Episode 65 Homes Under the Hammer

Hello and welcome to the show. More and more people are looking

to property as a way of investing their money rather than leaving it

-in the bank.

-Yes. You do need to have a bit of cash, some confidence

and be prepared to do the hard work.

A good way to get a feel of your local market,

though, is to head down to the auction

and see what's going under the hammer.

Do your research and talk to the experts before you buy.

If you do that, you'll be on the right road to a sound investment.

Indeed. So let's look at what inspired the buyers on today's show.

I meet a Birmingham developer who isn't too keen on breaking the bank.

-So what is the budget?

-The budget is £1,000.

-1,000?!

-Yeah.

And I am hoping that this London flat is worth the journey.

Thank goodness I'm here!

Would you be brave enough to buy this Dunfermline plot

without planning permission? This man was.

Well, it is the old saying,

"Buy land, my son, they don't make it any more."

All these properties have been sold at auction,

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

when they went under the hammer.

That's yours, sir. Good contest.

# The old village, baby

# Ain't large enough to be a town. #

This pretty and popular spot is Harborne,

a suburb only about three miles west of the city of Birmingham,

but with a much more village-y feel about it.

It has plenty of local amenities

and some attractive historical buildings.

And I'm just a hop, skip and a jump away from that village centre.

So nice, residential area.

Obviously, very close to local schools - there is

one right across the road.

Here to see a three-bed terrace

at a guide price the like of which I've not heard before -

£64,000 to £69,000.

Isn't that, like, an odd amount?

Anyway, it is what it is. And it looks pretty good from the outside.

Whoo, whoo, whoo!

Being near a school doesn't ring everyone's bell -

it can be a bit noisy.

Maybe it depends how much of a curmudgeon you are.

Thank goodness for double glazing, eh?

Away from the noise of the school then and into the property.

And straightaway, a really nice feel. It doesn't smell damp.

The carpets look like they're in good condition.

Nice little entrance area here.

Stairs up to your bedrooms there.

And then progressing into the kitchen.

Now, it is not in bad condition.

I mean, if you are renting this place out,

you'd pretty much leave it as it is.

It all seems to be vaguely working, which is good.

Not a bad size.

So, yeah, that gets my seal of approval.

And then, through this way.

I like houses where you can walk around, it's...

I don't know, just I like it. It's feng shui. It works for me.

This here... A large lounge, lots of light. You have got an open fire.

Yeah, ticking a lot of boxes already.

And it's not just the space that is encouraging.

The central heating and boiler look pretty new and in good shape.

The electrics appear to be modern.

Even so, I would have them checked out by a qualified electrician.

But otherwise, there really is very little here you could fault.

So, upstairs. Nice little landing area.

And then a separate loo and bathroom.

You probably know, I actually quite like that.

Other people might want to consider knocking that into one.

And then currently three bedrooms. Smaller boxroom there.

Largish bedroom towards the front there.

And then a third bedroom there.

And then what could potentially be a fourth bedroom is actually

currently laid out as a wet room.

If you didn't need those facilities,

that would then become another bedroom.

So a four-bedroom property. Wow, for that guide price, pretty good.

Yes, this wet room has been nicely done,

but obviously for a specific purpose.

It certainly wouldn't take much to convert it into a more

conventional bathroom or strip it out to create that extra bedroom.

Or alternatively, that rather dated bathroom

and loo could be either upgraded or made into a bedroom.

Either way, it would be quite

straightforward to make this into a four-bedroom house again.

And those changes alone would increase its value,

which from an investor's point of view, is all good news.

So, from what looks like a new house from the outside,

you might have expected a very small rear garden.

Hold that thought for a second.

Before I move onto the garden, look at this.

Just outside the back door, there is a soil pipe.

And going into it,

some pipes from probably the toilet or basin upstairs.

As you can see, they are dripping just little

amounts of water into this area of the property.

"So what?", you might say.

Well, believe me,

just that amount of water dripping into that spot over

a relatively short amount of time is going to cause all

sorts of problems for the foundations.

It could lead to subsidence in the future.

So, if you've got that going on in your house, sort it out now.

And if you were to buy this place,

definitely that is something that I would sort out pretty pronto.

Meanwhile, back to that garden. And...

Oh, no! Look at this! Not some postage stamp with artificial grass.

No, no, no. A great-sized, well-established garden,

with nice trees and shrubs.

It doesn't really tally with the look from the outside.

This is kind of intriguing.

The garden really is a great bonus.

It is a fantastic wildlife sanctuary at present.

There is also some useful outbuildings with

a loo and storage space.

And a handy side passageway.

So, it is great to have the access to the garden, but what is that?!

That, dear viewer, is a flying freehold.

I thought it felt a bit weird upstairs,

like it was bigger than downstairs.

Well, the reason is that bit there is actually

part of the upstairs of this building.

"So what?", you might think, "Fantastic news." Well, no.

When it comes to lending, mortgage lenders... Unless that is absolutely

clear in the title deeds, you might find that there's a bit of an issue.

So make sure your solicitor checks it out before you buy it.

A flying freehold won't necessarily stop you from getting

a mortgage, but it could make it more difficult,

limiting the lenders and potentially making the repayment more costly.

Another thing to note about this house

is that it is non-standard concrete construction.

Non-standard construction can affect the mortgageability of the property.

And a way to overcome this can be to build a brick layer.

But you need to check this with a surveyor.

That is what has been done here, as you can see.

Parking is also pretty scarce round here,

see you want to think about off-street parking.

The neighbours have done it

and I think it would be a real bonus for this house.

But what does a local property expert make

of this pretty together property?

The property is actually a very good property.

It's a quiet, tidy property.

I mean, there are a few things that need doing,

like decorative and maybe new carpets.

There is a wet room upstairs,

which I would convert into a bedroom to make it a four-bedroom,

which would make it more desirable for letting and living.

Well, there is

then a few potential improvements which could add some value.

But with a guide price of £64,000 to £69,000,

could it make a good investment on the resale market?

Renovated as it is, in terms of accommodation, the property would

sell on the open market for something between £105,00

and £110,000.

If this property was to be a four-bedroom

and the wet room was converted,

it would probably be on the open market for about £125,000

to £130,000.

What about its rental potential?

As a three-bed, this property would rent for something between

£600 per calendar month and £650 per calendar month.

If the property was renovated to make a four-bed, the rental

would be something between £650 per calendar month and £700 per

calendar month, obviously depending on the condition of the property.

Well, clarify that flying freehold issue,

figure out what you are going to do with all those bathrooms,

and I think you've got yourself a cracking little property here.

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

This next lot

is a traditional three-bedroom freehold

mid-terraced house.

Where shall we start, folks? Lots of interest.

70,000 to get it started. Anyone want to buy this?

At £70,000 to get it going.

Where are we?

At 70,000, and thank you.

At £70,000 then.

Do I have 75 anywhere?

75 on the front.

You want one. If we're quick with ones. 76.

77? 77. 78?

78. 79?

79. 80?

80. 81?

No? 81. 82?

No.

At £81,000, on sale, make no mistake.

One, two, three...

496, that is yours, sir, at £81,000. And well done.

And so the hammer fell at £81,000 on the three-bed mid-terrace.

And the delighted bidder was Jimmy.

Jimmy lives locally and works

in the family property developing company.

And he joined me, along with his brother Wassim,

back at the Harborne house.

-Jimmy, Wassim, great to meet you both.

-Nice to meet you too.

Congratulations. Tell me why you wanted to buy this place.

What it is, it fell in our budget

for what we wanted to purchase at the auction.

And to be honest, it was in the range,

so we thought we'd just go for it.

Right. I understand this is part of a family business.

-You want to tell me a bit about that?

-Yeah.

What it is, we work alongside our four uncles.

Within us, we have got, like, about

-100 houses throughout the portfolio, yeah.

-Wow!

So the family have a history of property?

Yeah, we have been doing it for the last...I'd say about, oh,

15, 20 years?

So how do you split up the work that needs to be done?

Wassim, what do you do for instance?

Yeah, well, I do go to the auctions too

and I do purchase my own as well.

-Right. OK.

-And just pretty up, really, just like that.

Right. And Jimmy, what do you sort of specialise in?

I mainly go to the auctions...

Well, this particular property, I did, like, kind of blindly buy it.

How do you mean?

Because I didn't view it before I bought it, kind of thing.

But that was only because it fell into, you know, the budget.

And I did take a bit of a gamble on this one.

So what did you think when you walked through the door?

Well, we were really, really glad the way it turned out.

You know, we were really happy. Yeah.

Hm, not seeing it before they buy? Always risky.

But these guys are experienced developers

with plans to rent it out.

And I guess, if you have got 100 properties,

you'd feel you can cope with most things a house can throw at you.

-So what is the budget?

-The budget is £1,000.

-1,000?!

-Yeah.

What are you planning to do for that?

Well, in that, we are going to get the wet room converted.

-Into a...?

-Into a bedroom.

-OK.

The toilet and the bath together, the wall knocked down.

We're going to get the garden done as well, all cleaned out.

Other than that, just a bit of painting.

And with the bathroom, new suite? New...?

We're going to get...we're thinking of getting a new one, yeah.

You must know people if you're going to get all that done for 1,000 quid.

I know!

Yeah, we are going to stick to our budget, but we will...

-More or less around £1,000.

-Wow. And timescale?

-Between one and two weeks.

-Weeks?!

-Yeah.

-MARTIN LAUGHS Very fast.

-Bing! In here.

For this property, we've got someone that's ready

to get into it straightaway.

-So I guess that's another reason why you need to do it quickly.

-Exactly.

-Well, listen, congratulations. Good to meet you.

-Brilliant.

-Nice to meet you too.

-Good luck with it.

-Take care.

-Thanks for your time.

-Thank you.

Well, the brothers breaking a golden rule

in not viewing the property beforehand. Tut-tut!

You know it is a bad thing to do, don't you?

Anyway, it seems like they got away with it in this instance.

But £1,000 to do it up in one to two weeks? Really?

You can find out how they get on later in the show.

Maida Vale in the city of Westminster, in London, is

recognisable by its large late Victorian and Edwardian

blocks of mansion flats in these beautiful tree-lined streets.

It certainly is a vibrant, affluent backdrop, with Portobello Road

and Little Venice along with cafe culture right on your doorstep.

It certainly is a lovely place to live.

Right on the fringes of Maida Vale is Maida Hill, which is

slightly less expensive to buy in.

But this is a vibrant, colourful neighbourhood.

It also has plenty of shops and cafes of its own,

not to mention a bustling marketplace.

They're also not far from Westbourne Park Tube Station and a short

jaunt into London city centre, making this area the cat's pyjamas.

The property I am here to see today is literally moments

away from this buzzing part of London.

You've got lots of little market stalls here.

It really is a thriving community.

And the property I am here to see is a two-bedroom flat.

And it is above this delightful little cafe here.

Guide price - £225,000.

Now, bear with me, won't you? There's a fair few stairs to climb.

# We're running up that road

# We're running up that hill

# We're running up that building. #

Thank goodness I am here!

I know I said it was at the top,

but it really is at the top of the top of the top.

There are a lot of stairs to climb.

And I don't even have any shopping bags.

So, once I've got over that shock, let's have a look around this flat.

Now, straightaway, you don't get the feeling of space and high ceilings.

It is quite a small, compact flat.

Bedroom - small.

Second bedroom - small again.

Bathroom - not bad. Blue tiles, we could change that.

And into the living room/kitchen/sitting area.

So, the layout is not fantastic here and space is not at abundance,

so I think I would try and change this kitchen around.

You've got to think about putting a little table in here as well,

so you can eat. I'd get rid of all this furniture

and just have something a lot more manageable.

What you could also do is maybe not have the bedroom here as

a bedroom, and you could move all this furniture into this room

and call it a living room.

But then that would leave you with one bedroom.

So you have got adaptable space.

You could do a one-bedroom flat, a two-bedroom flat.

Let's not forget where we are in London.

It is in a vibrant place and it would rent like that, this property.

So you can do lots with it.

For me, it is just a little bit on the small side.

On the plus side though,

the property is in pretty good condition, so it wouldn't

take much to get it ready for the rental or sales markets,

especially if you are happy with the layout as it is.

It does need central heating installing,

but with a guide price of 225,000+

in a sought-after area

such as Maida Hill, this little flat

could bring in a big profit.

# From small things, Mama Big things one day come. #

We've asked along a local property expert for their opinion.

It is a tiny flat. It is not the biggest of flats, but it has got

two good-sized bedrooms, it is a good location.

It would be ideal for

young couples or a first-time buyer who possibly can rent out

the second bedroom.

While first-time buyers might fancy this tiny flat,

there might be one drawback for anyone needing finance.

There are certain mortgage lending companies that are stricter

with regard to lending above commercial premises.

But that's not to say if you have a good enough deposit, you can

get lending on that.

Something for any potential buyer to look at, then,

but let's start considering the numbers.

In the current rental market, we would expect to achieve £350

per week, which is approximately £1,500 per calendar month.

So that's good. What about the sales?

Once renovated, I think

this apartment should achieve in the region of £400,000.

Well, if you do get it anywhere near that guide price of £225,000+

and keep costs down,

that could potentially be a very healthy return on your investment.

So selling or renting on should be straightforward.

Very much a demand. There is a real shortage of properties

in Maida Vale at the moment.

This is a great central London location here.

But let's not forget this snug flat is above a shop.

And there are quite a lot of stairs to climb before you even get inside.

Still, you're five minutes from the Tube station

and a ten-minute walk from one of London's most famous

bustling markets - Portobello Road.

So let's see who fancied this lot when it went to auction.

Self-contained, third-floor flat,

200 may I say?

Thank you, gentleman there. At 200.

Shall we say 210?

210 will be it, thank you. 210.

So 220 now. 230?

230, thank you.

And 240. 250? No.

240 then. In the sort of coral shirt there.

240.

250 anywhere?

With the lot proving popular, we rejoin at 320,000.

320, gentleman there.

Sunglasses on his head.

£320,000.

First time at 320.

Second time at 320.

He's back. Thank you, 325. 330 now.

It's still going. 35? He's thinking.

330 then, the gentleman here.

330,000 for the first time.

35. 40?

Says no. OK, I think we are closed.

So we have got 335 here, very front.

335 for the first.

Second.

40, he's back. 45?

He says no. First time.

Second time.

345.

Quite sure?

I'm trying for you.

345, very front.

White shirt and shorts. First time.

Second time.

Third and final time. Very front then at 345,000, against you.

There we go. Sold. Fair enough.

# Smooth operator

# Smooth operator. #

The successful bidder was Aleksandar, originally from Serbia.

And if he was nervous about the price, well, he didn't show it.

Aleksandar has been living in the United Kingdom for 50 years

and has been a property developer for 30 of those.

I met him back at his latest purchase to find out his plans.

-Aleksandar, congratulations.

-Thank you.

What was it like for you at the auction?

Well, it was a good surprise for me.

So, you obviously turned up on the day with the money

-ready to buy this?

-Yes, yes.

So why did you want to buy this flat?

Because it is a very good position, very close to West End,

very close to Paddington and

all the facilities around here.

There is a mini market here. Too many shops.

And it is a very good position.

Everybody wants to like to be near the centre of London

so they doesn't have to travel too far and to waste time.

Have you bought it for yourself to live in or as an investment?

No, no, as an investment, yeah.

And what are you going to do to the flat?

Are you going to let it out or are you going to do it up and sell it?

I'm going to do it up and sell it, yeah.

I don't like to let it out, it's too...

I'm too old for that.

What do you mean you're too old for that?

Well, it's too much work, too much bother with tenants.

And it is not a very good job here.

So, were you happy with the price you paid on auction day?

I am very happy, yeah, yeah.

I was very happy when I saw the flat

because it is in much better condition than I thought it was.

-So had you viewed the flat before the auction?

-No.

-SHE GASPS

-So you purely just looked at it

-in the catalogue?

-Yeah, I looked at it on the computer,

internet. But...

I didn't think I would buy it

because I thought it would be much more expensive flat.

But at the auction,

when I saw how cheap it is, then I...

I just took it. I took a chance.

In whatever condition, in this part of London,

I couldn't make a mistake.

And what are you going to do inside to really make this place look

-wow?

-I hope to put a new floor and new central heating.

-And what about the bathroom?

-Yes, bathroom as well.

-Bathroom has to be changed.

-So, everything.

-You're going to paint it, kitchen, bathroom, new flooring.

-Yeah.

What is your budget? How much money have you got to spend?

Well, about £10,000.

Aleksandar is clearly confident that he has made a sound investment

here and he plans to consult local property agents before he makes

any changes to the layout.

Of course, he would have to check any structural changes

meet with the freeholder's permission.

The flat is leasehold and has just over 100 years left on the lease,

and the freeholder intends doing some of the work to the

block, so Aleksandar will wait until that is done before selling.

What is the freeholder doing here?

Is he going to be upgrading the property?

Well, he's going to do external work on the roof, yeah?

-Now, that is great news for you.

-Yeah.

-Somebody that's bought this

at auction, obviously,

-you didn't know that prior to the sale.

-But I have to pay...the

tenants, we have to pay for that, so I will pay my part.

Aleksandar, good luck with the project.

-And I think I am right in saying you were lucky here.

-Thank you.

Thank you.

Aleksandar, well, he took a big risk here by not seeing this flat,

but luckily, it has paid off.

He has got £10,000 to spend and years of experience behind him.

Join me later in the programme to find out

if Alex has made a profit in Maida Vale.

Still to come, in Dunfermline, it all boils down to the three Ps -

planning, parking and pavements.

And in Maida Hill, will the profits be pouring in from Aleksandar's

top-floor flat? We'll find out later.

It was just outside Birmingham, in the popular residential

area of Harborne, where we first came across a three-bedroom,

mid-terraced property that was actually in pretty good nick.

Double glazing, central heating, OK kitchen set-up,

a layout that just, well, worked.

It also had the opportunity to add value relatively easily

with a wet room that could be converted back into a bedroom,

which would then make it a four-bedroom house.

But overall, the property, from a buy-to-let point of view,

well, it was looking pretty rosy,

and that is exactly why brothers Jimmy

and Wassim bought it for £81,000 as yet another addition to the

family firm's 100-strong letting portfolio.

But they weren't planning on a big spend on this one.

# We're talking about money, money

# We're talking about money, money... #

-So, what is the budget?

-The budget is £1,000.

-1,000?

-Yeah.

What are you planning to do for that?

Well, in that we are going to get the wet room converted into the bedroom.

OK.

The toilet and the bath together, the wall knocked down,

going to get the garden done as well, all cleaned out.

-Other than that, just a bit of painting.

-And time scale?

-Between one and two weeks.

-Weeks?

-Will have it done, yeah.

HE LAUGHS

We are very fast.

And part of the rush was

because they already had a tenant lined up, so the sooner

they could get it ready, the sooner it could start earning its keep.

And now, just three weeks later, we are

back to find out how project manager Jimmy has got on.

Yes, well, outside was already in good shape,

though there are plans to put in off-road parking in the future.

But what about inside?

We've had the whole house renovated.

We've had the upstairs bathroom and toilet knocked into one.

This is really sensible and allowed them

to put in a good size family bath.

We've had the wet room converted into a bedroom.

And having returned the wet room to bedroom

and given the other three bedrooms a good makeover,

the property is now a four-bedroomed house.

Did they meet that two week deadline?

Yeah. It's been done in two weeks.

That's pretty impressive.

And it wasn't just the house they completed in two weeks.

Initially, the garden was overgrown.

The fact that we've had it all tidied up,

it has really turned out to be a really big garden

and you get to see the whole of the garden,

and surprisingly, it goes over the fence as well.

It's a really big garden.

For garden lovers, and I am one,

this lovely green space is definitely an asset.

I'm so pleased that they have kept all of these well-established

shrubs and plants.

So, what has Jimmy been doing for this short two-week project?

For the last two weeks I've been, like, here every day,

on top of all the workers, just making sure everything's perfect

and to be honest, it's all been done good.

Yes, it certainly has in terms of timescale,

but what about that rather tight budget?

Initially, the budget was £1,000,

but we've had to stretch it up to around £1,800.

That's due to the fact that we've had a lot of stuff done.

Even so, £1,800 seems like a good deal for what they've achieved.

And with their £81,000 purchase price,

it takes their total spend to £82,800.

So, have they done enough to make this ready for the local market?

What do two local estate agents think?

First time I've been inside the property, I think

the work that has been done has been done to a tasteful standard.

It's very neutral throughout which will appeal to the

buyer for the sale and the rental market.

The property is particularly good for a family purchase or tenant.

I think the addition of the fourth bedroom will be of benefit

and add value to the property.

The layout is very practical.

Good that it's got an entrance hall with a lounge

coming off to the right.

I understand that the owners have also knocked the bathroom

and the separate WC through to one which is certainly a massive

improvement to the property.

So, what might this house they've

so far spent £82,800 on be worth on the current resale market?

Should this property come on the open market for sale, I'd recommend

a guide price of £90,000 to achieve offers between 85,000 and 90,000.

I believe the property would be marketed at £89,950

to achieve between £82-85,000.

Ah, well, those values could see a small loss of £800

or a potential pre-tax profit of £7,200.

But there is that off-road parking still to do and it does all

depend on find a buyer in an area where rental values are strong.

So what does Jimmy think about that?

The value doesn't mean much to me

but because it's going on the rental market,

that was the key thing that we were looking forward to.

And to be honest, because we've got people lined up for it already,

tenants, they are moving in and about three days' time so, yeah.

Yes, this has never been about resale.

In fact, the family firm have yet to sell any of their 100+ properties.

But with that tenant already lined up,

have they got a good rental rate?

The rental market in this area is very strong.

Should this go to the rental markets,

I would suggest a £700 per calendar month rental.

I believe if the property was placed on the rental market, we would be

able to able to achieve a figure of £695-725 per calendar month.

Well, they are more or less close to what we are getting.

We are getting £750 per calendar month, so it's all good.

Well, that's impressive.

And £750 per calendar month represents an annual rental

yield in excess of 10%. Not bad at all.

So, will this family team be back at the auctions?

Well, my brother is at the auction now and to be honest, I need to find

out what is going on with him now to see if they have purchased anything.

And yeah, we will carry on buying more houses.

So, from a property empire in Birmingham, we moved to Scotland,

to Dunfermline, a town with a long association with Scottish royalty.

Beginning in the 11th century

when King Malcolm III married his bride, Margaret,

in the local church, which later became Dunfermline Abbey.

It must have been a great wedding

because Malcolm took rather a shine to the place,

and for a while, the town became the unofficial capital of Scotland.

In more recent times, Dunfermline is famous for being

the birthplace of renowned philanthropist Andrew Carnegie,

and was home to '80s pop band Big Country.

From here, it's an easy commute to Edinburgh

across the Forth Road Bridge

and the cities of Glasgow and Dundee aren't too far away.

Well, just a mile from the town centre of Dunfermline is this plot

of land that went up for auction with a guide price of £20,000.

Now, apparently, talking to the locals, for the last 30 years

it has been used as a car park, and that indeed is a car.

What could it be? Well...

That's for us to discover.

It's a corner plot of around 250 square metres in size and

there was obviously a building here at some point,

long since demolished.

It sits at quite a high elevation with views to the town.

The question is - who's going to knock this square into shape?

# Bend me, shape me, anyway you want me

# Long as you love me, it's all right. #

OK, so let's review what we've got here.

You are obviously in an area where there are lots of utilities.

I mean, you've got electricity, you've probably got sewerage,

gas within easy reach so that's good news.

Bad news is - the roads are extremely narrow

and you are pretty much surrounded on all sides by housing.

Those people would probably have something to

say about whatever was built here.

So in terms of your potential for planning permission,

I think not too bad.

I'm sure the council would like to see it used for something,

maybe affordable housing.

All in all, out of ten,

I'd give it about a 6.5.

I say 6.5 because the narrow streets around the site will cause no

end of problems. Just how narrow?

Well, I didn't bring a tape measure but here is the next best thing.

Hm, not very scientific but I think you get the picture.

One thing you are going to have to consider before you develop

this is an issue of pavements.

This one is very narrow and you can't just go either extending it

or taking it away without getting the council involved.

For them to be involved,

they're going to have to talk about maybe lowering the kerb...

Getting people out to do all that kind of stuff

isn't going to be cheap,

so it is definitely something to factor into your budget.

Pavements, parking, and access.

The local council planning department will have a field day,

so I reckon it's high time we got

the opinion of the auctioneer who sold the property.

Well, it's an interesting little plot.

It's an elevated position on the northwest side of Dunfermline.

It's been used as a car park,

but the vendors have not authorised this use at any time.

The possibilities for this plot, I think,

are mainly the opportunity to obtain consent for residential development.

It's an established residential area.

There is both traditional houses, stone-built houses,

and some more modern ones. I think there wouldn't be any problem

obtaining consent for perhaps two units.

The agent thinks the site, guided at £20,000, would work for two

two-bedroom flats and they could each be worth £100-110,000.

Flats, of course, are usually good rental territory, so in this area

of Dunfermline, what could each flat be earning on the rental market?

If the flats were rented out, I would anticipate

they should be able to get £650 per calendar month for each flat.

Well, you certainly can't complain about location close to the

town centre or the fact the plot is nice and level

and has easy access to services.

Maybe a few planning permission issues regarding the neighbours

and these very narrow streets.

So, not necessarily a no-brainer, but possibly worth a punt.

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

We move on to lot three, we stay in Fife,

but we move across to Dunfermline.

The land we are selling is situated in an attractive mixed

residential area approximately one mile from the town centre.

Somebody start me off with lot three. I'm looking for 20,000.

20,000 anywhere? 18,000?

It'll be big enough to put something on this.

Again, a good development opportunity. 16, then.

-16 anywhere?

-Could be 15?

-15, 15 I will take. Thank you.

15 to get it going. Is there 16 anywhere else?

16 I have, thank you. 17?

16,500 on the proxy. Gosh, you're working the hard already.

16,500 I will take. 17, I am looking for. 17 I have. 17,500?

Proxy is out. The bid is with a gentleman in the room at 17,000.

Do we have any other interest?

We are all done at 17,000, I am selling...

Any other interest?

17 going once...

Twice... Third and final time.

Sold to the gentleman in the room at 17,000. Thank you.

The successful bidder getting the lot for £17,000 was Andy.

Andy is registered blind.

He currently owns two flats in Edinburgh which he lets out.

He came along with his wife Shintana to tell us

what plans he has for this little piece of Dunfermline.

-Shintana, Andy, nice to meet you both.

-Thank you.

-Nice to meet you.

-Congratulations.

-Oh, thank you.

-Thank you.

So a plot of land then. Tell me why you wanted to buy it.

Well, it's the old saying - buy land, my son, they don't make it any more.

That was it, then? That was the main reason?

That was the main reason was that we thought

we would be able to build something on it.

OK.

And that's why we decided that we would just go ahead and get it.

So are you an active property investor?

-Not really, no.

-Right.

No, I don't have a very good pension so this is my pension fund basically.

OK.

So why a plot of land, then,

rather than a house which you could renovate?

What led you to this, do you think?

Partly because we like the challenge of building something new.

-We just thought it was a good idea.

-Right.

And we are not likely to lose money on land.

I've watched enough of your programmes to

look at some of the houses that people will buy

and the amount of work that they have to do and then.

MARTIN LAUGHS

So have you done anything like this before?

We did buy a house at auction before and Shint and I

worked on it for three months, and when we sold it we made

a profit of about £600, so for three months work it wasn't...

-Right, so not the best financial decision you ever made.

-No.

He paid too much.

-You paid too much, did you?

-Yeah.

-Oh, dear.

Andy's sight loss was due to a degenerative eye condition

and I wondered what particular challenges property

development raised for him and how he overcame them.

I can't see the properties so I have to think of it just in my mind's eye,

how big it is and what shape the site is and things.

So what in your mind's eye do you think this looks like?

It's fairly flat.

It's almost a square, slightly longer in the downhill section.

And quite wide. It's quite a large bit of property.

I didn't envision it being quite so large as this.

And what about the surroundings, cos that is sort of potentially

-an issue, isn't it?

-Yes. They're very narrow streets.

This is an old part of Dunfermline built

probably in the early 19th century.

A lot of the properties have been demolished and rebuilt.

And this...

There was a building here which wasn't there in 1955, so that's...

-Before I was born.

-Right.

It's been an empty space for a long time.

-Right, obviously used for car parking it seems at the moment.

-Yes.

-That is an issue around here is car parking.

-Right.

You could always turn it into a car park and rent it out to the locals.

The council, I don't think, would want that.

Have they given you an indication then that, in principle,

-they would be happy for you to something here?

-Yes.

They want a residential property built here. And...

Their only stipulations would be that we widen the pavement at the front

and to the side, and that vehicle access from the narrow lane...

would mean that you have to have enough room to do a three-point turn

-inside cos they don't want cars reversing out onto the lane.

-Right.

So you'd have to go out nose first.

So tell me the process from this point on

as far as you are concerned.

We have to get drawings done to put in for outline planning

permission and then if that is agreed then

we put in for the full planning permission. Then we build the house.

Right, so have you got architects and builders lined up?

We have somebody lined up, yeah, a builder and architect, yeah.

Are they going to be able to describe to you what they're

planning and you have a very clear image in your mind

of what is going to be like?

Yes, I'll leave that to my wife to...

MARTIN CHUCKLES

Which way do you think you will go? Do you think you might go

traditional or ultra modern?

I like the idea of something really funky here.

No, I think we will go traditional

-because it will fit in with the rest of the properties.

-OK.

Andy and Shintana feel that the plot is big enough to take two

semidetached houses, but given the council's stipulation about

off-street parking, I'm thinking it might be a tight squeeze.

Although plans are at an early stage,

they estimate a budget of £70-80,000 for the completion of the project.

Do you have any idea what those type of properties would

sell for once you've built them?

Cos I'm just hoping that you're going to make more than 600 quid

-on this deal.

-Yeah, I think...

-I think they will probably sell for roundabout £70,000 each.

-OK.

So factoring in what you paid for the land, you've got a potential...

-There's a potential.

-..good profit, actually.

-Yeah.

-And timescale?

-Hm... One year maybe?

-OK.

I think it will take longer to do the planning than it will to build

-the houses.

-Really? That's toing and froing, then.

A bit toing and froing as you know yourself, Martin,

with dealing with planning authorities.

But the council here have been very helpful.

You're always taking a chance when you buy a property at auction

and life is like that, isn't it?

MARTIN LAUGHS Taking chances.

Well, listen, congratulations. All the very best and good luck with it.

-OK, thank you.

-I look forward to seeing how you get on.

-Thanks.

Thank you.

So, Andy with ambitious plans for the site

and hopefully with the help of Shintana,

when we return in a year's time, there will be two semis here.

How will they get on? You can find out later in the show.

Well, we've already seen how one of our property developers got on.

-What about the other two?

-There were budgets and schedules to stick to.

Mm, but did they stick to them? Let's find out.

Back now to the sought after area of Maida Hill in London's West Nine

were earlier I looked around this two-bedroom flat that

had a guide price of £225,000+.

There were lots of stairs which might put people off

and it was, well, let's say...compact.

However, it was in good condition

and could represent a sound investment.

One man who certainly thought so was Aleksandar,

who battled it out at auction to buy the property.

Third and final time at the very front at £345,000 against you...

It's going to go. Sold to the sir in front.

Without batting an eyelid,

Aleksandar paid 110,000 over the guide price.

And the seasoned property developer, who is originally from Serbia,

wasn't any more flustered when I met him back at the property.

So were you happy with the price you paid on auction day?

I am very happy, yeah, yeah.

I was very happy when I saw the flat

because it was in much better condition than I thought it was.

I didn't think I would buy it

because I thought it would be much, much more expensive flat,

but in whatever condition in this part of London,

I couldn't make a mistake.

-So had you viewed the flat before the auction?

-No, no.

Gasp! So you purely just looked at it in the catalogue?

Yeah, I looked at it in the catalogue, on the computer,

on the internet.

So, despite breaking Hammer's golden rule,

Aleksandar was more than confident of a positive outcome

and he already knew exactly what he wanted.

And what are you going to do to the flat? Are you going to let it out?

Are you going to do it up and sell it?

I'm going to do it up and sell it, yeah, yeah.

I don't like to let it out. I'm too old for that.

SHE LAUGHS

What do you mean you are too old for that?

Well, it is too much work, too much bother with tenants

and it's not a very good job.

So, Aleksandar was set on selling

and with £10,000 budget,

he had plans to replace the kitchen and bathroom

as well as some flooring

and a general refurbishment job throughout,

all of which he was hoping to complete within two months.

So, around one month later, we've returned to Maida Hill,

and unfortunately, not all has gone to plan.

Yep, apart from a bit of a paint job throughout,

there is very little difference.

Time for us to catch up now with Aleksandar

to find out why the change of plan.

My original plan was to refurbish it completely and sell it.

But unfortunately, the market has stopped rising

and I couldn't get much profit, so I decided to let it for a while.

I've got advice from a few estate agents, but I found

myself as well, that I can get a good price for it at the moment.

That's the thing in property -

you have to roll with the changes in the local market conditions.

In London, prices can be very volatile.

One moment you think you are on top of the market, next, you're not.

Aleksandar thinks he's not going to make enough profit by selling on

at this point, so he's going to rent it out for a while.

Is he disappointed?

Overall, it is a good project in my opinion

because the property is in very good location, property has,

being on third floor, has a very nice and fresh air.

And the noise is so quiet that you can feel you are in...

in the country.

And it is still walking distance from the city.

Aleksandar ended up spending just £1,000 of his initial £10,000

budget and is happy to rent it before he sells.

So it will be interesting to hear if the two local estate agents

we asked along think this is the best option.

It's quite basic if I am being totally honest.

But it shows clean and tidy.

Yeah, for the size of the flat,

I can't see any more work that would enhance it.

At this stage, I would rent it out

and keep it for six to 12 months, and then look at where the market is

and maybe put it on the market at that time.

Great, just what Aleksandar plans to do. But what rental could he expect?

This property in the current market would achieve

£1,450-1,500 per calendar month.

I would advise putting it on the rental market

at around £1,500 per calendar month.

Well, that's better than I thought, yeah.

I thought it was maximum £1,400.

So I am quite impressed by that.

That top valuation of £1,500 per calendar month could mean

a yield of around 5%. What about that troublesome sales valuation?

Has it gained any value on Aleksandar's £346,000 investment?

And does that vindicate Aleksandar's decision to rent?

I would advise putting it on the market for £360,000.

This property in the current market would achieve a sale

price of £365,000-370,000.

That's why I haven't put it on sale because it's a bit low, yeah.

That higher valuation of £370,000 would mean a possible

profit of £24,000, minus the usual taxes and expenses.

Now some of you might be thinking, "That sounds like a pretty

"good potential profit in just four weeks with minimal work."

But she would also have to factor in costs like agents' fees,

so in this case, Aleksandar has his eyes on a bigger return.

And the smooth operator that he is,

he is prepared to play the waiting game.

We are back in Dunfermline to visit Andy and Shintana who couldn't

resist temptation and bought this plot of land near the town centre.

They sealed the deal with a bid of only £17,000

which sounds like a bargain,

except this lot came without planning permission.

You can never be sure what trials and tribulations await you

once your application hits the desk of the local planning office.

With that in mind, Andy was keen to get the job started.

We have to get drawings done to put in for outline planning

permission and then if that is agreed, then we put

in for the full planning permission, and then we build the house.

This wasn't the couple's first foray into property development,

but they were hoping for a better outcome

than their previous experience.

We did buy a house at auction before and Shint

and I worked on it for three months.

When we sold it, we made a profit of about £600.

# She works hard for the money

# So hard for it, honey... #

Andy and Shintana were hopeful that this project would generate

a lot more than £600.

The plan was to construct two semidetached houses

with off-street parking,

and with a budget of £70-80,000 and a time scale of one year.

It was full steam ahead for this development project, or so we hoped.

This is how the site looked in November 2013

and unfortunately, this is how it looked one year later.

Well, there are a few more weeds, but apart from that,

I can't see much difference at all. So, what has been going on?

I think we better catch up with Andy to get the full story.

We bought the property at auction a year ago.

It took almost two months to get the finalisation because the council

had to get permission from the Scottish Office to sell it.

We then put in for planning, out went planning, and it has taken

nine months, including an appeal, to get the planning for it.

Andy projected that dealing with planning would be a slow

process and he was right.

He found the experience of dealing with different departments

terribly frustrating.

The Estates Department were the ones who were told to

sell off the odd bits of land.

The planners wanted a house built on it, the Roads Department

eventually agreed to where the entrance should be.

But the council has rejected the planning application

because there were more than five objections to it.

And it might not be a surprise to hear

the substance of those objections.

The objections were mainly on the ground that the plot had been

used as an unofficial car park,

and they objected not to have their free parking available, basically.

Andy and Shintana successfully appealed the planning decision,

but the original plans had to be substantially modified,

so much so that the couple came to a decision...

Our initial intention was to put two small one-bedroom cottages on it,

but that wasn't possible with planning terms

because we would have needed two parking spaces per property,

and there isn't enough room for four off-street parking spaces.

So we had to go with the one house - three bedroomed, 1.5 story -

which meant that we had two parking spaces needed, and that was feasible.

But that's not what we wanted originally, so we decided

we'll let someone else have the opportunity of building their house.

So, Andy and Shintana have decided to cut their losses

and put the plot back on the market with outlined planning

permission, so they have added some value.

But exactly how much?

We invited to local property experts along to assess the various

options available with this site.

The property currently has outlined planning permission

so one can be fairly safe in the knowledge that

permission will be granted, albeit for the type of property

that has been suggested for this site which is a three bedroomed...

A three-bedroom property.

There is a shortage of plots to buy, especially suburban plots.

We are used to rural plots, but suburban plots are hard to come by,

so yes, there is definitely demand for a plot like this.

On top of the purchase price at 17,000,

Andy and Shintana have spent another £5,000 on securing outline

planning permission, bringing their total spend to £22,000.

How much is the land worth now?

A plot like this with outlined planning permission,

I would value in the region of £45-50,000.

With outline plan permission,

I would value this plot between £45-55,000.

I think these figures are very encouraging and it makes me

think it was worth all the hassle of getting the planning permission.

I would have to agree with Andy.

Selling the land could give him a profit of around £33,000.

But if he did decide to go ahead with the build,

what could a three-bedroom house sell for?

For a three-bed property, if, for example, it were to have an

en-suite bathroom and be finished to the required standard,

I would be expecting a valuation of between £155-165,000.

I would estimate a three-bed detached villa on this plot

with parking, good specification internally,

would be valued in the region of £155,000 to £160,000.

So, have these figures prompted a change of heart?

I don't think these figures would persuade us to go ahead

and do anything now.

I think we are ready to sell at this stage

and give someone else the opportunity.

Well, our two intrepid developers have battled through

the planning process and ended up with a positive outcome.

If they achieve a sale of £55,000, it will mean a profit,

before tax and sales fees, of £33,000.

That's a bit better than 600 quid.

Well, that's it for today's show.

We'll have more properties that sold under the hammer for you next time.

-And we look forward to seeing you then. Goodbye.

-Goodbye.