Episode 15 Homes Under the Hammer

Buying a house and being caught in the property chain is a nightmare.

So how can you avoid the situation?

One way to cut through the links of the chain is to buy your next house under the hammer.

People go to auction with all sorts of budgets and they're looking for different kinds of properties.

There's an enormous choice available, so what did our buyers bid for?

'I'm in a Buckinghamshire semi with a decade dilemma.'

Over here, very 1980s.

Over this side, it's 1950s.

'I search for a bungalow in this stunning Kent setting.'

At the moment, it feels more like I'm on some kind of foraging expedition.

'And I recommend a bit of elbow grease at a two-bed terrace in Tyne and Wear.'

It's a bit more effort to do this, but what a difference it makes!

'All these properties were sold at auction.

-'We'll find out who bought them and what they paid for them when they went under the hammer.'

-Sold.

I'm in glorious Buckinghamshire,

in fact, in Prestwood,

not far from where author Roald Dahl lived.

The big question is, will today's property throw up some tales of the unexpected

or will it be the property equivalent

of one of the golden tickets in Willy Wonka's chocolate bars?

# I'll tell you a story

# To pass on to the end... #

In 1960, the famous author settled in Great Missenden,

a mile and a half from Prestwood village, with his family.

It was here in a small hut at the bottom of the garden

that he penned most of his unforgettable stories.

It's also home to the main-line train station, the closest commuter link to Prestwood.

It's a very pleasant place to live, easily commutable to London,

yet you've got lots of countryside all around.

The property I'm here to see is this, a three-bedroom semi-detached, with a guide price of 200,000 quid.

Let's take a look.

So we like the location. What about the house itself?

Through the front door into this entrance area - rather unpleasant door on the under-stairs cupboard.

Change that, so you've got a nicer feel when you walk through the front door.

The other thing that I would contemplate is putting proper double glazing on here.

You've got metal-framed windows called Crittall windows.

They're not thermally efficient and they don't keep noise out,

so kill two birds with one stone, put double glazing in there,

but you come into this lovely, big room, it's a through lounge,

lots of light, so that's a really nice feel to the place.

One thing I do notice, piecing the property together,

it's got some kind of a solid fuel fire here, so my guess is no gas,

possibly no proper central heating throughout the whole house, so that needs to be addressed.

Lots more light coming in here.

Put a nice set of patio doors out on to the garden and that would finish that off.

Through into the kitchen and it really is a kitchen of two eras.

Over here, very 1980s, Duran Duran, eat your heart out!

Over this side, it's 1950s. Elvis Presley would be very at home.

-# I'm all shook up! #

-Either way, it really does need being brought up to date.

But overall, a very promising start.

Off the kitchen is the slightly weathered porch which leads out to the back of the property.

Underneath that snow is, believe me, a good-sized garden in need of a little love.

# Got the snow, I, I...

# Got the snow, I, I...

# Got the snow, I, I...

# Got the snow, I, I, got the snow... #

Upstairs, the house has a pretty standard layout.

The bathroom and loo are separate, but could be knocked together easily.

The three bedrooms do need a re-vamp.

Two are a fairly decent size with a boxroom at the front.

However, this property could offer an opportunity for creating more space.

Adding a two-storey extension to the side would make it more family-friendly

and could mean significant added value.

This is looking like a good buy. Is there anything not to like? Well, maybe.

On the other side of this fence is the property.

On this side of the fence, however, is this. It's an electricity sub-station.

A lot of people have concerns about living under pylons,

but some people aren't that keen being next to something like this, so you really need to consider that.

It may or it may not affect the re-sale value.

It's very close to the boundary of your property,

so any plans for extension will have to be considered very carefully.

# Shock me like an electric eel... #

In terms of the village location, the property is a winner,

but this sub-station's position may lose it points with some buyers.

What does a local estate agent think of this three-bed semi,

guided at £200,000?

It needs a bit of work. Structurally, it looks sound.

It needs double glazing, kitchen, bathroom, but it has great potential.

How could the property fare financially,

firstly, if given a basic renovation, but no extension?

You could rent this property out as a three-bed in the region of £1,000 per calendar month.

What if the plan was to do it up and sell it?

I believe it could be sold on for around £250,000.

If an extension was done to make this a four-bedroom property,

he estimated a rental income of £1,350 per calendar month.

How about a sale price?

As a four-bed, with a double-storey extension to the side,

I'd place it on the market for in the region of £335,000.

# Turn me on with your electric feel... #

Well, location - tick,

potential to add value - big tick,

proximity to electricity sub-station - uh-uh, large cross.

Did it put people off? Let's find out when it went to the auction.

This is Lot 118. Who'd like to start me on this?

How much...? OK, we'll start there.

180,000, I've got. Anybody else?

181.

182. 183.

184. 185.

186. 187.

188.

189. 190.

191? OK. 192.

193.

194. 195.

196.

197.

Yes? 198.

199. 200,000.

201?

No? Anybody else for Lot 118?

If not, 200 for the first, for the second, third and final time...

All done?

Sold, 200. Well done.

'That successful £200,000 bid was bang on the guide price and came from Spanish-born Carmen,

'a retired civil engineer.

'She's planning to renovate the property with the help of her son-in-law Paul.

'I met them both to give them something of an inquisition.'

-Carmen, Paul, lovely to meet you both.

-Hello.

-Congratulations. Why did you want to buy this place?

We were looking for something with potential to add on to

because that's where we've seen you get the most value.

-So, it looked like it had got space to extend on the side.

-Yeah.

There wasn't much at our price range that was kind of in a good area that had that spec.

We put an offer in the week before of 220 and it got turned down.

-Wow!

-So we were very lucky.

-So you saved 10% on what you were willing to pay.

-Yeah.

-Absolutely.

-Great.

-That was good.

-So why did you ask Paul to be involved?

We've done another project before.

He's very good. He gives me a lot of moral support and practical support and... He's very good.

-I'm very lucky to have such a son-in-law.

-Absolutely.

Paul, what's your experience?

We've done three or four properties, mainly to live in ourselves,

then sell on just to pay mortgages off and work our way up the ladder.

-You and your wife?

-Me, my mother-in-law and my wife.

Between us, we've either lived in them or she's lived in them

and we've bought various properties and done them up.

'So, by no means novices and it's a great set-up if you can do it.

'Not everyone could work so closely with their in-laws,

'but Paul and Carmen seem a great team and have done up their own properties in the past to boot.

'The purchase was heavily influenced by the potential to extend.

'What else do they have in the pipeline here?'

We've had some plans drawn up

which we've submitted to the council for a two-storey extension on the side of the property.

It will be a master bedroom upstairs with an en-suite and a dressing room,

-then a big kitchen/dining room downstairs which will lead out on to the garden.

-Wow!

Then we'll spruce everything up and make it more modern.

-You've put in a planning application or just had a preliminary chat?

-We've put in the planning.

-Have you spoken to them about an indication of whether or not they'll approve it?

-It's only just gone in.

-It's early days.

-Sometimes it's good to engage the planning office before you put the application in.

We've pushed them as far as we can to get as much information and they were getting a bit fed up by the end,

so we'd better just get the plans in and we'll see how it goes from there.

Good. So what's the kind of budget for the work you've got in mind?

-Well, no more than 50,000.

-£50,000?

We hope, we hope. A little bit more maybe, but we hope to keep it under 50.

'The plan is to have the place done in six to seven months and then put it back on the market to sell.

'Carmen is considering bringing a team of builders over from Spain to do the work,

'but whoever does it, she'll be keeping a close eye on them.'

# Blue...

# Spanish eyes... #

-I'll manage the project with his help.

-Manage being what? Coming in and telling people what to do?

-No, I'll live here while the extension is going on.

-Very noisy, very dirty, very smelly.

No, I've done it before. I'm very adaptable. I adapt to anything.

-OK.

-She's basically living with us at the moment. I think she's a bit fed up.

-They are fed up.

-Sick of being asked to baby-sit every two minutes.

You're looking forward to having your place again. It's an interesting way of doing it -

-buying the properties, living in them, selling them, then having to buy somewhere else.

-It's boredom.

-It's giving you something to do since you retired.

-At the moment, it's probably a hobby more than anything.

I like design. I like doing that kind of project,

so when life becomes a little bit dreary, I say, "Let's go and do a project," and I'll do it.

Carmen's a good grafter. I'll give her that.

I'll do all the painting, little jobs and things like that.

Are you going to bring any Spanish influence to this?

-I'm going to bring a little bit of rococo...

-Rococo?

-French.

Mainly in the bedrooms. Downstairs will be very modern.

OK. What kind of style will that be? Give me an example of what you'll have if this is rococo.

-It's in the bedroom.

-Just one bedroom, yes.

-Chandeliers and...?

-Yes, chandeliers and a kind of French...

What do they call it? Toile de Jouy?

-Toile?

-I'm not getting involved in this side of it.

It's rococo, a little bit, you know, sort of...

White, pale colouring, overdone a bit, that sort of thing, but not in all the bedrooms.

-Palace of Versailles type thing?

-Not quite that elaborate, but yeah...

-Wow! Fountains in the garden?

No, I think that's just one bedroom that's going to be rococo.

-The rest of the house is going to be quite modern.

-Very modern.

-Quite neutral.

-Very European.

-Wow!

-Congratulations. Good luck.

-Thank you.

-We look forward to seeing how you get on.

# Say you and your Spanish eyes

# Will wait for me... #

Well, when we come back, will we discover that the Spanish builders have been shipped in

to build, amongst other things, the rococo bedroom?

Before that, Carmen and Paul have got the more basic problems of getting planning permission.

Find out how they get on later in the show.

This is Rainham in Kent, a small town which boasts a fast train to London,

useful shops, cafes and some beautiful buildings.

For today's lot, I'll have to venture slightly off the main drag.

# If you go down in the woods today, you're sure of a big surprise

# If you go down in the woods today, you'd better go in disguise

# For every bear that ever there was

# Will gather there for certain because

# Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic... #

I will be surprised if there are bears,

but I'm hoping today's lot will give me the warm and fuzzies.

So I was expecting a standard suburban semi,

but I've left all those behind me back on the road

and I'm assured the property is somewhere down this unadopted lane.

At the moment, it feels more like I'm on some kind of foraging expedition

or pleasant weekend ramble,

but here it is, nestled or hidden in the trees, depending on which way you're looking at it.

It's a bungalow with a guide price of 160,000 to 165,000.

Oh, how very exciting!

# It's so exciting

# It's so exciting... #

Talk about an ideal setting!

Amongst the trees and woodland, you may feel a world away from Rainham, yet it's right on your doorstep.

It's a perfect compromise if you struggle to pick between town and country living.

So, stunning surroundings, but what of the bungalow itself?

So, my first impressions...

Well, this is where it goes downhill.

It's old. It's older than old.

It really smells of damp. It's incredibly grim.

Everything just needs completely replacing.

It's got a little room through there.

There's damp in the corners.

This is like a little lean-to bolted on the side.

I mean, look, the floor...

It's arcing over.

The wallpaper's falling off.

There is a gorgeous avocado suite in there...

Not!

I mean, there is nothing worth salvaging here.

The space is good, but it's incredibly depressing.

It's colder in here than outside.

This is a knock-down job, if you're allowed to.

The footprint comprises the living room with a bedroom to the rear,

which includes access to some loft space.

There are two entrances to what was once a kitchen.

Off that, there's another tiny bedroom and that green bathroom.

There is also a conservatory at the back and I use the word loosely.

In amongst the overgrown garden is a shed and detached garage.

Just because demolishing a property might be the cheap and easy option,

it doesn't necessarily follow that the council will allow that.

You can never assume anything when it comes to planning,

but whatever you do, it needs to be sensitive to this beautiful setting.

The bungalow may be average, but the garden is anything but.

It's half an acre of garden surrounded by trees,

utterly private and really like living within the gorgeous woodland itself.

Now, looking at an Ordnance Survey map actually helps you realise the uniqueness of the position.

The access road is here, the bungalow is here

and the land it sits on really is a slice right out of the wood.

Really! The question is, do you try and build something as amazing as the setting itself?

Again that will depend on what the council allows.

No matter how special the surroundings, every area has a ceiling price,

so this postcode may not warrant building a property as lavish as the land.

If you wanted to live here, you might not care about the sums,

but an investor would definitely need to work out if a profit was possible here,

even if they got it for anywhere near that £160,000 to £165,000 guide price.

We asked a local estate agent for his views.

First impressions of the lot,

it's a very, very nice location, it's secluded, it's off a very nice road

and an opportunity like this probably doesn't come along very often.

You could extend it,

you could knock it down, subject to permission, and build a very imposing property on it

and it's in a very, very nice location,

so I think the opportunities are great.

What about the scope for financial returns, first, if sold on?

If you were to build a four, five-bedroom house, two-storey,

I think you could achieve a price in the region of 500,000.

If you were restricted through planning for a bungalow,

then I think you would be looking at a property in the region of 350,000 for a two, three-bedroom property.

And rental?

For rental purposes, if you were to build a smaller bungalow,

I think you'd be looking for £750 a month,

and if you were to achieve that two-storey, big house, four, five bedrooms,

really, you could be looking in excess of £1,500 a month.

These days, the chances of getting planning permission

to build a home right in the middle of the wood are slim to none,

but here, somebody's done that work for you and gifted the new owner with a canvas

on which to paint a really special property.

Let's see who went for it at the auction.

This was the final lot of the day.

Was it a case of best for last?

Where do you want to start me? Make it 150 to get me going.

150, hand straight up. 150 I've got. And 5.

155 I've got. 160.

160. And 5, it's against you?

165, I'm looking for. Are we all done at £160,000? This is a good deal.

At £160,000 then for the first time...

to my maiden bidder.

At £160,000 for the second...

On my left-hand side at £160,000, if you're sure you're all done?

It's yours, sir, at £160,000. Well done.

'That successful bid of 160,000, at the lower end of the guide price, was made by Chris and Sue

'who currently live in Nottingham.

'The couple love animals. Not only do they have two dogs, but a horse and 14 chickens in their charge.'

# Animal

# You're an animal... #

'I think I'm beginning to understand why they might have been attracted to this.'

-Guys, congratulations.

-Thank you.

-Chris, Sue...

-Thank you.

-Well done. What have you gone and done? Whose idea was this then?

-There you go, Sue's.

-The wife's!

-The wife's.

-Blaming each other!

-Why have you bought this?

We bought this as a project heading towards our retirement, looking for a comfortable home into retirement.

-So this is for you to live in?

-Yes.

-Not what's there now!

Hopefully, a new build with the necessary planning approval.

-So we're talking demolish and build?

-Exactly.

-We got married 18 months ago.

-Oh!

Sue's from this area, I'm from Nottingham,

and the intention was to return to this area eventually anyway, as in retirement perhaps.

We've been looking and this one is an adventure.

-You can say that again!

-There you go.

Sue, this IS an adventure. I mean, it's not for everybody, this.

What was it about this that made you want to bid for this on auction day?

The area, but we also like the woods and the...off the beaten track.

'This certainly fits that bill.

'The couple are aware that some of the trees have preservation orders.

'That is to be expected in established woodland.

'It must be taken into consideration when it comes to the build.

'There's plenty to love about this location and that was all they'd seen prior to purchasing.'

-When you did see the property inside for the first time...

-Which was this morning.

-Which was this morning?!

-Yes.

-What did you think?

-Exactly what I expected.

-Not much good?

-No, it was bought with the intention of demolition.

What do you want to build here? The sky is the limit.

We only have a need for a three-bedroom bungalow.

We're getting on a little bit in life. It's more a retirement home for us than anything else.

What's worrying you about this, Sue?

I'm not worried about anything, really, am I?

I rely on him. I rely on him. He does it well.

-What will it be like for you to come back home?

-Brilliant.

The horse is already down here, so I'm missing him and my family.

Yes, it'll all come together, we hope.

-Chris, what will it be like for you? You're a Nottingham boy.

-I'll have to adapt, won't I?

Sue went the other way for five years.

She came up to Nottingham for me, so it's just returning the compliment.

'Aw! And what a lovely way to do so!

'Chris has renovated property before

'and has drawn up some plans for what he intends to build here for himself, Sue and their pets.

'He knows what he wants the end product to be, but pinning down a budget is trickier.'

How long is a piece of string, Lucy?

-You must have a budget. You haven't got an endless purse string.

-200,000.

-200,000, that's quite a healthy budget, but that's to build whatever you choose to build.

-Exactly.

What sort of design and look will it have?

Nothing spectacularly different from a standard build.

-You're not going for something architecturally beautiful, lots of glass, very contemporary?

-No.

-Why not?

-I don't think it suits the setting more than anything else.

-Hmm.

We're very conventional and normal, shall I say?

Yes, I don't like the modern design. Do we?

-So you want something cosy?

-Yes.

-Cosy and homely?

-That's the one.

-Wood-burner, that sort of thing.

How long do you think it will take before you settle in?

-I'm reckoning 12 to 18 months.

-Yeah.

-Really?

-Yeah.

It will be quite a while, plus we live in Nottingham, so there's the journey down to see to anything.

How will that work while you're living up north?

We'll have to set a team of builders on and they'll have to manage the project for us

with us paying infrequent visits.

Guys, I'm so excited for you. Good luck and I hope the planning goes your way.

I hope we return to see a lovely, cosy, three-bed bungalow on this plot.

-So nice to meet you both.

-Thanks, Lucy.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

Well, the pair may think they're normal and conventional,

but there aren't many people who take on such a big project

and what an amazing project in a spectacular setting!

I can't wait to see what they build here.

Join me later in the show and you can find out.

'Coming up, in this Tyne and Wear terrace, I'm talking tiny, but terrific.'

It's not huge, but it needs no work, so we love it.

'Did Chris and Sue find themselves in for a big surprise in those Kent woods?'

We weren't quite expecting that amount of money, to be quite honest.

'But first, did Carmen have to spend big bucks in Buckinghamshire?'

So I'm very poor now.

We're back in the charming village of Prestwood in Buckinghamshire

where Spanish-born Carmen bought this three-bed semi at auction

for bang on the guide price of 200,000.

It needed a complete renovation and former civil engineer Carmen had enlisted son-in-law Paul

to help oversee things.

She planned to get her hands dirty and keep a very close eye on the proceedings.

I'm going to manage the project with his help as well.

-Coming in and telling people what to do?

-No, I'll live here while the extension goes on.

Very noisy, very dirty, very smelly.

No, I've done it before. I'm very adaptable. I adapt to anything.

OK...

Adaptation was the name of the game here

and serial developer Carmen was planning a two-storey extension.

We've returned 13 months on to see if she and Paul have made the house magnifico.

# Bamboleo, bambolea

# Porque mi vida, yo la prefiero vivir asi

# Bamboleo, bambolea

# Porque mi vida, yo la prefiero vivir asi

# Bamboleo, bambolea

# Porque mi vida, yo la prefiero vivir asi

# Bamboleo, bambolea... #

With this now a utility room, there's only one place the kitchen could be.

# Bamboleo, bambolea

# Porque mi vida, yo la prefiero vivir asi... #

And the downstairs kitchen/diner isn't the only impressive part of this two-storey extension.

# Vivir asi-i-i-i... #

This is the upstairs extension.

Behind me, we've got the en-suite bathroom. Quite a good size.

We've got a walk-in wardrobe there.

This is the master bedroom. It's quite a long, sort of narrow room.

The length of it gives a spacious feel. It's not as wide as we would have liked, but still a nice space.

It all looks lovely now, but I wonder if Carmen's adaptability was tested?

Did she really manage to live here while the work was in progress?

Yes, I did. From day one more or less.

I was living here with no central heating.

What I did, one of the bedrooms, I make it like my little apartment.

So I put television, I put everything there and I eat there. I did everything there.

So it wasn't too bad, it wasn't too bad.

Well, she did say she was adaptable.

The renovation took longer than the planned 6-7 months,

mainly due to getting the correct planning permission in place.

All that's left to do is the garden, which is again covered in snow.

Bur Carmen now has a beautiful four-bedroom property which she's set to sell soon.

How did her budget of £50,000 hold up?

I spent over 80,000, but...

once you have started, you have to finish. So I'm very poor now!

The good thing about the whole thing is I lost a lot of weight!

Working so hard.

So now when I recover my money I have to buy a new wardrobe - nothing fits any more!

Well, that's one way to lose weight and hopefully have fun along the way.

Carmen decided against bringing over a team of builders from Spain,

although I do see a dash of Spanish influence in the decor.

She also had Paul on hand when she needed him.

I think Carmen's done an amazing job. What she's been through - she lived here with no heating.

She's just a real grafter. She's got her head down and worked and been on the phone to people,

pushing builders, and when she's at her wit's end, she phones me.

But she's done most of the work on her own, pulling in help from family members,

but she's done a really good job.

This was no small project for them to tackle.

Does she think she'll do another?

It's too soon to ask!

Probably, probably.

I have to recover a little bit and then I'll probably look at another one.

Otherwise, you know... I have to keep young.

I'm very old, but I have to keep young.

As long as I have my family's support and I don't feel alone, I think I'm going to carry on.

Just before Carmen gets a well-earned rest, we invited two local property experts

to cast their eyes over her latest project. One of them was here before the transformation.

My first impression coming back today is they've done a fantastic job. It's really well presented.

It's light, it's neutral. Very good size. I like the en suite off the master bedroom. Good job.

The location's excellent and four bedrooms will be of benefit when it comes to selling.

The property cost £200,000 at the auction

and the total for the work was £80,000, meaning Carmen's invested £280,000 here.

So could she make a healthy profit if she puts it on the sales market as she plans?

If I was to put the property onto the market, I'd expect to achieve in the region of £375,000.

I would expect this property to achieve £395,000.

-That's very good.

-It's very good. We had on our own, out of curiosity,

two more valuations and it was about 400,

-so the last price, not bad. The other one...

-A bit low.

-It's a little bit low for us.

-We paid a lot of money for this house.

-But 400, I think, in this climate,

-if we could achieve close to that it would be very good.

-400 is OK.

We're happy with that.

If they do manage to sell for £400,000, there'd be a pre-tax profit of £120,000.

If they take the rental route, the estate agents estimated £1,400-£1,500 per calendar month,

which would yield around 6%.

But Carmen's keen to get the money out of this property for when she's ready to do her next one.

Will that be with Paul?

We're still speaking to each other, so we've got a few projects we're talking about in the pipeline.

Maybe doing the next one for me and my wife to live in.

-Yes.

-We'll see what we can come up with.

Lying less than 30 miles west of Newcastle-upon-Tyne

is the semi-rural village of Ryton.

Traditionally an area built upon agriculture and mining,

it increasingly attracts commuters to the more urban areas of Tyneside.

I'm in an area of Ryton known as Crookhill, well known as a friendly, community-orientated place.

The property I'm here to see could make a perfect family home. It is a two-bed mid-terrace.

It had a guide price of £64,950 plus. Let's take a look.

'I like the fact it's set back from the road and has a pleasant front garden. Good start.'

So... Nice double-glazed front door there.

And the rest of the house looks in part like it's double-glazed, which is good.

Through into your living room area. It's a nice size. Looks like it's got central heating

and reasonably new radiators. I love this fire surround.

That's great. Odd ceiling. Kind of traditional for a certain age of house,

but not to everyone's liking, perhaps. But it's a good size.

Strange things going on with the walls. I wonder what that is.

It looks like indications of damp, but as you come through into this rear area here...

Yeah, look. Damp on that internal wall. That's a worry.

Come down to this wall here, which is on the adjoining wall to the next property

and there's loads of damp. Not only is the paint almost coming off,

there's dampness on the carpet, paper's starting to peel off.

But in terms of the layout, we like it. Continuing through,

kitchen tacked on the back here is not in bad condition.

On the face of it, a really nice house, but just a few big issues, particularly damp,

that need to be addressed.

'Yes, damp on internal walls is always slightly concerning, though not insurmountable.

'The plaster will need to be hacked off and damp-proof membranes installed. That can be rather messy

'and add to refurbishment costs.

'There's also always the slight worry about what damage might have been done to floorboards and joists.

'I'd certainly want to factor a contingency cost into the budget.'

It's a relatively small thing, but one thing that really struck me here was it had character

and what gave it that character, well, one thing was these doors.

My guess is these are the original doors, but somebody's taken the time and trouble to strip them back

or take them to a dip strip place.

And look what we've ended up with. It drives me... Well, I get quite cross when I see houses

where traditional doors have been taken off and just a simple, modern door put in its place.

It's a little bit more effort to do it, but what a difference it makes.

# I better knock on wood... #

'Upstairs, the two bedrooms are pretty decent as well, with one small-ish double at the back

'and one good-sized double at the front.

'They're both rather tired and need some refreshing, whereas in the bathroom

'there's an impressive white suite and standalone shower. You could leave this pretty much as is.'

Now often when I visit this kind of house, you come to the rear and it's an afterthought,

it's a mess, it requires clearing, it's full of old beds and rubbish.

That's absolutely not the case here. A really nice little area.

It's got these pebbles, a nice shed.

It's not huge, but it doesn't need any work, so we love it.

'Overall, this is a pretty together two-bedroom house. Double-glazed, in decent decorative order,

'centrally-heated with an immaculate bathroom and good location,

'so apart from those signs of damp, it looks as though it's got a lot going for it.

'What does a local estate agent make of this place?

'Is it really as promising as it seems?'

This property needs a very small amount of money spending on it to fix the damp problem.

The overall condition is fantastic.

So we both agree that this does look like a pretty solid property.

It was guided at £64,950, so could it potentially stack up as a good investment?

If this property had the damp repairs done and also some decoration,

I feel the property would be worth £80,000-£85,000.

If we were to completely renovate the property and transform the kitchen and bathroom,

it would then be worth £90,000-£95,000 on the open market.

What about its rental potential?

Crookhill is a really fast-moving rental area.

We find properties can rent straight away.

This is an excellent rental property and I feel it will achieve £475 per calendar month.

Well, there's a lot going for this house - a nice area,

a property that has a few issues, particularly damp, but it would make a lovely place to live.

So let's see who went for it when it went under the hammer.

Lot number 101. The two-bedroom mid-terrace property.

It is an established area of Ryton. Easy access to facilities and road links.

60,000 anywhere?

60,000, the gentleman sitting down. £60,000. 61 bid. 62.

63. 64. 65.

66. 67.

68. No?

£67,000. New bidder. At 68.

69? 69 bid. 70?

The gentleman sitting down, at £69,000.

500.

500 bid. 500?

70,000. 70,500?

Definitely shaking this time. I'm going once at 70,000.

I'm going for the second time at £70,000.

So the hammer fell at £70,000 and the successful bid was made by Gordon.

He was bidding on behalf of Tonya, the lady sitting beside him.

Gordon works as a property manager for Tonya and will oversee the work to turn this into a rental property.

I met him at the two-bed Ryton house to find out more.

-Gordon, great to meet you.

-And you.

-What's going on with this place?

It's a property that I'm going to oversee the work on,

which has been bought by a lady who has a few properties,

a small portfolio, a couple of commercial properties and a few rental houses.

She's bought this one because a friend's mother wished to live in the area.

And we basically said we'd go out, find a house and fit you up with a property.

That's basically what's happening.

-You've already got a tenant.

-Yes. Moving in in two months' time.

-OK. Is that your full-time job?

-No, it's not.

-What do you do?

-I'm a farmer as well.

-A farmer?!

-What kind of farming do you do?

-Beef cattle.

-A big farm or...?

-No, just a small farm.

-I guess if it was super-big, you wouldn't have the time.

Well, yes. I've cut down to working nine days a week now.

# If you got a problem I don't care what it is

# If you need a hand I can assure you this

# I can help I've got two strong arms and I can help... #

'There's no obvious connection between property and beef farming. He's done several renovations,

'but also built the current house he lives in. He seems to be a man who can and he'll need to be

'with that tenant moving in in just two months.'

-What are you going to do to it?

-Basically, all that needs done, the main thing is the damp.

-So we'll get a damp-proof injection done. It'll all be decoration and new carpets.

-Right.

A little bit of work in the kitchen. We want to change the sink and put a drainer in.

Probably put some new tiles in the kitchen and that's it.

-So what's the budget for doing this?

-I think between £4,000 and £5,000.

So what will your involvement be in the renovation project?

I'll just basically make the telephone calls to get the right people to do the job,

oversee it, check it's done right. And that'll be it.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

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

# It would sure do me good to do you good, let me help... #

So Gordon, the cattle farmer and man who can, taking on this project on behalf of his client.

I'm sure he'll do a great job. I'm a bit concerned about the effort it'll take to sort out that damp.

It's the damage that getting that done causes.

One metre of plaster, all that. Can it all be done within budget on a tight timescale?

You can find out later in the show.

Time has passed and we're hoping that money has been well-spent.

It would be great if all those grand plans had come to fruition...

So let's go back to the properties and find out what happened.

Earlier, we were in Rainham in Kent where married couple Chris and Sue bought this rather intriguing lot

at an auction for 160 grand. The property itself may have been a battered old bungalow,

but just look what surrounded it. And for one of them, buying this was all about coming home.

-We got married 18 months ago...

-Oh!

Sue's from this area, I'm from Nottingham and the intention was to return to this area eventually,

as in retirement, perhaps.

-And we've been looking and this one is an adventure.

-You can say that again!

-There you go.

Sue, this IS an adventure. It's not for everybody, this.

What was it about this that made you want to bid for it?

The area, but we also liked the woods and being off the beaten track.

Being slightly hidden away with lots of land worked for them, too,

as they have 14 chickens, two dogs and a horse to house.

We're back 15½ months later to see what sits on the plot now.

# I feel so untouched And I want you so much

# And I just can't resist you

# Been going crazy from the moment I met you... #

And untouched is not quite what I expected.

The plan had been to demolish this property so Sue and Chris could build their own,

so why is it still standing?

Since we last saw you, we've managed to obtain planning permission

for a four-bedroom, detached-style bungalow on this particular site.

It does stand forward of the existing property, which will be demolished,

and had to be clad in timber to be in keeping with the area. It should complement it very well.

Aha! Those words "planning permission" help explain it.

It's never a fast process, particularly when you're building from scratch

and having to negotiate and resubmit plans as they had to over the last 9 months,

but that's not the only reason nothing's been done here.

We decided it wasn't right for us. I've got a horse,

-but there's not sufficient ground.

-And there wasn't anywhere reasonable locally to stable the horse

-and still live here.

-Which is the long-term goal.

Retirement, enjoy the animals. Chickens, geese, everything else.

There wasn't quite enough room.

# But I got a horse out in the country... #

So Sue's horse has ground proceedings to a halt.

Whilst I think it's a real shame this hasn't worked out for them,

it's meant they can take on another adventure. What will they look for now?

Very similar to this, perhaps with a little more available land.

Yeah. And something we could live in while we're decorating, et cetera.

But less of a project than this was.

That wasn't the reason we changed our mind because we were quite looking forward to seeing it through,

-but...we're getting older these days. I think that's what it is.

-Yeah.

Oh, age is just a number, Chris, but something new and fresh here is the plan.

-What exactly did they get permission for?

-A four-bedroom, detached, chalet-style bungalow

with dining room, utility, en suites in two bedrooms,

-and a family bathroom.

-The bedroom downstairs was going to be for us.

We were planning it for us in our old age.

To that end, we had it with a bedroom and en suite on the ground floor,

as well as three bedrooms on the upper floor, to save us climbing stairs when we perhaps couldn't.

Those plans sound so perfect for them, have they any regrets?

I would have liked to have lived here. If there had been more land, it's central for all the family,

-but we'll just keep looking until we find something that's more suitable for us.

-True.

And our family...of animals.

Which we intend to extend.

You do, you're right.

I think we'd best leave that.

Sue and Chris purchased this for £160,000 at the auction,

without planning permission.

We invited two local estate agents to hear what they made of the plans

and the potential profits.

I've had a look at the plans and they look very suitable for this area.

And there are restrictions on what you can and can't build.

I think it will look very nice when it's finished.

I think it is a good scheme and would sell very well once it's built.

Once built, how much might it be worth?

If the new four-bedroom chalet bungalow is built,

it should achieve a price in the region of £400,000-£450,000.

A four-bedroom chalet bungalow would resell for approximately £500,000.

So some healthy returns for the completed property,

but how about selling it on now with planning permission?

I would value the property as it stands, with the planning permission,

in the region of £200,000-£250,000.

I would value this site, with planning permission, at £220,000-£240,000.

Boy, am I glad they said that because they've already sold it on

for £242,000. And where did they do that? At an auction, of course!

How did it feel to be on the other side of the hammer?

Less fraught, a lot more pleasurable.

-Yes.

-We weren't quite expecting that amount of money, to be quite honest.

It was a pleasant surprise.

Little wonder. Chris and Sue have made a profit of £82,000

without having to put a single brick in place. With that extra money,

they can now start their search again. Where have they got in mind?

Round the corner?

-Not too far distant from here, possibly!

-Not that far away.

# Let me help you... #

It was in the Tyne and Wear town of Ryton where we came across this property in pretty decent condition.

Good-sized rooms, double-glazing,

reasonable decorative order and in a good location.

The only potential problem was evidence of damp.

It was bought at auction for £70,000 by Tonya on the right,

but she wasn't going to do the work. That was down to her property manager, Gordon.

# If you need a hand I can assure you of this

-# I can help... #

-Is this what you do? Your job?

-Yes, I look after properties in this lady's portfolio.

-Right.

-Is that your full-time job?

-No.

-What do you do?

-I'm a farmer as well.

-Do you rent yourself out as a man who can?

-Well, something like that, yes.

# It would sure do me good To do you good, let me help... #

So with skills as both a farmer and property manager, Gordon seems able to roll up his sleeves

and tackle most things. There was already a tenant lined up,

so his task here was to get this ready in two months and on a budget of £5,000.

Two and a half months later, we're back.

# Oh, the weather outside is frightful

# But the fire is so delightful

# And since we've no place to go

# Let it snow, let it snow Let it snow... #

OK, so there's "snow" difference outside, but what about inside?

The major work was the damp. We'd a big problem with the damp.

That was the first thing we got onto, stripped all the walls off to 1.5 metres.

Got everything out, cleared out, got the damp proofers in.

With the damp sorted, it was really just a case of decorating the place throughout.

# Walking round the room singing Stormy Weather... #

I'm lad to see that lovely feature fireplace remains and the layout hasn't changed.

# It's the same room But everything's different

# You can find the sleep But not the dream

# Things ain't cooking in my kitchen

# Strange affliction washed over me... #

The kitchen's been retiled and new work surfaces put on.

There's now a larger, more practical sink, something the tenant requested.

The landlady who owns the property, the tenant who is coming in is actually the mother of her friend.

So she was asked what colour she wanted - white or magnolia!

And that was again with the carpets. We had a budget as to what we'd spend on the carpets

so we gave her the choice.

So not the biggest choice of colours, but a choice nevertheless.

At least the main bedroom leaves you feeling less blue.

Both rooms do look smarter and fresher.

Another thing that's the same, but different is that bathroom.

There was already a clean white suite, but it's been freshened up and looks pretty smart.

What does the prospective tenant think of her new home?

She's been back a couple of times to see what's what and she's over the moon with it.

It's gone very well. She's happy.

Gordon not only oversees renovations, but also gets stuck in from time to time.

He retiled the kitchen, changed the sink and moved the units to fit the soon-to-be-installed dishwasher.

How does he combine his farm duties with his property role?

# We're just country boys and girls... #

Fortunately, my farm is on the way to here, so I call there, do what I have to do, then come here.

The guys we've got doing the works are all very reliable people.

We just let them get on and it goes well and it lets me do other things that I need to do.

Let's be frank - this house wasn't ever going to be too taxing.

It was in decent order to start, but the damp did take longer to sort out than planned,

which has delayed the two-month timescale, but only by three weeks. What about the £5,000 budget?

Including the carpets, we're going to finish about £4,800.

A spend of just below £5,000 and a purchase price of £70,000

takes the total outlay to around £75,000, not including taxes and expenses.

So has this been a profitable property recommendation by Gordon? What do two estate agents reckon?

I do like the property refurbishment. It's nice, bright, airy.

Very clean and ready for someone to move into.

I think the property has been decorated to a good standard.

It has a lovely fireplace and the kitchen is ideal.

There's already a tenant lined up, but if it was sold on the current resale market,

would there by any potential return on a £75,000 investment?

I would recommend putting this property on the market for £85,000-£95,000.

My sale valuation for this property would be between £85,000 and £90,000.

I'm happy with that. I expected it to be worth around £90,000.

So a potential gross profit of £10,000-£20,000.

Not bad. But how would it fare on the all-important rental market?

I would put this property on the market

for £475-£495 per calendar month.

The rental valuation I would place on this property is £475 per calendar month

to £495 per calendar month.

I think that's round about what we're getting for the property, so that's good.

Any valuations around the £475 per calendar month mark

would generate a yield of around 7%. Will he and Tonya join forces for another project soon?

And will Gordon be mucking about in property or mucking out at the farm next?

I've got a busy time coming up. It's springtime. Hopefully my cows will be having some calves.

That's a busy time for me. A few late nights, early starts, sometimes up all night,

but that's what it's about. There's more money in property development than in farming,

but I prefer farming!

That's it. Did we inspire you or put you right off trying?

-We'll have more stories for you next time on Homes Under The Hammer.

-See you then.

-Goodbye.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd