Episode 12 Homes Under the Hammer

Now, Lucy and I find the world of property absolutely absorbing

and if you get it right, it can be quite profitable too.

But in order to do well, you need to buy at the right price.

One way you can do that is to visit your local property auction.

You need to do your homework when you buy at auction and once you've

decided it's the one for you, you could get yourself a real bargain.

So did today's buyers get themselves some good deals?

Here's what they bought.

In the New Forest,

it looks like time's up for this prefabricated bungalow.

I don't think it's going to be here for much longer.

While the layout of this ground floor two-bed flat in Chopwell

is, well, in for the chop.

Start again and plan it properly.

And in Alvaston, Derby,

again, something past its sell by date is about to bite the dust.

You would demolish this, which looks just as bad from the outside as it did from the inside.

All these properties have been sold at auction.

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

Congratulations, sir.

This is Godshill in Hampshire.

Godshill is surrounded by the New Forest National Park,

famous for its wild ponies.

# Wild horses

# I want to be like you. #

The New Forest was created by William the Conqueror

as his hunting ground and it was made a national park in 2005.

The property I'm here to see

is really tucked away from the rest of the world.

It's right at the end of this little lane.

Incredibly off the beaten track. So a fantastic countryside location.

The house I'm here to see is a three-bedroom detached bungalow.

Do you know what?

It looks more like a glorified shed or a rundown holiday chalet.

That is really disappointing.

And even more disappointing is that you don't get much house

for a £300,000 guide price.

Now, this bungalow was built post-World War II, in the 1950s,

and it's what's called non-standard construction.

Basically, look, it's made out of concrete and it was probably

built as a temporary structure, not built to last.

So you can see this hasn't been touched in many, many years.

This room was probably the lounge. You've got the fireplace here.

A kitchen scullery area through there.

It's quite incredible to think that something like this

really has lasted this long.

I don't think it's going to be here for much longer.

The auction catalogue suggested that this place now requires demolition.

I have to agree!

# I know that it's over

# Because I'm falling down. #

It's pretty much unmortgageable as it stands.

The concrete walls are uninsulated

and they are beginning to deteriorate.

And there's an asbestos roof.

So, would you have lost the plot if you bought this?

No, because actually the plot is what you would gain

after a lot of work.

This isn't going to be a straightforward redevelopment.

First, you have to get permission to demolish this.

Then you have the expense of properly

and safely disposing of that asbestos roof.

And then you have to apply for planning permission.

This property is actually within the boundaries

of the New Forest National Park,

so the planners are going to be very strict

about what you are allowed to build here.

Good luck, new owners!

The plot itself is actually 0.92 acres

and stretches beyond the trees and down into the valley.

But those conifers block the view.

I would want to chop them back, but that might not be so straightforward.

There's also one more issue.

This bungalow has some rather lovely neighbours. Badgers.

And they have dug holes all over the site like this.

Under the 1992 Protection of Badgers Act,

it's a criminal offence to kill or injure any badgers

or to even interfere with a badger sett in any way.

Which of course is going to be a problem if you want to build here.

You need a licence to be able to move them

and you basically have to entice them into a new home.

It's a slow, time-consuming and costly business.

But I think it's worth it.

After all, the countryside and its wildlife

is surely one of the attractions of living here.

Time for a second opinion from a local property expert and he agrees

that the bungalow's date with a bulldozer has been long overdue.

But with the lot guided at £300,000,

what does he think you could be permitted to build here?

I think you're going to be able to build a property

which is about 30% larger than the floor area

of this whole property as it is at present.

Planning is difficult in the New Forest National Park, but it shouldn't be an issue.

You should be able to get something, but it probably won't be more than 30%.

And would you be allowed to build a two-storey property?

It is stretching it to say you could have two full storeys,

but I definitely think you can have a chalet property.

There are a couple across the valley which you can see

are similar to the style they like being built.

So say you got the plot for that £300,000 guide price

and spent 250 grand on the build, what could it sell for?

Assuming they can build a three-bedroom house which

is 30% larger than the floor area here already,

I would say a price in the region of 750,000.

Sadly, I think it's the end of the line for this old, dilapidated bungalow.

It's time to just knock it down and start again.

But getting the planning permission to build something new

in a national park is bound to be a slow and laborious process.

So who was ready to take on the challenge?

Let's find out when we head to auction.

We move on to lot three. Our guide here is 300,000.

Would someone like to come straight in at 300,000?

280 then, surely? 280.

Yes, 280. Thank you. At 280. We will take £5,000 bids if we may then. 285.

290. With the starter with the glasses at 290. 295.

This was slow to start but very quickly,

it became a real battle between two bidders.

We rejoin the bidding at 370,000.

370. 375. At 375. 380.

At 382. 384. 384.

384. At the back. 384,000.

Standing at the back at 384.

Congratulations. Well done, sir.

The lucky new owners of this patch of paradise in the New Forest

were Angela and Ian who currently live in Dorset.

Ian is a joiner and carpenter, running a small building business,

and Angela works as a local government officer.

# Feels like heaven. #

So why were they so keen to buy this particular lot?

I met up with them back at the new property to find out.

Congratulations. This is fantastic news.

What's the background story behind you buying this?

We had sold our house and we have been looking for something nice, a project to do for ourselves,

settle down and eventually stop work and retire one day.

Angela, what is it about this site and this house, shall I call it,

that you loved enough to want to bid for it on that day?

It's just so peaceful and quiet and it's just everything we want.

We want to be just quiet and...

On our own.

You are certainly on your own here, I have to say!

Angela, I have to be honest, the thing that does strike me about this plot,

it's quiet and I'm sure it's beautiful,

but at the moment you can't see the beauty.

You cannot see what's beyond all these trees.

What are you going to do to open this place up?

What we hope to do is take some of these conifer trees down,

which are not native to the New Forest,

and that will open it all up, and replace them with some more trees

that will be native, or fruit trees, things like that.

Ian, something that I've noticed, there are loads and loads of badger holes.

-Are you going to have a bit of a problem with that?

-Hopefully not.

We looked into it and we had an ecologist who came in

and looked at it before we went to the auction.

You have to apply for a proper licence when you get planning permission

and they move them by gating the holes over and making a new den.

They encourage them in with peanut butter and stuff like that, apparently.

If they go in there and they get them to live in their new domain,

they have to wait 21 days and if they go back and try to go back into where they were,

they've got to do the whole process over again.

It's got to be done between April and November.

-If it's not done by this November, we will have to leave it until next April.

-Gosh!

So, it is so absolutely crucial that you get the badgers sorted out.

Well, so far we have concentrated on the surroundings,

but what are their plans for the bungalow?

Subject to planning, we're going to pull it down and hopefully we would

like to build a green oak building all in New Forest oak,

plenty of glass because there are nice southerly facing views and things.

It will all depend on the planners, really.

I love the plan but this plot is on the edge of the National Park.

Planning permission might not be guaranteed.

But Angela has the answer.

I'm going to send Ian in and he's going to charm them!

Ian, how are you planning on charming these guys?

I've already been over and I spoke to two planning officers.

Basically, what we are talking about was fairly acceptable.

They will be looking for something that will fit in with the landscape

and that's why we want to use green oak and oak from the New Forest.

Reclaim clay tiles, things like that. Hopefully, I think they will be OK.

We would love a lovely big house but we're not going to get it.

I think we have accepted if we can get a three-bedroom

modest but done very nicely, that is what we are after.

It sounds like this is going to be a fabulous house on a fantastic plot

and it's also going to be a labour of love as Ian,

who is a joiner, is going to be building lots of the house himself.

-So how long have you been a joiner?

-Since I was 15.

-Really?

-Yes. I'm 63.

-Is he pretty good at it?

-He's had a lot of practice!

Have you got any cost implications?

How much is something like this going to cost you?

A couple of hundred thousand maybe, I don't know. We will see.

-I think it will probably be more.

-How much do you think?

-Come on, how much do you think?

-I think it will be more like 250.

-And you are thinking you can do it for two?

-Plus the landscaping.

And that's not even the interior design!

-That is not even the kitchen!

-No, I'll build that.

This all sounds like it could be a dream for Angela and Ian,

but with badgers to charm with peanut butter and planners to please,

it could also be a bit of a nightmare getting there.

How long is it going to take you to have that beautiful green oak house standing here?

Subject to planners, I think it will take maybe a year and a half to do the whole lot.

Ian, you've got a lot of sweet talking to do.

I am so excited to find out what happens with this story.

It's been delightful meeting both of you today

-and I can't wait to see what you do here.

-Thank you.

How exciting!

Angela and Ian want to build their forever home here,

a place to live out the rest of their lives.

And I can't think of a better spot to settle in. It's beautiful.

But they still have to go through the planning process

and they might not be able to build what they want here.

We'll find out if they were successful later on in the programme.

And from the great expanses of the New Forest to Chopwell,

just west of Newcastle, which also boasts its very own woodlands.

# Chop, chop, chop, you can hear him singing

# Chop, chop, chop as his axe is swinging

# Chop, chop, chop through the woods it's ringing. #

But the property I'm going to see is hardly a rural retreat.

Well, it's not exactly an ideal location.

Situated on this fairly busy main road and a hill,

so the sound of the traffic is quite bad.

But the property I'm here to see sounds interesting enough.

A two-bedroom ground floor flat. It had a guide price of £10,000 plus.

A bit of a weird frontage. But let's see what it's like inside.

Good-sized room though once you get inside.

The first thing you want to invest in though, without doubt,

is double glazing because that noise is pretty intense.

But laid out as a living room at the moment.

Then stud partition walls dividing off... Let's find out.

Ah! Yes, I imagine this is one of the two bedrooms

and again the location is pretty poor.

Right on the main road.

If you were sleeping in here, that would be a real problem.

So again, double or even triple glazing.

Or you could think a little bit more laterally,

and take out that stud partition to create a really nice

open plan space, which could potentially be like a kitchen living area.

Let's explore further before we decide.

Now, in its former life this was a commercial property,

hence all the windows.

But if it's going to be a flat,

that facade might just be a bit of a pain.

Do you really need all that glass?

As you progress further into the property, up these little stairs,

you start to get this overwhelming feeling

that the layout just isn't working.

Bathroom there, but no loo. That needs a complete rework.

Through that way to the kitchen. But then into the second bedroom.

It's not so much a bedroom, well it is a bedroom,

but it's also an exit to the rear of the property, so you've got a door there.

So that doesn't work.

Part of me is saying, just take out every single wall, at least the ones that aren't supporting,

and start again and plan it properly.

Now, if your plan is to go back to commercial use here,

you can forgive the peculiar layout

and out that back door, there is a shared yard of sorts.

But as a flat, this really isn't working for me.

Well, yet more corridors

heading down to the rear of the property, to the kitchen.

This isn't where you want it to be, is it?

It's cramped, it's in the wrong place. There's a loo.

That's where the loo is, right off the kitchen.

It's all just gone horribly wrong.

As I said, rip out all the walls, start again.

I think make this bit here the bedroom,

or the second bedroom, keep that as a bedroom.

Don't worry about the back door, just put a curtain over it.

The front of the property then becomes your main living space.

It means the bedroom's in the quieter part of the house,

that bit there,

you're not so bothered about a bit of noise from the road.

You have that as a big, open-plan kitchen living area

and job done. Bit of expense, but worth every penny.

So some lateral thinking required,

but a re-jig of the layout here needn't cost the earth

and we mustn't lose sight of that £10,000 guide price.

We asked along a local estate agent to give us her thoughts.

The property is spacious for a two-bedroom flat,

but also for the area,

a lot of properties in this price bracket are terraced houses

and those are quite often smaller

than the accommodation this flat offers.

But if the layout of the flat were to be re-jigged

and it gets the make-over it deserves,

what could the property fetch on the resale market?

If the property was remodelled to maximise the space in the property,

I feel the property can achieve between £25,000 and £35,000.

And what about the rental market?

The rental market in this area is buoyant and I feel the property

could achieve somewhere between £300 and £325 per calendar month.

Hmm, buy this one at the guide price of ten grand,

spend another five on it, rent it out for £325 a month,

you're looking at a 25% yield, give or take.

Let's see who was tempted by this one at the auction.

Lot number 13,

we've got a two-bedroom, ground-floor flat.

£5,000, anyone?

Got to be somebody. £5,000?

Right-hand side, £5,000 bid.

Do I have 6,000 anywhere else?

Six on the back wall. Seven.

7,000 on the left.

Eight.

Eight bid. Nine.

9,000, 9,000 bid.

I'll take 500 if it'll help.

9,500 on the right.

Do I have 10,000 anywhere else? You're both out at the back.

I'll take 250 if it'll help.

No? I'm here and I'm wanting to sell.

Two and a half.

Two and a half.

Two and a half bid.

10,250.

10,250 bid.

Ten and a half.

Definitely not.

I'm on the right-hand side at 10,250.

You're both out. I'm selling at 10,250 on the right. I'm going once.

I'm going for the second and final time.

£10,250.

Sold, gentleman on the right-hand side.

And squashed behind our tripod in the packed auction room

was the successful buyer, Gordon,

snapping this one up for £10,250. Gordon has worked as an electrician.

MUSIC: "Electric Avenue" by Eddy Grant

He's also worked as an IT professional

and is something of a self-builder.

I met him back at the property to find out his plans.

Gordon, good to meet you.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Congratulations.

Tell me why you wanted to buy this, then.

Erm, well, on the day of the auction,

me and my pal went along just out of curiosity,

never been to an auction before,

so I thought it would be interesting to see what kind of people

buy properties at auction.

Basically, I bought this on impulse because it was such a low price,

I thought, "Well, what's the worst that can happen?"

Well, you lose all your money is probably the worst that can happen.

Yeah, it's still a lot of money,

but £10,000, people spend that on a small family car.

I thought, "Well, surely at £10,000 I can make some money on this."

Right.

-That's the idea! We'll see.

-Fair enough.

-But you hadn't seen it?

-I hadn't seen it.

The reserve was £10,000.

Quickly looked at my brochure

and the immediate thing I saw was the windows at the front -

basically no kerb appeal, really poor kerb appeal and I thought,

"Well, I can do something with that", so before I knew it, I was bidding.

-So do you have a partner at home?

-Yeah, my wife.

So when you strolled in that night,

-how did you tell the story?

-I actually texted her to say...

Cos she knew I went to the auction,

and I just texted her and said, "When I come home, you better be sat down."

And she replied, "What have you done?"

I said, "I've bought a flat in Chopwell",

and I'd never even heard of Chopwell.

I've only been here once before for ten minutes,

-the day before yesterday.

-Right!

It's a nice little village. It seems all right.

So presumably you hadn't read the legal pack.

No. I found out since that no-one really reads the legal pack.

That's rubbish!

Everybody needs to read the legal pack

and the solicitor should look through it as well.

Yeah, but in reality,

-nobody reads the legal pack.

-That's not true!

-Isn't it?

-No, absolutely rubbish!

I will argue till the cows come home on this point.

People need to read the legal pack!

-When I got home, I looked at the legal pack.

-Oh, good.

And I also did some research,

the kind of things you should do before you go to an auction,

which I'd recommend to everybody.

But in my particular case, I think I've got a good buy.

-I think you have.

-Yeah.

So are you as spur of the moment in other aspects of your life?

-I think that, yeah.

-Are you?

Yeah, everybody should have risk in their lives,

high-medium risk.

You should always be doing something

and I think this is a medium-risk venture.

High... Not high risk. High to medium.

OK, so Gordon might not have had to sink his entire life savings

into buying this property,

but there was certainly risk involved in buying blind

and I'd say a high degree of risk, rather than medium.

Do not try this buying blind business at home, please.

MUSIC: "Open Your Eyes" by Snow Patrol

# Tell me that you'll open your eyes

# Tell me that you'll open your eyes... #

You've got the place now. What are your plans for it?

There's three main things with this property.

The front I'm going to change completely,

so it's got two normal-sized windows and a normal-sized door

and double-glazed to take away the road noise.

There's the door in the bedroom, the second bedroom,

which must come out and a window must go in,

and then there's a toilet in the kitchen,

so my plan is to put a back door in the kitchen, where it belongs,

put the toilet back in the bathroom, where it belongs,

and change the front of the property.

They're my main, fundamental things

that have to be done before I do anything else.

Gordon is not intent on splashing the cash.

In fact, he plans to spend £3,000 on renovations.

That would take his total spend here to 15 grand.

That's right - flat, fees and refurbishment, all for £15,000.

So will he be doing some of the work?

-I will do all of the work.

-Will you?

The only thing that I won't do and don't do

is the plastering, skimming.

I've never mastered that skill.

And things like fitting kitchens, no problem? Redoing bathrooms?

Yeah, that's all straightforward.

What's next on the agenda after this, then?

-I'm in the middle of a self-build at the moment.

-Right.

Obviously, me buying this hasn't went down too well with my wife,

but I've assured her I'm only coming away for the month.

Is she living in a caravan in the garden?

-Oh, no, we're living in the house.

-Oh, good.

-It's in a decent state now.

-Right.

So my plan is to continue my self-build and, potentially,

look for another piece of land

and build another house.

Right. Well, listen, it really is lovely to meet you.

-Fascinating story.

-Thank you.

-Definitely gave me a giggle.

-Good luck with it.

-Thank you.

-I might need it.

-Look forward to seeing how you get on.

So Gordon breaking absolutely all the rules

and with a very interesting attitude to life.

In some ways, quite refreshing, I guess,

but you must read the legal pack! Don't listen to him.

Anyway, how's he going to get on sorting this place out

with that tiny budget?

You can find out later in the show.

Coming up, in Derby, is there something shocking to contend with?

Clearly, we're going to have to factor in

a total rewire into our budget.

And in Chopwell, Tyne and Wear,

it sounds like Gordon was the bright spark this place needed.

I used to be an electrician, so electrical work was easy for me.

We now head back to Hampshire

and the beautiful New Forest National Park.

We were there in the village of Godshill

to see a prefabricated concrete three-bed bungalow,

built in the 1950s.

Rundown and decaying, time wasn't on this bungalow's side.

It was bought for 384,000 by Ian, a joiner,

and his wife Angela, a local government officer,

who planned to demolish the derelict prefab

and build a new home for themselves.

First of all, though, they would need planning permission

from the New Forest National Park,

something that's not always a certainty.

I'm going to send Ian in, he's going to charm them.

So, Ian, how are you planning on charming these guys?

I've already been over.

I've been over and spoke to two planning officers,

and, basically, what we're talking about

was fairly acceptable.

They'll be looking for something

that's going to fit in with the landscape

and that's why we want to use green oak and oak from the New Forest.

Ian would also have to use his charms

to move on a set of badgers that also lived on the plot.

Protected under law, relocating them could potentially delay the build.

With a possible budget of up to 250,000

and a timescale of a year and a half,

this was going to be a project well worth watching out for.

But it was four years later when we returned to see

how they'd got on and the result, oh, well,

it was simply worth the wait.

This beautiful oak-framed house is stunning from the outside,

but wait until you see inside!

A huge hallway complete with an amazing glass-gabled atrium,

which leads onto a massive open-plan space,

complete with the kitchen at one end.

There's a dining area and at the far end, the lounge.

Everywhere you look, the warm tones of the oak timber give the house

character and style and all created by Ian and his workmate, Ollie.

We've put a lot of thought into all the detail - handles,

door furniture, window stays and stuff like that.

All the kitchen and stuff has all been hand-built by us.

All the doors inside and out, they've all been made by us.

A lot of job satisfaction in the whole place, really.

In fact, one of the few things in the house Ian didn't build

was the staircase.

However, he and Ollie built the amazing oak frame.

Yep, this part of the house

is probably my favourite part of the house.

I think the design of it, with all the oak and the glass,

the vaulted ceilings,

and the biggest challenge here was putting this glass in.

I think the biggest one's about 14 feet.

Extremely heavy, expensive, and we never broke any,

which was most important.

So I think, all in all, it's turned out really lovely.

And those stairs lead to a spacious landing with three bedrooms.

There's a bathroom at one end with a shower room at the other.

A huge master bedroom

and two smaller rooms complete the line-up.

And like the ground floor,

everything here is beautifully finished in oak.

There's about 20 oak trees gone into this house

for all the oak framing and stuff, which is a colossal amount of wood

and we got a traditional oak-framed house

like they built hundreds of years ago

and hopefully it'll be here in hundreds of years' time.

But it's not just about this wonderful house.

Step onto the balcony

and look what the couple have decided to add to their new home -

an amazing swimming pool.

Glorious.

But even after all this time,

the couple won't be getting their swimming cossies out just yet.

We hope to move in in probably about a fortnight's time.

We don't want to move in till everything's done,

cos we know that once we move in, we won't finish,

so we want to get everything finished before we move in.

There had been concerns about the planning constraints

and how they would impact on the size of the house,

both inside and out,

but some clever design and landscaping worked a charm.

It may look taller,

but the hillside has been excavated and dropped by 2m,

so despite being a two-storey house,

the roof line is exactly the same height as the original bungalow,

while the footprint of the house

is only a third larger than the bungalow's dimensions.

-Feels bigger.

-Feels bigger, yeah, cos I suppose it's open plan,

so it feels bigger and it feels spacious.

More so than what we kind of expected, I suppose, really.

As the couple was granted permission to remove several conifers,

they now have plenty of space on their newly-landscaped gardens

and with the added bonus of incredible views of the New Forest.

Native species such as oak and birch have been replanted

and there's also a wood shed and a garage,

but what's happened to those badgers?

The badger sett, we couldn't move it

until we got planning permission, then we had to get a licence,

and then we built a new badger sett

and there is basically three big boxes

-full of hay.

-Oak. Oak-framed.

-Oak boxes, yeah!

That's what we did and something's down there -

there's a lot of scratching and stuff going on,

so we presume they're happy in their new house.

It's good to see that everyone on the plot will live in comfort,

but it's been a tortuous process getting there.

Planning took a year to complete

and re-siting the badger sett took another year.

With Ian and Ollie busy on other projects,

work on the house started 12 months ago.

Happily, the end is now in sight,

but, unfortunately, so were their finances.

-We've spent more than 250,000.

-Yeah, we have.

-Definitely.

I think we've spent more than 100 over our budget.

So we won't be retiring any time soon.

Building their dream home has cost Ian and Angela a possible 350,000.

With their purchase price of £384,000,

their total outlay could be 734,000.

I think it's well worth it,

but what do two local agents think,

starting with the one who first saw the original bungalow?

It's just absolutely fabulous.

It really is, this is what you want to come back and see.

Particularly with all the oak that they've put forward, and the glass,

one - it sits well within the plot,

but it also, against the backdrop of that scenery, it's just...

Yeah.

I think the property's beautifully finished,

the position is absolutely fantastic, just on the edge of the New Forest,

the owners have put in a lot of love to this property

and the standard of finish is absolutely first-class.

The quality of the wood, the kitchen and the bathrooms are second to none.

But despite being a labour of love,

if Ian and Angela ever decided to sell,

what sort of profit could they get from their £734,000 spend?

In the current market,

I would like to think that this would achieve early to mid-900,000s.

If I put the property on the market today,

I'd put it on the market for £1 million.

I think it's well worth that.

That's the way I feel about it. I think it's well worth that.

Not that it matters to us, cos it's our home.

-If it had been 600, it wouldn't have mattered.

-No.

-It's our home.

You can't really put a value on this house.

It's been a labour of love and it's a testament to Ian's dedication,

but that top value of £1 million would give them a profit of 266,000,

minus taxes and fees.

But having put all their finances into this dream home,

will Ian be hanging up his joiner's belt and lounging by the pool?

I think if I did retire,

I'd be totally bored.

I enjoy doing my woodwork, been doing it for over 50 years

and it's part of me and why throw away a lovely skill?

-So, no, we won't be doing that.

-And I like him at work. He's out the way.

This is Alvaston, three miles south of Derby.

It's a suburb of the city centre nowadays,

but once upon a time, Alvaston was a village in its own right

and because of that, it still has a heart of its own.

There are plenty of amenities for the rising population here.

So what was on offer at the auction with a guide price of £75,000 plus?

Well, a three-bedroom semi-detached.

It actually looks OK from the outside,

although one thing I've spotted straightaway -

it doesn't have a pavement. Not ideal.

What's more, it is a bit of a busy road.

Luckily, there's off-street parking to the side.

The brickwork and pointing look surprisingly good, as do the tiles.

The garden, well, that needs a bit of a tidy.

Nice you've got that little porch out there.

Keep the draught out.

Stairs up to your bedrooms there and then through into the lounge

and straightaway...

glass doors.

These are such a health hazard. If you trip and fall into that,

goodness knows. Just horrible, get rid of those, 100%. Dreadful things.

Right, anyway, into the lounge area.

It's not bad size. Lots of light coming in through the windows.

Double-glazed? Very old double glazing,

so that'll have to be replaced.

Similarly, the fireplace.

Straightaway, you're getting that feeling that this is a house

that hasn't had a lot done to it in quite a while,

although here's an advert for these kind of carpets.

Despite everything else, this carpet is still going strong.

Brilliant.

Through to the kitchen - this is a nice surprise.

It's a really nice-sized kitchen/dining area,

very modern living here.

The units, obviously, dreadful.

Definitely got a few quirky things about it, this property.

Look at that little conservatory lean-to thing.

Probably wants to be knocked down

and then a bit of a surprise for this kind of house -

the loo of the property is situated down here.

I say a surprise - you might expect that from a terrace,

but from this kind of house, no, not ideal,

so that has got to go somewhere else.

I don't know about you, but I'm not keen on the idea of dripping

through the kitchen when I get out of the bath.

And there's another thing I don't like -

polystyrene ceiling tiles.

If you have a fire, they can make the blaze spread quickly,

so they have to go.

I'd maybe keep the flying saucer lights, though.

I do like a bit of retro, but I digress.

I'm not here to discuss decor.

Upstairs, and the first thing I'm looking for is somewhere

where you could potentially move that bathroom to

and I'm rather sad to say it's looking like

you might have to sacrifice a bedroom.

This room at the front, though -

it's not a bad size and you can possibly play around with this

to get a bathroom in here

and a smaller bedroom, so that is one option.

It does feel a lot smaller up here than it does downstairs,

which is a bit strange and one thing I'm definitely noticing -

erm, wiring.

When you do go round houses, you're looking for clues

as to the state of the wiring

and that can often be the light switches,

it can be the fuse board.

You're looking for stuff which says

the wiring is potentially very old and might need replacing.

Well, you don't have to look very far,

because here in the bedroom, there's one of these charming little things.

I don't know if you can see, but actually we've got a few bits

of the actual cable there, so I'm not going to touch that.

If I did, there'd be a big, blue flash and no more Martin.

Clearly, we're going to have to factor in

-a total rewire into our budget.

-MUSIC: "Safety First" by Brotherhood of Man

# Safety first

# Here's a warning

# If you want to play about

# Keep it dumb, don't scream and shout

# Just make sure I don't find out

# Safety first... #

Health and safety - it may be the butt of a lot of jokes,

but when it comes to renovation and building work, it's no joke.

Is everything safe?

That's a question you should address on a regular basis

and not just if you're a landlord.

Here's there's the glass door, polystyrene tiles

and the old wiring to contend with

and that's before you get to do any of the obvious jobs

and there's quite a lot of them to do.

Then you think about moving that bathroom somewhere upstairs,

but that would mean losing the bedroom,

so maybe another solution will present itself.

So outside of the house and to the side,

possible opportunity for an extension

and I would like to see possibly a garage with rooms above.

Perhaps it would give you a chance to extend not only

the front of the property, but also this kitchen area

and at the same time, you would demolish this,

which looks just as bad from the outside as it did from the inside.

The other thing to think about when you're looking round houses

is don't assume that's where the garden ends,

cos often this kind of foliage can just overtake a house

and a garden, especially if it's been left for a while.

I reckon if you root around in there,

that the boundary to the property

goes at least another six or seven feet back that way.

Time for a chain saw, I think.

In fact, a section of this garden was sold off previously,

so it was originally much bigger,

but hopefully after this bit has been cleared, it will be big enough.

To discover more about the history

of the house that went to auction guided at £75,000 plus,

we asked the auctioneer who sold it to come and tell us

a bit more about this old property.

Originally, this house had a much larger garden than it's got now

and what's happened here is that somebody has bought it,

they've applied for planning permission

on the majority of the original garden for a building plot,

so we're now concerned with the sale of the house with a driveway

and just a very small front and rear garden.

It's the space inside I'm more concerned with

and that bathroom conundrum.

In some local markets, the downstairs bathroom is the norm

and in some, an upstairs bathroom is a must.

What would the agent recommend?

It's a difficult one.

I think if it was me, I would actually put it into two bedrooms

and take the bathroom away from downstairs.

What effect would losing a bedroom have on the resale value

of the property after a full refurbishment?

If this is renovated to a good standard

and you retain it as three bedrooms,

it would have a value on today's market of about £120,000.

If you bring the bathroom upstairs, so it becomes two bedrooms,

clearly that would have a slight effect on value.

It'd be a little bit less, but not a lot.

So you'd be spending money on moving the bathroom

and reducing the value of the house.

That might not matter if you wanted to live here,

but what effect would it have if you wanted to rent the property out?

In terms of rental value,

whether it remains as three bedrooms or becomes two bedrooms,

it would be about £575 to £600 a calendar month.

So intrinsically, not a bad house at all.

It just needs quite a lot of modernisation.

Good project, I would say. Let's see who agreed when it went under the hammer.

Lot 15, who's got 70,000 to get on?

He has, thank you.

£70,000 is my opening bid.

70,000, 71.

72.

72, 3.

74.

74,000, 75.

75, 76 is bid.

At 76,000. 77?

77.

77,000. 78 is bid.

At 78.

At 79? 79.

At 79. 80,000.

80, quickly.

£79,000, then, once.

£79,000 twice. It's going to go, make no mistake.

79,000, third and last opportunity.

Sold to the lady at 79,000.

The successful bidder paying £79,000 was Chris,

who was at the auction with her son, Danny.

They live in Derby and Chris runs a day nursery,

but is an experienced developer,

so is her 17-year-old son hoping to follow in her footsteps?

-Chris, Danny, great to see you both.

-Hello.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

So why do you want to buy this place?

We didn't intend on buying this place.

We meant to buy another property

which went over our price.

This one came up, we knew the area, so we thought we'd go for this.

Chris has bought at auction before and she converted that property

into a day nursery, so why did she buy this house?

We went to auction to buy a property so Daniel could start

on property development, because that's what he wants to do.

The house that we initially went for, which was a lower price,

we didn't get, so this one came up

and it was still something there that Daniel could do and renovate,

so we went for it.

So is it just going to be you in terms of family members, or what?

My sister might be helping out

round here as well.

So a bit of a family event, if you like.

-And my brother.

-And your brother?

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

For starters, I'm going to start on the garden, get a new driveway in

and at the back, there's quite a few laurels that need to come down.

Take them down and start on the inside, get a new central heating,

rewiring straightaway, that needs doing, new bathroom, new kitchen.

So who's going to do the work?

I'm going to concentrate on the garden and ripping out

and get tradesmen in for what we need inside.

We're going to look at probably moving the bathroom upstairs,

aren't we? Only losing the bedroom.

Then I think this area would be quite nice made into a large kitchen diner

-with maybe French doors.

-Ooh, la, la!

It's a big list of to-dos for a first-time developer

in a three to four-month timescale.

And Danny, at 17,

well, he must be one of our youngest developers on the show ever.

So let's hope his brother, Dean, and sister, Charlotte,

will come through with their offers of help.

-What's the budget?

-15,000-18,000.

What's the plan for it? Is it to sell it on or to rent it out?

It'll be for Charlotte, my daughter.

She's going to come in and live here.

Although I was at the auction and purchased it,

Charlotte is now taking on the mortgage,

-so it will be her property to live in.

-OK.

So you're almost doing it up for your sister to live in?

-Yeah.

-But getting the experience from it?

-Yes.

-Listen, congratulations. Good luck with it.

-Thank you.

-I look forward to seeing how you get on.

-Thank you very much.

Well, a great property for Danny

to cut his teeth in the world of property investment on

and keeping it in the family by doing it up for his sister.

How will they get on sorting it out?

You can find out later in the show.

Months have gone by since we last saw those properties.

Have the renovations gone well and has time and money been well spent?

Let's find out.

Back now to Chopwell in Tyne and Wear

and this former commercial premises, which had been converted

into a two-bed flat with a rather peculiar layout.

It was bought at auction for £10,250 by Gordon,

a self-builder who has previously worked

as an electrician and an IT professional.

Now, Gordon was clearly not averse to risk.

Hammer golden rule number one -

view before you buy.

I hadn't seen it.

Basically, I bought it on impulse because it was such a low price,

I thought, "Well, what's the worst that could happen?"

You lose all your money is probably the worst that could happen.

And Hammer golden rule number two?

So presumably you haven't read the legal pack.

No. I found out since that no-one really reads the legal pack.

That's rubbish!

Everybody needs to read the legal pack

and the solicitor should look through it as well.

-Yeah, but in reality, nobody reads the legal pack.

-That's not true!

-Isn't it?

-No! Absolutely rubbish!

I will argue till the cows come home on this point.

People need to read the legal pack!

I feel better for getting that off my chest.

Gordon was planning to do as much of the work himself as possible

and he had a budget of £3,000 and a four to six-week timescale.

16 weeks after our first visit, we're back to see

if all Gordon's risks have paid off.

MUSIC: "What If?" by Coldplay

# Let's take a breath, jump over the side

# Ooh, ooh-ooh, that's right

# How can you know it, if you don't even try?

# Ooh, ooh-ooh, that's right... #

Nice one, Gordon!

For starters, the flat looks like a flat now.

This one here, this was a complete window with a door here.

And now, as you can see, I've got rid of the big window and put two

smaller windows, and then put the door over there with a little porch.

So it keeps out the road noise and also somewhere to put your coat

and put your boots when you come in.

You see there's cars passing by there and you can't hear them.

Ordinarily, that was really noisy - the windows used to shake

when a car or a van went by.

And to prove just how quiet it is,

all we need now is some traffic...

Oh, there's a bus.

Beyond the changes to the front, the main thing is the layout here

works much better, with an open-plan living space at the front...

..three bedrooms at the back,

although the third one is on the small side...

and the bathroom and the back door

now at the end of the corridor where the old kitchen and loo were.

I really like what Gordon has done here.

He's bought the bathroom, kitchen and other materials from internet

auctions, and what's more, he's just about done it all single-handed.

I've done all the work myself, apart from plastering.

That's the only thing that I can't do.

I've tried before and it's just too difficult -

especially ceilings, it's just impossible.

So that's the only thing that I've actually paid for to...

£700 it cost me.

Gordon turned his hand to everything else,

from laying the bricks for the new front wall, to some basic plumbing.

Years ago, before I went to university,

I used to be an electrician,

so electrical work was easy for me.

Plumbing is very similar to electrical work,

so I did the plumbing myself.

But the boiler hasn't moved - it's still the same,

so there's no gas work, it was just simple radiators.

Gordon is aware that he'll need certification for the electrical

and gas work when it comes to selling,

and he will need a gas safety certificate if he decides to rent.

If you're thinking of becoming a landlord, check out

government guidelines for becoming a landlord

and property professionals - very handy.

I anticipated six to eight weeks for this project and it took me

twice as long.

Renovating, you're doing twice as much work, cos you've got to

pull down other people's work and mistakes and then put in new.

So, he's gone over on his schedule, but by doing most of the work

himself, has Gordon managed to keep the budget in check?

My budget, originally, was £3,000.

I've spent about £3,500,

but I've bought the majority of the materials off the internet.

Gordon bought the flat for £10,250,

and a £3,500 spend

brings his total spend to £13,750, before fees.

We asked along two local estate agents to

get their take on the renovated flat.

First up, the agent who looked round before work commenced.

I think that the property has undergone an amazing transformation,

and I really like the space, especially this lounge area here.

I love the dining room and the kitchen, I think

that space has been used really, really well.

I think people are looking for open-plan now,

so I think he's done a great job on that.

Now, Gordon is undecided as to whether he will rent or sell, so

what do the experts think the flat would fetch on the resale market?

I think the property, once completely finished, would be

worth somewhere in the region of £35,000.

To market the property,

I would put it on at between £30,000 and £35,000.

Those figures would give Gordon a profit, before tax

and expenses, of between £16,250 and £21,250,

which is more than doubling his money.

What about rentals?

For rental purposes, I think the property should achieve

somewhere between £350 to £375, per calendar month.

For rental, I would value the property between £350

and £375 per calendar month.

If Gordon rented the flat out for £375 a month,

he'd be looking at a staggering yield of almost 33%.

So, Gordon, is it going to be a quick sale or a long-term rental?

If I could get £30,000 to £35,000, I'd be tempted to sell it.

If I couldn't, if it gets down to, say 25,

then I would keep it for a couple of years, get my money back,

and then possibly test the market again.

Will he be back at the auction any time soon?

I would definitely do it again, and I would definitely recommend it.

The other question that's buzzing around in my head is...

This jumper?

My mum - Nana Olive, she's 87 and she spent a few months knitting me

this jumper, and that's why I'm wearing it today for my mam.

Well, there were more high risks to face in this

three-bed semi in Alvaston, Derby,

but the risks here were more about the fixtures and fittings -

old polystyrene tiles, glass doors and dodgy wiring for three.

There were a lot of tired fixtures and fittings,

and the outside had little additions,

front and back, that needed demolished before they fell down.

The place was in real need of a make over,

and this pile of problems was bought by Chris for £79,000.

Chris, who runs a day nursery, and her 17-year-old son Danny,

plan to make the house fit for modern living -

not for the property market,

but for Chris's daughter Charlotte and her daughter Kaya.

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

We're going to look at moving the bathroom upstairs,

only losing a bedroom.

And then this area, I think, would be quite nice

made into a kitchen/diner, with maybe French doors.

This was going to be Danny's first ever renovation project,

and with a budget of £15,000 to £18,000,

and a three-to-four-month timescale, mum Chris would be on hand to

guide him through the pitfalls of making over a property.

So, when we returned seven months later,

had Danny turned the house into a home?

Well, the garden has been stripped away, along with the tired porch,

leaving a new front door, new windows

and freshly-painted lintels - all very smart.

And that's exactly how it is inside.

The re-carpeted, decorated lounge is now minus that antiquated gas fire.

And the kitchen sink and cooker have been replaced with new units,

a hob and flooring.

And while the bathroom is still downstairs,

a new suite at least makes it feel up to date.

Upstairs, and the three bedrooms have all had a make over,

with freshly-painted walls,

giving these rooms a greater feeling of light and space.

Danny wasn't able to meet us on the day of filming,

but Chris and her daughter Charlotte were there to tell us

about the changeover from tired house to modern home.

It's developed really quite nicely, I'm pleased with it.

Everybody's saying what a lovely feel it has about it -

it has got a really nice, homely feel,

which we really like.

And that homely feel will soon belong to Charlotte.

I'm going to be moving in at the weekend, hopefully.

There's a few more bits that I do need to get sorted,

but other than that, hopefully, this weekend I should be moving in.

It's an exciting time for Charlotte,

who has also taken on the mortgage for the property.

But what about those changes that Chris had planned?

We did debate whether to put the bathroom upstairs or not,

however, it is quite a nice space upstairs

and having that extra spare room for visitors and maybe turning it into

a little office, was more beneficial than taking the bathroom upstairs.

So we left the bathroom where it was, retiled and made it

look a bit neater and tidier.

And it's not only more comfortable, it's an awful lot safer.

The plans for the French windows also had to be dropped, as it would

have involved new lintels, which was more work than they really wanted.

But the house has had new electrics

and gas central heating installed, so the main comforts are in place.

Outside, the back porch has been despatched to skip

and it all looks a lot tidier,

while the noble laurels have met a rather ignoble end.

But I think that this will be a lovely space for Charlotte to

relax in, though it sounds like she's been doing that already.

I haven't really had much input at all with this,

it was more my brother Daniel.

I just said, "Paint the walls a plain colour

"and I'll put my stamp on it when I'm ready."

And it was Danny who was the real champion of the hour,

working hard, doing the labouring chores, stripping away

the wallpaper and getting the property ready for the tradesmen.

Danny's done quite a bit of the organising

and I've just supported him with that.

But he wanted to be able make the phone calls and try

and coordinate the electrician and the plumber and the decorator.

Yeah, but we have all worked together on the project.

And it's been a learning curve that didn't get too steep for Danny.

But, being a first-time developer,

did he manage to stick to the budget?

We had estimated around £15,000 to £18,000 it was going to cost us,

however, we did manage to do it on a budget of £10,500.

I think with having Danny doing a lot of labouring,

that's managed to keep the costs down quite a bit as well.

Add that to their purchase price of 79,000,

and their total outlay is £89,500.

Time to find out what two local property experts

thought of Charlotte's new home.

We start first with the auctioneer who sold

the home before the renovation.

First impressions on this is it's clean, tidy, presentable

and will appeal.

The first impressions of the property are, yes,

lovely-looking house, which I think is going to draw people's attention.

I quite like the kitchen, it's got a nice feel to it,

it's got lots of bright windows and it's a nice size.

So I think it's got some appeal.

This will soon be Charlotte's home,

but as the family have spent £89,500 on the house,

what sort of profit could they make, should they decide to sell?

My sale valuation on this property would be £120,000.

If we were to put this property up for sale, with a few tweaks,

I think we could ask £130,000,

and achieve something around the stamp duty threshold of £125,000.

Those valuations mean that the family could make a possible

profit of £30,500 to £35,500, minus the usual taxes and fees.

-Wow...

-That's really good, isn't it?

We like the sound of that.

That's a good investment.

But for now, this will be a new home for Charlotte and her daughter Kaya,

who already know the perfect way to relax in their new surroundings.

We're going to have a little party,

so we'll have a midnight feast,

might get all the blankets downstairs

and just enjoy our own home.

We hope you've enjoyed watching

and perhaps learned some lessons along the way.

Make sure you join us next time for more Homes Under The Hammer.

-Goodbye.

-Goodbye.