd probably want to replace the suite, but again it's got that charm to it

with the high-level cistern and everything like that.

Interesting thing here.

That is a stud partition wall.

I wonder what's behind it?

Time to investigate.

AS AMERICAN P.I: The trail ran cold as the tap inside.

But I was no rookie. To get to the bottom of this mystery,

I was going to have to take this investigation outside.

HE LAUGHS

Right!

OK!

So that's what it's all about.

This is a room you get to out the back door, up a set of stairs,

through the garden and you come into this strange place.

That is the other side of that loo area.

And you can see this box has been created.

Fantastic. Take it out.

Take this down, go way the heck up into the rafters

to create a really nice space.

You could have a massive bathroom here as a replacement,

or even the space for maybe something else as well.

Either way, it just adds to the quirkiness of this place!

The auction catalogue describes this room as the garden room.

Maybe because you can only access it from the garden at present.

Or perhaps because you get great views of that good-sized rear garden from it.

But what to make of this cottage?

It definitely could be the love of your life. But at some cost.

Would it be worth the heartache?

What does the auctioneer who sold it make of what's on offer here?

The current accommodation is a bit tight and snug.

You expect that with a character cottage in Cornwall.

But you may want to extend out the rear to create an additional kitchen area

which would free up the downstairs living accommodation.

Of course, that means extra work,

but lots of work can also mean lots of room for improvement

and potentially a rewarding uplift in value.

So, would that be the case for this cottage which was guided at 70 to 90,000?

This property, once renovated,

could fetch somewhere in the region of 140 to maybe £150,000.

Encouraging news for a resale market.

But how could it fare as a rental property?

As long as it's done to a reasonable standard,

you could probably fetch 575 to £600 per calendar month.

Well, if you're a fan of new builds or standard two-up, two-down terraces,

this is not the cottage for you.

However, if you like something with character, charm and quirkiness,

it's a great one to go for.

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

Lot number 65.

A handsome cottage.

It's two bedrooms, mid-terrace, needs a bit of cheering up.

Kitchen, bathroom, general modernisation throughout.

I won't go below 70. 70, there's two.

70 on the left I'll take first. At 70 we're in. At 70.

At 70. 72. Very close. 72.

Four. Six.

Eight. 80.

At 80. Shake of the head.

80 you're in, sir. Green jacket. 80,000. At 80, then.

At 80,000 for the first time.

At 80,000 for the second time.

At £80,000, third and final time.

Gentleman has it. Back row. Selling at £80,000.

Congratulations, sir.

That successful bid of 80,000 came from Derek.

He was bidding on behalf of his stepson, Steve.

Steve's a builder and joined me along with Derek at the cottage.

Derek, Steve. Good to meet you both.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

So, why this place?

It was just in our price range, really.

It was interesting. I like the property.

This seemed to be a unique project. It fits in with Stephen, his time.

-It's going to be good for him.

-Right.

Is this something you do, then?

I am a builder, yes.

But it's my first renovation project.

-Yep.

-So why now?

Why now? Because I have the money at the moment to do it.

-Fair enough.

-Rather than waste it,

-I might as well spend it on a property.

-Right.

Is this for you, or is it to rent out or sell on or what?

-It's for me initially.

-Right. So you'll live here?

-Yes.

-Great.

-But I may sell it if somebody was to offer me the right money for it!

Derek's already got his own small portfolio of rental properties.

So he'll be giving Steve guidance and moral support

on this, his first property project.

How are you going to turn it around? What's the plan?

-To open it up downstairs.

-OK.

-Some big, thick walls to take out, then.

-Yeah. I've got a big hammer!

-An extension.

-Oh.

There's a little room on the back at the moment.

I think there's a lot of wasted space back there.

So we've had some plans drawn up

and we'll have a nice little extension back there.

-Will it be a two-storey extension?

-No, just single storey.

What will that contain?

-The kitchen and a downstairs WC.

-OK.

Then we hope to do something with the garden room.

Incorporate that. A mini sitting room with a bunk room over the top.

-Something along those lines.

-Wow.

-Yeah.

-Access from the bathroom.

So what's the budget?

-Around 20,000.

-Right.

And who's going to do the work?

-We are.

-I like the "we"!

-Stephen's doing it.

-I'm going to, but Derek will be assisting along the way.

We'll be together.

Have you worked together before?

-Yes.

-Yes, we have.

We get on fine together.

Along with Derek as his advisor,

Steve has a number of friends in the trade he can call on to help.

How long do they think it will take to make this Steve's new home?

Depends on how long he's playing.

He likes cycling and motorcycling.

-Does he?

-He nips off evenings and weekends playing

-when he should be working!

-You've got to have some fun in life!

You do. Tell me more about that.

I just like my cycling. My off-road cycling and motorbikes. I'm mad on it.

So you might be off cycling when you should in fact be...

Maybe. Maybe. Probably be after work, though.

-Good. Congratulations.

-Thank you.

-Good luck with it. Look forward to seeing how you get on.

-Thank you.

Well, Derek and stepson Steve taking on this project and looking forward to it.

I think the only big thing is whether Steve decides to set off on the Tour de Cornwall

and spends too much time on his bike rather than restoring this place.

How will he get on? How will they get on? Find out later in the show.

Time has passed since we last saw those properties.

So, has any work been done on them?

Or do they look exactly the same?

Let's find out.

Back now to Fulham in south-west London

where Rachel bought this one-bedroomed flat

for 363,000.

She's taken a bit of time out from hairdressing

to relocate and make this her new home.

So you might have expected she'd have viewed it first!

I hadn't actually seen it before I bought it,

but I sent my parents to check it out because I was busy with work and stuff.

And they gave it the thumbs up

so off I went to auction.

So they viewed it for you, on your behalf

and you went to bid for it on auction day.

I knew the area. It wasn't completely blind.

And with a gorgeous park just round the corner,

I'd have to agree it really is a perfect spot.

So, seven months on from our last visit,

let's catch up with Rachel and see what she's done here.

It's a really lovely job. So far.

There's the obvious redecoration throughout

but behind those freshly replastered walls,

there's now insulation to keep in the heat from the new central heating system.

I thought Rachel could have extended over that flat roof area,

but she feels she can make this her ideal home

without the need for that change.

But what she has done with the space she's got is absolutely wonderful.

Just look at this high-end loo and shower room.

The bathroom was a small room but a big job.

My boyfriend is the plumber, so that came in fairly handy!

So he changed the mains feed where it comes into the room.

He took out the water tank.

He put all new pipework in

and we took out an old bath and put a nice walk-in shower

with loo and wash-hand basin.

'It's always handy to have a plumber on hand!

'In fact, her boyfriend Ian's been helping Rachel out with a lot of the work,

'as have her parents.

'There are still some outstanding jobs to get on with, though.

'The main one being in the kitchen.

'So why the delay?

'Well, if only the flat upstairs had a plumber on stand-by, too.'

The kitchen has been slightly problematic

in that we had a couple of leaks from upstairs.

They had a plumber in and, yes, there was a slight incident!

But we've done a lot of work to the kitchen. We've put a new ceiling in,

and we've rewired it with new spotlights.

We've got sheeps' wool insulation above the ceiling in the kitchen

to keep the warmth in and cut down noise cos it's on the back of the building.

Then a nice kitchen with porcelain tiles on the floor

and I'm just waiting for the quartz worktop to be fitted.

But because we have work to do to redecorate having had the leak,

we have to just put that on hold at the moment.

'In fact the leak from above the kitchen delayed them by about five weeks in the end

'as there wasn't just the one leak!'

Subsequent to that being remedied,

we walked in one day to do some decorating,

just after Christmas in January,

and there was a pool of water on the floor.

So more water had come through the ceiling the other side.

So it was a bit gutting!

'But the problem was finally fixed upstairs,

'and Rachel redecorated and patched up where required.

'That wasn't the only repair work in the flat, though,

'as she was always keen to give some love and attention to those grand old cornices.'

The coving was my favourite thing. It was the nastiest job.

It took days and days and days.

Where some bits were actually broken,

where we took away so much paint,

they'd dropped down.

So we took a piece down, had it recast, replicated,

and then put it back up where the bits were missing.

So it was a complete job.

But it was well worth it. I was happy.

'So all good up there, and once she gets the carpets and wooden flooring down,

'it'll be almost there.

'She may be five weeks off schedule, but how's the budget looking?

'Originally, she'd hoped to spend just £20,000.'

I think it's gone on from that and we're into the late 20s now.

It's pretty much finished. Well, it is finished.

I've allowed for the repairs and stuff, so...

Yeah, late 20s.

'It sounds like Rachel's had her mind on the creative design of the flat

'rather than the budget.

'So let's for the sake of argument, call it 27,000

'as a ballpark spend.

'Add that to her 363,000 purchase price

'and that makes a total investment of 390,000.

'So, has she added value to this flat in fashionable Fulham?

'We asked two local estate agents.'

As you walk into the property it feels very clean and fresh.

The front room is very bright and offers high ceilings

which is a lovely feature.

I'm very impressed with the flat. It's nice and bright, light,

good colours, good finish, good detail.

The bathroom has been finished well.

I like the large tiling in the bathroom.

Again it has a lovely clean feeling throughout.

And offers a lovely sized shower

so all in all, very good.

I was quite impressed with the kitchen.

It's not a large space, but the cleverness of what she's done is really apparent.

Good surfaces, good storage. Excellent functioning kitchen.

I think the market is very strong for both rentals and sales.

I would see no problem with this coming to the market and selling in a timely manner.

The standard of work is good and is in fitting with this type of property

and certainly in fitting with the area.

The standard of work she's done is excellent. Perfect for this style of property.

'Rachel's not going to be selling any time soon.

'This is going to be her new home, after all.

'But if she did, what do the experts think she could get?

'Remember, her total outlay here has been about 390,000

'so anything more than that is welcome news.'

I would expect this property to achieve in the region of £450,000.

If I was to put this property on the market,

I would expect it to achieve £450,000.

Yeah, I mean, I guess I'm fairly happy with that, yeah.

'That could be a 60 grand profit, which is great.

'But for Rachel, it's not about the money.

'She's just happy to be almost in her new cosy nest.'

I've really loved doing this project, actually.

I'm really pleased the way it's turned out

and it's a nice space.

It will be nice to be back in my own space

in a brand-new flat, basically.

I'm spoilt!

Just a short distance from the Cornish town of Liskeard,

we came across a two-bed mid-terraced cottage.

It was one of those properties that you either love or hate

with quirky, oddly-shaped rooms, nooks and crannies.

It wasn't short of character,

but wasn't in great condition, either.

It was going to need a little dedication and love

to bring it back to life.

Local builder Steve, with guidance from his stepfather, Derek,

felt he was the right man for the job.

Is this for you, or is it to rent out or sell on or what?

-It's for me initially.

-Right. You'll live here?

-Yes.

-Great.

But I may sell it if somebody offered me the right money for it.

Steve had big plans for the cottage.

He wanted to open up the ground floor, build a new improved extension,

and integrate a rather odd "garden room" into the cottage.

Armed with a £10-15,000 budget

he hoped, along with friends in the trade,

to turn it round in three to four months.

Now, nearly five months later, we're back.

With new windows and paintwork,

the front definitely has a much more loved look about it.

And the back?

Well, the garden may need some tidying up,

but there's a greatly improved rear extension.

So the signs are definitely good from the outside.

With Steve away, it was down to stepfather Derek to give us a progress report.

It was in a terrible state.

When we took it back to its raw state, it really was four walls and a roof.

No-one could live in it then. Since then, Stephen has done a wonderful job.

He's brought it back to life. A lovely home.

Yes, it was in a sorry state.

But it certainly isn't now.

There's a fabulous open-plan lounge

which leads now to a fantastic kitchen situated in the bigger and better extension.

There's even a downstairs cloakroom.

Wow, what an improvement.

Originally, this was an opening, a window,

looking out from the kitchen.

There were two rooms on the ground floor here.

There was a Rayburn in this recess, which has been left vacant for a woodburner.

And the door leading out of the kitchen to the back

was here by the radiator.

The stairs are in the same position.

Except we've got a new set of stairs which are much safer.

And between the two rooms here there was a wall across with a doorway between.

All of that Stephen has removed now

to expose a large living room full of character.

Derek's right. Opening up the downstairs hasn't just made it

a much more welcoming space,

it also shows off the character features of the cottage.

But what about upstairs? Is that equally impressive?

It sure is, with the two bedrooms having a full refurbishment

complete with new doors, carpets and decor.

There's new central heating fitted throughout

and the bathroom is now much more contemporary.

And remember that odd boarded up space behind the bathroom?

It could only be reached from outside through a door at the back.

Well, Steve and Derek have found a novel way to utilise it.

We're now in the garden room.

The access is from the outside door.

There was a partition behind me with the bathroom hidden behind it.

Stephen has opened it up to provide access into the main house from this room.

He now calls it the bunk room

with space for a desk could be here or a bunk,

with storage and a bunk space at the top.

# I climb way up to the top of the stairs

# And all my cares just drift right into space

# Up on the roof... #

It's a clever solution to making the most of an awkward space.

Apart from some work on the rear extension

and a tidy-up of the garden,

it looks like Steve, with moral support from Derek and help from friends in the building trade

has successfully carried out his plans for the cottage.

But with commitments elsewhere,

it seems Steve's had a rethink about what to do with his first property investment.

The idea of the purchase of this house was a home for Stephen.

He won't be living here as originally planned

but he is intending to let the property rather than sell it in this economic times.

So, Steve may have made it into a home,

but just not for him.

It's now very much an investment property.

Budget-wise, Steve hoped to spend 20,000 on the improvements.

Unfortunately, the digging out of the extension at the back,

the labour content, and the cost of materials generally

he has gone over-budget.

I think he's probably spent around 25,000.

A £25,000 spend on top of the £80,000 purchase price

takes the total outlay to 105,000 without costs or fees.

So, is this cottage an attractive proposition on the property market?

What do two local experts think?

As you walk in the door,

it's an amazing transformation what they've done,

particularly opening up the living/dining area,

going through into the kitchen breakfast room. It's very nice.

It's been finished off to an excellent standard.

Nice neutral colours which will appeal to a wide audience.

It's a very high standard of work that they've completed on the property.

From top to bottom, including the mod cons,

everything they've done, no expense spared,

and it will open it up to the full marketplace.

The loft room is certainly a nice little touch

because it sets the property apart from quite a lot of the others in the area.

It will probably be used either as a kids' room or as an office/study.

You've got access to the garden which will also appeal to people.

The way the property is configured, it's screaming out for a professional couple

or young family. It has everything they need

particularly with the mod cons and the garden at the back

which is very large as well.

Steve's now looking at this as a long-term rental.

But how would his £105,000 investment fare

if put up for sale?

I would certainly expect the property to achieve on the open market

somewhere in the region of £150,000.

In the current market, we would expect a market value of between 135 and £140,000.

A resale of between 135 and 140 is probably realistic in today's market.

150 or a little bit more would be ideal.

But I think Stephen at the moment is looking at rental

rather than selling in the present economic market.

That's a potential pre-tax profit of between 30 and £45,000.

Not bad! But how would it do on the more relevant rental market?

Putting it on the rental market,

you could probably achieve between 550 and £600 per calendar month.

In the current market, we would expect to get between 525 and £550 per calendar month.

I think 550 to 600 is a very good rental for the area, for the cottage.

I think Stephen will be well pleased with it.

Yes, even the lowest rental figure, £525 per calendar month,

would see an annual rental yield of over six per cent.

So this previously rather shabby cottage

has certainly scrubbed up well as an investment.

What does Derek think of the transformation Steve's made here?

I'm so proud of what Stephen has achieved here.

The end product is wonderful. I could happily live here myself.

Make sure you join in next time for more auction ups and downs.

Yes. From basements to bungalows to building plots.

-You'll find them all here on Homes Under The Hammer.

-Goodbye!

-Goodbye!