Episode 75 Homes Under the Hammer


Episode 75

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Transcript


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Hello and welcome to the programme. Martin and I love property.

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In fact, we're fascinated by it and even though we think

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we know lots about it there are always new things to learn.

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There are. But securing a really good deal is not always easy.

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The best bargains, well, there's loads of competition.

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One way you can stack things in your favour, though,

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is by visiting your local property auction.

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Property auctions can be full of fun but also full of drama.

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Yes, you think you're just about to make the successful bid and then...

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Ah! Somebody comes in at the last minute and outbids you.

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But that's what it's all about.

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Let's see what and where things were bought on today's show.

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In Springburn, Glasgow, a beautiful flat but where's the kitchen?

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That's situated there.

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It's a no-no.

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In Hounslow, a huge property with hidden problems.

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This house is lovely!

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Oh, dear!

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And in Tipton, a good bungalow, a really low guide price

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except, yep, you guessed it!

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How bad could it be?

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Ah. Right.

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All these properties were bought at auction

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and we'll find out who got them and how much they paid

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when these homes went under the hammer.

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Two, three...

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This is Springburn, an area three miles from Glasgow city centre.

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This area had a real industrial heyday when the St Rollox works,

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established in the 1850s, had a quarter of the global trade

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in steam train locomotive manufacture.

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And there are still remnants of Springburn's glory days.

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Built in 1900, the Winter Gardens behind me here

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was a Victorian glasshouse which really symbolised

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the last vestiges of industrial power.

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And, also, philanthropic spirit

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which existed in this part of Springburn and the good news is

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it looks like they're saved.

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That's thanks to a campaign by local people who have formed a trust

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and who, with the council's help,

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hope to redevelop this fantastic structure.

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Well, just a stone's throw from the park

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and the Winter Gardens is the property I'm here to see.

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It's a flat in this pretty dramatic-looking building.

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Beautiful local sandstone.

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Guide price was £50,000 to £70,000 quid.

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Let's take a look.

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This two-storey block is a little unusual in that the normal

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sandstone flat in Glasgow is a tenement with three or four floors.

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Quite a traditional entrance with these stone stairs.

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The close, as the shared entrance is called in Scotland,

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looks well-maintained which is also another good point.

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And don't you love those wrought iron banisters?

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Love the height of these doors!

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Absolutely amazing!

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And it looks like the ones in the flat itself are like that, as well.

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Not quite as high.

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It's a plus point, it really gives a great first impression.

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The only negative is trying to get new ones of these

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is going to be an absolute...

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Well, it's going to be a search.

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HE CHUCKLES

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So, yeah. Strip these ones back, they would look beautiful anyway.

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But, basically, this big, large central area

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off which all the rooms are situated.

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Three bedrooms, good-sized one there with very high windows.

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We like that. A massive bedroom there, that's good.

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Bathroom, we'll come back to that in a second.

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Huge room there. I guess that's your living room.

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One, two, three and four... Yeah, that's your living room.

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And, then, through here where it all starts to go a bit strange

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cos you might have noticed the one thing I haven't mentioned so far

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is a kitchen.

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Now, that's because that's situated there.

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When the rest of the house/flat is so beautifully proportioned.

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I say house, you see, it's as big as a house, isn't it?

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When the rest of the flat is

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so beautifully proportioned, that kitchen just doesn't work.

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And the fact that, I guess at the moment, it's situated

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off this bedroom, it's a no-no.

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Now, there have been plenty of dodgy en-suite bathrooms

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on Homes Under The Hammer but I think this could be

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our first en suite kitchen.

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# Why did you do it?

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# Why did you do that thing to me? #

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At least there is lots of room to remedy the problem, including

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several large cupboards that could be converted into a kitchen.

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Or another option could be turning this bedroom

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into a kitchen/dining/living space.

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So, there's so much about this flat I love

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and then the bathroom, which I've come back to, is just horrible!

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It's thin, it's claustrophobic, it just doesn't work.

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Now, these are not stud partition walls. It's all pretty solid.

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So, playing around with the internal layout

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is going to take a bit of effort.

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You're also probably going to have to apply for

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some kind of permission to do that.

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But something's got to be done. Maybe, I don't know,

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putting the bathroom in one of the bedrooms, making it an en suite.

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Maybe moving that kitchen into one of the bedrooms,

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jiggling things around. You need to sit down with a piece of paper

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and maybe even make little models, play around with it

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and see what's going to work because, in principle,

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it's an amazing flat, it just needs that little something

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to make it absolutely perfect.

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# I've really got to use

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# My imagination Yes, I am. #

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Of course, moving kitchens and bathrooms about doesn't come cheap.

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You'd have to make sure you don't spend more on the flat

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than it's worth. But I think once solutions are found,

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this could be a nice family home.

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Especially since out the back there is a sizeable communal garden

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which is clearly very well looked after.

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For a guide price of £50,000 to £70,000 this property,

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whilst it has its issues, ticks lots of boxes.

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But what does a local property expert make of it?

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There's two options.

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You could either leave it a similar layout and create the back room

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and make it into a dining/kitchen, a fabulous dining/kitchen.

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So that would then give you

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the accommodation of a lounge to the front, two bedrooms,

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double bedrooms, fabulous big dining/kitchen and a bathroom.

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Or you could do the second option,

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to change the back room into a bedroom

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and create an internal kitchen and maybe have an en suite to the rear.

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Great ideas, but which would she recommend

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and what could be the valuation?

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Two-bedroom dining/kitchen would be the preferred.

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I do believe that that would be the more saleable option

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because that would be more desirable

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and I would value that in the region of £100,000.

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And how about rentals?

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The two-bed dining/kitchen option, I think it would fetch

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in the region of £550 to £595 per calendar month.

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I see, typically, professional young people that work

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in Glasgow city centre living in a property just like this.

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Good one to go for.

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Let's see what happened when it went under the hammer.

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Guide on this is £50,000 to £70,000.

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We've all seen it in the catalogue.

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Who's here to bid on this? 60 to start, then. At £60,000.

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55, then.

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50? Need a bid, can't sell it I'll move on.

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At 50,000, 50 here.

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51, 52,

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53, 54,

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55, 56,

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57, 58.

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58 I'm bid.

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59, 60.

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At 60 I'm bid. One, two...

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With you, sir, seated in the middle at £61,000.

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Back in at 62. 63 may I see? And four, madam?

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Shake of the head at four. With you, sir, at 63.

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I'll take a half if it helps.

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With you, sir, at 63.

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First time, are you sure, you don't look it?

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Second time at 63, are we done?

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With you, then, sir, in the middle at £63,000, all-out.

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GAVEL BANGS

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Well done, sir.

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Can I have your paddle number, please? 302.

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After a hard-fought battle, the successful bid of £63,000

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went to Tom and his wife, Leslie.

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I met them back at this three,

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or should that be two-bedroom flat to find out what they had planned.

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-Leslie, Tom, good to meet you both.

-Hi.

-Hi.

-Congratulations.

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BOTH: Thank you.

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Nice flat. Tell me why you wanted to buy it.

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It's getting to the stage now of, basically, what we're looking for,

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an investment for pensions and for the future.

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And, obviously, this cropped up. So decided to take a chance.

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Right, lots of properties crop up though, so why this one?

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Been working away from home up until very recently

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and now I'm basically back based in Glasgow I've started looking

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-and this was the third one I actually looked at.

-Right.

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-And the first one I actually went to bid for at auction.

-Great.

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-And what did you like about it?

-Just very unusual, very big.

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It's not a normal tenement building.

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And I think it would make a really good home for someone.

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And what are your thoughts?

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I really like it. I like old tenement properties.

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Obviously there's a lot of work to be done on it

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-but I think there's a lot you can do with it.

-Right.

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So, tell me about the possibilities.

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Well, just now there's only a very small kitchen out the back

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either through a bedroom or a dining room.

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So it can either be made into a kitchen/diner, which would take away

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a larger bedroom. So I'm thinking of either moving the kitchen

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and putting it in, there's a big large cupboard in the hall

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and there's another cupboard in the room, knock through the wall,

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-make that a kitchen.

-Wow. From two cupboards?

-Yes.

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If I can get permission to get the window out onto the gable end.

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If not, I'd maybe look at putting a skylight in.

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Or the other alternative

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is use the small third bedroom as a kitchen...

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which should then leave you with two large bedrooms

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and make it into two bathrooms.

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So, what have you bought it for?

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Have you bought it to rent out, sell on, what's the plan?

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-I don't think we've decided yet, have we?

-No. Probably rental.

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-Do you know what you might achieve?

-No.

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# And soon you will find that there comes a time

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# For making your mind up! #

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OK, so Tom and Leslie have preliminary plans

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for the restructuring but these two renovation novices

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seem pretty unsure about whether to rent or sell.

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They'll need to put in some research to figure that one out.

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Hopefully, they'll be a little more definite about the budget.

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The budget, I reckon, will be between maybe 13 to 15,000.

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So, what's the timescale for the work?

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Obviously we've got other work commitments and suchlike,

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-but I would hope to do it within three to four months, maximum.

-OK.

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-So, who's going to do the work?

-Myself.

-Really?

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-Are you qualified in things or are you handy?

-Yeah.

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-Yeah, I'm an electrician.

-Oh, useful.

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Yeah, I like to do a bit of dabbling and joiner work and suchlike.

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I've got other members of family, and suchlike,

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and my wife's a very good painter.

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-And since these are very big rooms there's a lot of painting.

-Wow.

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Is that right, you're going to be...?

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-Yeah, I'll be doing a lot of painting.

-Right.

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And in terms of future projects, is this number one of many, or?

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I don't know, we'll see how we get on with this one. And...

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Maybe.

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Listen, congratulations. Good luck with it.

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-Look forward to seeing how you get on.

-Thank you very much.

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So, a few decisions yet to be taken by Tom and Leslie.

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And it's all going to come down to what

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they plan to do with the property in the end

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and whether there is demand for whatever that decision is.

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You can find out what happens later it in the show.

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Hounslow in west London is often seen as a cheaper alternative

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to its wealthy neighbours like Twickenham and Richmond.

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But it's also the home town of pop royalty, Phil Collins.

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And with property prices on the way up here, will today's lot

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be another day in paradise?

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Will we find great property against all odds?

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Let's take a look at me now!

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When a property is described as substantial,

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it's fairly safe to say you're going to have something pretty sizeable

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on your hands and this rather attractive semi

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certainly stands out. I mean look!

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That is an attractive house. It's got stained glass, little portico.

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Now the guide price was £440,000 and it's three floors.

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They're currently arranged as two flats. Will it be two for one

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or double the trouble? I'm going to head in and find out.

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Stepping into this hallway, I am delighted to say, so far so good

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and I've only got in the front door.

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But it really is quite lovely. I mean look at the stained glass,

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as I said. And there's character here because you've got these

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wonderful corbels. It starts off in this flat, goes through

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the ugly partition wall into the upper floor flat, the other side.

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And standing here, it's quite magnificent to see all of it.

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Really lovely ceiling. Bedroom down here, which is a great space.

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Nice doors in there. Really beautiful. It just feels light

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and airy, this property. Another bedroom here.

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Into a really spacious lounge. Not keen on these doors. Flat.

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Look, there's no panelling, no detailing. Really ugly.

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And talking of doors, look, you only need to look over here.

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Let's get rid of this ugly, corrugated...

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-SHE GRUNTS

-..plastic!

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Look at that!

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I mean, there's a whole set of them. Look, there and here. Wow.

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I'm not so sure about the conservatory out there,

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that could do with coming down and being replaced.

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You've got high ceilings, cornicing.

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Sadly, there's no ceiling rose, but there's a lot going on.

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My imagination's going a bit wild with this place.

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I really like it.

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# That's the way, uh-huh, uh-huh

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# I like it, uh-huh, uh-huh... #

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Oh, yes, and what's not like?

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Fantastic original features which, as you know, I love,

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beautifully detailed doors and plenty of space as well.

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From the lounge, you'll find a good-sized kitchen

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where the appliances might need updating, but the units...

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Well, they definitely do.

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And off the kitchen is a bathroom which will need upgrading as well.

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But everything is in the right place for renovation.

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The upstairs flat is across two floors.

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There's a handy box room

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and two fairly good size bedrooms with hand basins.

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But there's also a decent bathroom and the lounge...

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Well, it's pretty spacious, too.

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This house is lovely.

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The proportions up here are fantastic.

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What an amazing kitchen-diner.

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I could really imagine myself eating in here.

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You've got character, lovely fireplace, cornicing.

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What's this? Little cupboard...

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Oh, dear!

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That is a crack that goes all the way up there

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and all the way along there.

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That's something that whoever takes this property on

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needs to get checked out. They'd need to have a survey.

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Yeah, leaving that aside for the moment,

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there's one more flight of stairs and two more bedrooms.

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Again, there's some charming features.

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This upper flat is simply huge.

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And it seems like a lot of property for that guide price of 440,000.

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But will the outside be as good?

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Outside, bit disappointing, isn't it? Because this is the back garden.

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It's disappointing because, in the past, some of this garden

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was actually sold off by a previous owner for a development.

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Now, I've said it before and I will say it again,

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any outside space is a bonus in London, but what's not a bonus?

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Airplane noise!

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# Next plane to London Leaving on runway number five... #

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Being right in the flight path can really put some buyers off,

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but thankfully, the path does change during the day,

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giving you some much needed peace.

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But cleared for landing now is a local estate agent.

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What would he do with the property to get the best value out of it?

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I would try to keep the two flats on the ground floor

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and the first floor and try to introduce a third flat in the loft.

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If I was to create a flat on the second floor,

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I would try to get a planning permission for a two-bedroom flat

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with a dormer extension.

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Otherwise, we would like to keep it as a one-bedroom flat.

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The agent thinks there is potential for three flats.

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Now, what kind of sales figures could they achieved?

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Once this property has been refurbished,

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I would value it somewhere between £280,000 to £300,000

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for the ground floor two-bedroom flat

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and the first floor two-bedroom flat.

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And depending on the conversion upstairs,

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if it was a one-bedroom flat,

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I would value it somewhere between £180,000 and £200,000

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and a two-bedroom flat approximately £250,000.

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At those top valuations,

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you could be looking at £800,000 worth of property.

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But Hounslow is also a strong rental area

0:18:470:18:51

and the agent believes that, for all three flats,

0:18:510:18:54

you could achieve a top rental of £3,850 per calendar month.

0:18:540:18:58

Yes, there is work to be done here, but it's a big property

0:19:030:19:06

in a popular rental spot and, well, I think you'd be off your trolley

0:19:060:19:10

not to like this one...if you've got your earplugs with you, of course.

0:19:100:19:14

Did this property take off in the auction room? Time to find out.

0:19:140:19:19

A substantial building, this.

0:19:190:19:20

Details as you see them in your catalogues.

0:19:200:19:23

What shall we say for it?

0:19:230:19:24

It's got to be about 450 to start, I'm sure.

0:19:240:19:26

I am, thank you, 450 is here.

0:19:260:19:29

455, somebody?

0:19:290:19:30

455. 460. 465. 470?

0:19:300:19:34

470, 475, 480?

0:19:360:19:38

480, 485, 490?

0:19:390:19:43

495, 495, then with you on my right.

0:19:430:19:46

500 anywhere else?

0:19:460:19:48

500, he was stood first.

0:19:480:19:51

Bidding was locked between three potential buyers

0:19:510:19:54

who could not be separated.

0:19:540:19:57

We rejoin the bidding at £550,000.

0:19:570:20:01

£550,000 is here.

0:20:010:20:04

555, if you're quick.

0:20:040:20:06

Otherwise selling here at 550.

0:20:080:20:10

For the first.

0:20:100:20:11

550 for the second.

0:20:110:20:14

Third, final time - 555.

0:20:140:20:16

560. 565?

0:20:160:20:20

560, once, twice, third and final - 565.

0:20:200:20:24

570? 575.

0:20:240:20:26

570,000, once, twice.

0:20:260:20:29

Third... 575.

0:20:290:20:31

580? 580. 585?

0:20:310:20:34

580 here once, twice, third, final time.

0:20:340:20:39

Thank you. Now it is yours at £580,000. Well done.

0:20:390:20:43

Wait a minute. I know that face!

0:20:430:20:45

It's Daniel, who we last saw buying and renovating

0:20:450:20:49

a dangerously derelict property in West Ham.

0:20:490:20:52

And he had a little help from his friends.

0:20:520:20:55

# Rover, Rover, let me in

0:20:550:20:59

# You're my best friend. #

0:20:590:21:01

No pooches in sight today.

0:21:060:21:08

But Daniel might have something to get his teeth into here,

0:21:080:21:11

having paid £580,000 at auction.

0:21:110:21:14

-Daniel, it's wonderful to see you again.

-Nice to see you again, Lucy.

0:21:140:21:19

Was it three years ago I saw you?

0:21:190:21:21

It was three years ago that we did this same process

0:21:210:21:24

with a property I had an West Ham.

0:21:240:21:26

Since we last saw you, I've bought five properties

0:21:260:21:30

and what I've started doing is buy them in this area.

0:21:300:21:33

I'm from Hounslow, I live in Osterley and so it's better buying here,

0:21:330:21:37

keeping an eye on the properties.

0:21:370:21:39

Wow. Let's talk about the house

0:21:390:21:41

and let's talk about what you're going to do with this property.

0:21:410:21:44

The ground floor, we are going to put into a three-bedroom.

0:21:440:21:47

I'm going to put an extension out to the rear of the property.

0:21:470:21:50

OK, so you want an extra bedroom and an extension down here.

0:21:500:21:53

-And an extension.

-So let's go up to the next level,

0:21:530:21:55

which is currently a rather spacious one-bedroom flat.

0:21:550:21:59

On that one-bedroom, we hope to do interior movements to it

0:21:590:22:02

and we're going to put it into a two-bedroom apartment.

0:22:020:22:05

A separate apartment from the first floor.

0:22:050:22:08

To really shake it up, it's the interior, lovely bathroom.

0:22:080:22:12

I saw the possibility that we could look at the very top floor

0:22:120:22:17

and the potential is to put in a dormer to the rear of the property.

0:22:170:22:21

We would hope to put in planning for a two-bedroom lovely property

0:22:210:22:26

up there, lovely kitchen, looking out onto the...

0:22:260:22:28

lovely Hounslow, I suppose.

0:22:280:22:30

-So it's all looking lovely.

-It's all looking lovely.

0:22:300:22:33

We hope all that goes through.

0:22:330:22:35

# You are my lovely one... #

0:22:350:22:37

So three flats in Daniel's plans and if planning doesn't get in the way,

0:22:370:22:42

he thinks it will take six months and his budget is 100,000,

0:22:420:22:46

with a handy £20,000 contingency to top up.

0:22:460:22:50

So you are going big, big, big.

0:22:520:22:55

More space, more bedrooms, bigger, better, bigger, better.

0:22:550:22:58

After the impression you put on me after our last talk,

0:22:580:23:01

-that's the way to go.

-Don't go blaming me for that!

0:23:010:23:05

It's such a lovely house. You don't want to destroy it.

0:23:050:23:08

I want to give it character, a nice three-bedroom,

0:23:080:23:11

bring up the whole standard, new kitchens and so on.

0:23:110:23:13

I mean, you say give it character.

0:23:130:23:15

The one thing I do love about this property is, of course,

0:23:150:23:18

the beautiful sash windows. I love those back doors you've got.

0:23:180:23:21

But be really honest with me, come on.

0:23:210:23:23

Are you going to be keeping things like that?

0:23:230:23:25

What I want to do is put into this property.

0:23:250:23:27

It's not necessarily on saving money, it's putting character.

0:23:270:23:30

And I think we're pretty close to Richmond today,

0:23:300:23:33

hopefully we'll get a bit of Richmond factor over to Hounslow.

0:23:330:23:36

Daniel... Daniel, I love your positivity.

0:23:360:23:39

You're bringing the Richmond factor to Hounslow.

0:23:390:23:41

I'm thinking you're bringing the airplane factor to Hounslow,

0:23:410:23:45

because all I could hear for the first half-hour were

0:23:450:23:48

the airplanes landing almost here.

0:23:480:23:50

I've been living here for so many years and I don't notice them at all,

0:23:500:23:54

except I did have my mother over recently from Dublin

0:23:540:23:57

and she was up in the top room and about six o'clock in the morning,

0:23:570:24:01

she woke up screaming. She thought the plane was going to land.

0:24:010:24:04

Other than that, I never knew, never notice it myself.

0:24:040:24:07

What I love up there is that amazing kitchen-diner.

0:24:070:24:09

You've got a wonderful space up there.

0:24:090:24:12

But what I don't love is that humongous crack

0:24:120:24:14

that's in the corner of the room.

0:24:140:24:15

It literally looks like the wall is coming away.

0:24:150:24:17

What can you tell me about that?

0:24:170:24:19

At one stage, you might have had a little bit of movement.

0:24:190:24:22

Got the survey, looked at it myself, it's structurally...

0:24:220:24:26

there's no problem on it. It was just the far corner.

0:24:260:24:29

So it does have history of subsidence?

0:24:290:24:31

It does have a history of a slight bit of movement.

0:24:310:24:34

Subsidence!

0:24:340:24:35

-Slight bit of movement!

-Movement is subsidence!

-Yeah.

0:24:350:24:38

You said movement... You say to-MAH-to, I say to-MAY-to.

0:24:380:24:41

I say subsidence, you said movement! Put it there.

0:24:410:24:44

Listen, Daniel, it's been so brilliant meeting you.

0:24:440:24:47

I'm sure our paths will definitely cross.

0:24:470:24:50

Maybe in a few more years, who knows? But keep on buying.

0:24:500:24:52

I'll be really looking forward to coming back to seeing it.

0:24:520:24:55

Thank you very much. Thank you.

0:24:550:24:58

It's always lovely for me to see

0:24:580:25:00

old familiar faces who have been on the show before.

0:25:000:25:03

And Daniel has got lots of exciting plans for this place,

0:25:030:25:06

but I've got a sinking feeling the "movement",

0:25:060:25:09

as Daniel likes to call it, could be more than he bargained for.

0:25:090:25:13

Join me later on in the programme to see

0:25:130:25:15

if he does bring the Richmond factor to Hounslow.

0:25:150:25:18

Coming up, a bungalow with dizzying decor in Tipton.

0:25:200:25:24

Whoa!

0:25:240:25:25

-ECHOING:

-Whoo-hoo-hoo!

0:25:250:25:29

But in Hounslow,

0:25:310:25:33

has Daniel's quality of finish finished off his budget?

0:25:330:25:36

For the product to finish, you always find an extra bit of money.

0:25:360:25:40

We return to Glasgow now and to the north of the city

0:25:460:25:49

in the former industrial area of Springburn.

0:25:490:25:52

The property I was here to see was this beautiful sandstone flat.

0:25:520:25:56

Inside, huge rooms, high ceilings and delightful doors.

0:25:560:26:01

What could go wrong?

0:26:010:26:03

You might have noticed the one thing I haven't mentioned so far

0:26:040:26:08

is a kitchen.

0:26:080:26:09

That's because that's situated...there.

0:26:090:26:13

When the rest of the flat is so beautifully proportioned,

0:26:130:26:16

that just doesn't work. And the fact that I guess at the moment

0:26:160:26:20

it's situated off this bedroom...

0:26:200:26:22

it's a no, no.

0:26:220:26:24

# No, no, no, no, baby No, no, no, no, you gotta try... #

0:26:240:26:28

No, no-one wants a bedroom off the kitchen...

0:26:310:26:35

Or was it meant to be a dining room?

0:26:350:26:37

Well, the flat was described as a three-bedroom,

0:26:370:26:39

one of which was a good-sized double.

0:26:390:26:42

And one a rather narrow single.

0:26:420:26:44

So would it be better as a two-bed

0:26:440:26:46

and just forget about the en-suite kitchen?

0:26:460:26:49

One to mull over.

0:26:490:26:51

But while the kitchen configuration was bad,

0:26:510:26:54

there was worse to come.

0:26:540:26:56

The bathroom is just horrible.

0:26:560:26:58

It's thin, it's claustrophobic, it just doesn't work.

0:26:580:27:02

But something's got to be done.

0:27:020:27:04

Maybe putting the bathroom in one of the bedrooms, making it an en suite.

0:27:040:27:07

Maybe moving that kitchen into one of the bedrooms,

0:27:070:27:10

jiggling things around.

0:27:100:27:12

In principle, it's an amazing flat.

0:27:120:27:14

It just needs that little something to make it absolutely perfect.

0:27:140:27:17

And to make it a perfect pad were property apprentices

0:27:220:27:26

Leslie and Tom, who paid £63,000 at auction.

0:27:260:27:30

With a budget of £13,000 to £15,000

0:27:300:27:33

and a timescale of three to four months,

0:27:330:27:35

the couple weren't sure if they'd rent or sell the flat,

0:27:350:27:38

but they were sure that they could do all the work themselves.

0:27:380:27:42

-Are you qualified in things, or are you handy?

-I'm an electrician.

0:27:450:27:49

Oh, useful.

0:27:490:27:51

And, yeah, I like to do a bit of dabbling in joiner work and suchlike.

0:27:510:27:56

I've got other members of family in suchlike

0:27:560:27:59

and my wife's a very good painter.

0:27:590:28:01

And since these are very big rooms, there's a lot of painting.

0:28:010:28:05

So when we returned six months later,

0:28:060:28:09

had they turned a top floor flat into a top property?

0:28:090:28:13

I am really impressed with the changes to this flat.

0:28:390:28:42

And even though there are still some final touches to be added,

0:28:420:28:46

the transformation is terrific.

0:28:460:28:48

Unfortunately, Leslie couldn't come along to tell us

0:28:480:28:51

about this first project of theirs,

0:28:510:28:54

but how did Tom feel about it and what's been happening?

0:28:540:28:57

Glad to be nearly at the finish line.

0:28:590:29:01

We basically changed the layout.

0:29:010:29:04

The kitchen moved so it was in the small extension.

0:29:040:29:07

At the back, we decided to make that into an en suite

0:29:070:29:11

and make the dining room into a double bedroom.

0:29:110:29:17

The bedroom, dining room, whatever it was supposed to be

0:29:170:29:20

that had the kitchen off of it, did not work at all,

0:29:200:29:23

but it really does work as a good-sized double en-suite bedroom.

0:29:230:29:28

Also an en suite gives you some flexibility

0:29:280:29:31

if you're renting to sharers.

0:29:310:29:32

And the large pink double bedroom?

0:29:340:29:36

Well, it's still a good-sized double bedroom. It's just not pink.

0:29:360:29:40

And what about the narrow third bedroom?

0:29:400:29:44

Single bedroom we made into the kitchen.

0:29:440:29:48

We altered the bathroom slightly, just to make it a bit more spacious.

0:29:480:29:54

The space works much better as a galley kitchen.

0:29:540:29:57

Maybe even a little table could be fitted in there.

0:29:570:30:01

Anyway, it feels bright and modern,

0:30:010:30:03

while the narrow, claustrophobic bathroom

0:30:030:30:06

that I hated is now much better.

0:30:060:30:08

With a reconfiguration, it now feels spacious and very user-friendly.

0:30:080:30:13

The front living room, with this large bay window,

0:30:160:30:19

is just the cherry on the cake in this fantastic flat.

0:30:190:30:24

And they've done fantastically well with the budget, too,

0:30:240:30:27

coming in at just over £12,000.

0:30:270:30:30

Taking six months to complete due to other work commitments,

0:30:300:30:34

did Tom manage to spend a lot of his working time here?

0:30:340:30:37

We did do all of the work ourselves, apart from the plastering,

0:30:380:30:43

just between family and friends.

0:30:430:30:45

Pulled in a lot of favours.

0:30:450:30:47

Have the couple made up their minds if they'll rent or sell?

0:30:480:30:52

Obviously, because of the finish in the property,

0:30:530:30:56

I could be persuaded to move into it myself.

0:30:560:30:59

Before you start moving all your things in, Tom,

0:31:010:31:03

let's ask two local estate agents what they think of the flat,

0:31:030:31:07

starting with the agent who saw it the first time we visited.

0:31:070:31:11

Fab. What a difference. A real turnaround in the last few weeks.

0:31:130:31:18

I really like the idea of the en suite to the master bedroom,

0:31:180:31:22

cos that's not the norm for your traditional build, so a great idea.

0:31:220:31:26

That'll do them well.

0:31:260:31:28

First impressions of the property, very nice.

0:31:280:31:31

It's nice, bright, the rooms are big.

0:31:310:31:33

It's been configured very well.

0:31:330:31:36

Certainly a property I'd love to show my clients around.

0:31:360:31:38

Bought for £63,000 at the auction,

0:31:380:31:43

and costing £12,000 in renovation,

0:31:430:31:46

Tom and Leslie's total spend here is £75,000.

0:31:460:31:50

Time to find out which will be more profitable, renting or selling.

0:31:500:31:56

If this property was to go onto the market,

0:31:590:32:01

I reckon it would sell for £100,000.

0:32:010:32:04

If it was to be rented out,

0:32:040:32:06

I reckon they'd be looking to achieve £595 per calendar month.

0:32:060:32:10

This property would sell for in the region of £105,000,

0:32:100:32:16

or rental market, £650 per calendar month.

0:32:160:32:20

Taking the top retail estimate of £105,000,

0:32:220:32:27

Tom and Leslie could make a pre-tax profit of £30,000.

0:32:270:32:33

But a top rental of £650 per calendar month would give them

0:32:330:32:37

a healthy yield of 10.4%. Not bad.

0:32:370:32:41

So what does Tom make of the valuations?

0:32:410:32:45

It's roughly around about what I'd imagined.

0:32:460:32:50

I know there's a ceiling on these properties, so, yeah, seems OK.

0:32:500:32:54

I think he's slightly understating that. Better than OK, I'd say.

0:32:560:33:00

-Any other advice for newbies?

-Go for it.

0:33:000:33:03

Just go in with your eyes wide open and do as best as you can.

0:33:030:33:07

After watching the programme for years,

0:33:070:33:10

decided to move on to having wee go at it.

0:33:100:33:12

And we've done it.

0:33:120:33:14

Now, from a Scottish town that was at the hub

0:33:180:33:21

of the steam engine industry to one in the Midlands.

0:33:210:33:24

Situated between Birmingham and Wolverhampton,

0:33:240:33:27

Tipton was home to the world's first successful steam pumping engine.

0:33:270:33:32

The town is also home to one of the Black Country's

0:33:320:33:35

most striking buildings,

0:33:350:33:37

funded by Victorian philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.

0:33:370:33:41

The aptly named Carnegie Centre was the town's first library

0:33:410:33:45

and opened in 1906.

0:33:450:33:47

# How do I get to Carnegie Hall?

0:33:470:33:50

# How do I get to Carnegie Hall?

0:33:510:33:53

So, how do you get to Carnegie Hall?

0:33:530:33:55

Well, I think it's three miles, sort of, that way.

0:33:550:33:59

As opposed to the property I'm here to see,

0:33:590:34:01

which is about 20 yards that way.

0:34:010:34:04

It's a two-bedroom bungalow, guide price £39,000 to £44,000.

0:34:040:34:10

It sounds all right. Let's take a look.

0:34:100:34:13

Well, the front garden may need a little tidying up,

0:34:140:34:17

but there is, by the look of it, relatively new double glazing.

0:34:170:34:20

And a rare beast such as a bungalow,

0:34:200:34:23

for what was a guide price of £39,000 to £44,000.

0:34:230:34:27

# Too good to be true

0:34:270:34:29

# Too good to be true... #

0:34:310:34:33

I'm still thinking about that guide price.

0:34:350:34:38

Really, really low.

0:34:380:34:40

So, how bad can it be?

0:34:400:34:42

It looks all right. Well, dated, but...

0:34:420:34:45

Ah.

0:34:470:34:49

-Right.

-HE CHUCKLES

0:34:490:34:51

That's not good.

0:34:510:34:53

I'm treading very gingerly here,

0:34:530:34:55

but this floor looks like it wouldn't take a lot to actually...

0:34:550:35:01

Oh, my!

0:35:040:35:05

..fall through. That is bad. Oh, wow, look at that!

0:35:050:35:08

See those holes? That's wood worm.

0:35:080:35:11

Those little devils have been munching away merrily here,

0:35:110:35:14

haven't they? Look at that!

0:35:140:35:16

Wow. The floorboards have gone, the joists have gone...

0:35:160:35:20

I'm going to have to tread very carefully. How far have they spread?

0:35:200:35:24

It also feels really damp. Damp, wood worm...

0:35:240:35:28

This is a textbook of disaster, isn't it?

0:35:280:35:31

Now, OK. OK, so you've got a front bedroom there...

0:35:310:35:35

A living room there. More holes in the floor.

0:35:350:35:37

Those little blighters have been chomping their way

0:35:370:35:39

through the entire house. Kitchen...

0:35:390:35:42

OK, that's there.

0:35:420:35:44

HE LAUGHS

0:35:440:35:46

Bathroom.

0:35:460:35:48

I think that's pretty serviceable, I quite like that(!)

0:35:480:35:50

Yes, toilet. Mm-mmm, lovely(!)

0:35:500:35:52

And then through to... I guess this is your second bedroom.

0:35:520:35:56

Whoa!

0:35:560:35:58

-ECHOING:

-Whoo-hoo-hoo!

0:35:580:36:00

Love the wallpaper(!)

0:36:020:36:04

That is definitely psychedelic.

0:36:050:36:08

Looks like relatively new radiators.

0:36:080:36:10

Really bad plumbing. But apart from that...

0:36:100:36:14

I was going to say, "Apart from that, there's nothing else wrong."

0:36:140:36:17

Apart from the crack.

0:36:170:36:19

Let's just have a quick review.

0:36:190:36:20

Really bad wood worm.

0:36:200:36:22

Rotted it all the floorboards and the joists.

0:36:220:36:25

Damp. Large crack...

0:36:250:36:27

I get the guide price now.

0:36:270:36:30

# Now I get it

0:36:300:36:32

# Just switched on the light

0:36:320:36:34

# What I saw made me turn around in fright. #

0:36:340:36:38

Yep, this is a strip it all out

0:36:380:36:41

and start again job.

0:36:410:36:43

There's nothing worth keeping other than the walls and the windows,

0:36:430:36:47

and even the relatively new radiators will need checking out,

0:36:470:36:50

as will those cracks and damp.

0:36:500:36:54

I'd definitely want a full structural survey here

0:36:540:36:57

and then you might get a better understanding

0:36:570:36:59

of what you're taking on.

0:36:590:37:01

So, out of the door at the side of the property

0:37:040:37:07

and through this little lean-to,

0:37:070:37:09

which needs to be taken down before it falls down,

0:37:090:37:12

and you come to the back garden.

0:37:120:37:14

And what a pleasant surprise this is.

0:37:140:37:16

Now, it's terribly overgrown,

0:37:160:37:18

-but somewhere...

-HE CHUCKLES

0:37:180:37:21

..underneath here

0:37:210:37:22

is the makings of a really nice sized plot.

0:37:220:37:26

Garden here, bit of grass,

0:37:260:37:28

vegetables at the bottom,

0:37:280:37:30

it's lovely.

0:37:300:37:32

Actually, a real surprise and a huge bonus.

0:37:320:37:35

# Hallelujah!

0:37:350:37:37

# Hallelujah!

0:37:370:37:39

# Hallelujah, hallelujah

0:37:390:37:41

# Hallelujah! #

0:37:410:37:44

Phew! At last, something positive to shout about.

0:37:440:37:47

And, you know, despite the large amount of internal work,

0:37:470:37:49

this is a well situated bungalow on a good plot.

0:37:490:37:53

And those factors alone make this interesting.

0:37:530:37:56

So, what can an agent from the auctioneers who sold it

0:38:000:38:03

tell us about this property?

0:38:030:38:05

The bungalow's situated in a mainly residential area.

0:38:080:38:12

It's got good communication routes,

0:38:120:38:15

M5 and M6 are within close proximity,

0:38:150:38:19

and it's got excellent bus routes to Wolverhampton,

0:38:190:38:22

West Bromwich and other little local towns in the area.

0:38:220:38:26

Nothing wrong with its position

0:38:260:38:28

but clearly there's plenty wrong with the bungalow.

0:38:280:38:31

So, what kind of outlay might we be looking at to make it

0:38:310:38:34

right for the local market?

0:38:340:38:36

To get the property back up to standard,

0:38:360:38:38

I think it would depend really

0:38:380:38:40

on who was intending to buy it and do it up.

0:38:400:38:43

I think if you were going to employ somebody to do it for you,

0:38:430:38:48

then you're probably going to spend something in the region of

0:38:480:38:52

£15,000, £16,000.

0:38:520:38:54

If you were a small builder who bought it as a development project,

0:38:540:38:58

then probably £9,000 or £10,000.

0:38:580:39:01

OK, so as one would expect,

0:39:010:39:03

a reasonable amount needs to be spent here.

0:39:030:39:06

But this property was guided at £39,000 to £44,000,

0:39:060:39:10

so could it still be a good investment

0:39:100:39:12

on the rental or resale market?

0:39:120:39:15

Depending on how they finish it off,

0:39:150:39:18

I mean, if it's finished off to a reasonable standard,

0:39:180:39:20

then I would imagine that on the open market

0:39:200:39:23

the property would realise something in the region of

0:39:230:39:27

£90,000 to £100,000.

0:39:270:39:29

If after they've finished modernising the property

0:39:290:39:32

they decide to rent the property out,

0:39:320:39:35

then I would imagine a rental in the region of

0:39:350:39:38

£450 to £500 per calendar month, would be appropriate.

0:39:380:39:43

Well, on the face of it, it is a very attractive guide price

0:39:470:39:50

but when you step inside and see the amount of work that needs

0:39:500:39:53

to be done, well, that definitely needs to be factored in.

0:39:530:39:56

Is it still a good buy? You need to do your numbers.

0:39:560:39:59

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

0:39:590:40:02

Lot 22, our next lot,

0:40:080:40:10

is two bedroomed,

0:40:100:40:11

freehold

0:40:110:40:13

bungalow.

0:40:130:40:15

Where are we going to start? 50,000, am I bid?

0:40:150:40:17

At 50. What a buy this will be, sir, and thank you.

0:40:170:40:20

At 50,000, I have that on my right.

0:40:200:40:22

Is it 60 now? Is that 60, sir?

0:40:220:40:24

You're 55, sir. Are you 60 at the back, sir?

0:40:240:40:27

Thank you, at 60.

0:40:270:40:29

Do you want 65 on the aisle?

0:40:290:40:31

No? New bid at 65, thank you.

0:40:310:40:34

Is it 70 now?

0:40:340:40:35

At 65,000, do I have 70 anywhere?

0:40:350:40:38

66. Tell him if it's ones on the phone, it's got to be quick.

0:40:390:40:42

66, is it 67?

0:40:420:40:44

67, 68?

0:40:460:40:48

I'm going to sell.

0:40:480:40:49

68, 69, sir?

0:40:490:40:51

70, is it?

0:40:510:40:53

Selling at 69.

0:40:530:40:54

70, 71?

0:40:560:40:57

71, is it 72?

0:40:570:41:00

No. Could be the killer blow then.

0:41:000:41:02

Let me see your number.

0:41:020:41:03

Number 495 on sale

0:41:030:41:06

at 71,000,

0:41:060:41:08

one, two,

0:41:080:41:10

three. You've done it, sir.

0:41:100:41:13

The last bid and your only bid has done it.

0:41:130:41:15

£71,000.

0:41:150:41:17

And so with that single bid of £71,000,

0:41:170:41:21

the two bed Tipton bungalow was bought by Muhammed.

0:41:210:41:24

Muhammed works as a machine operator

0:41:260:41:29

and this is going to be a joint project with his cousin Assad.

0:41:290:41:33

I met them both back at the property to find out more.

0:41:330:41:36

-Assad, Muhammed, nice to meet you both.

-Nice to meet you.

0:41:370:41:40

-Nice to meet you, too.

-Congratulations.

-Thanks.

0:41:400:41:43

Tell me why you wanted to buy this bungalow.

0:41:430:41:46

Basically, it's for investment.

0:41:460:41:48

It's a nice location, large garden as well.

0:41:480:41:52

And how does it work between the two of you?

0:41:520:41:54

He's a plumber,

0:41:540:41:56

he knows how building works...

0:41:560:41:58

-Handyman, you can say.

-Right, good.

0:41:580:42:01

So, your job is going to be sorting this place out?

0:42:010:42:03

-My job, yes.

-So, did you see it before you bought it?

-Yes.

0:42:030:42:06

Yeah, and what did you think?

0:42:060:42:08

Actually it will need everything new,

0:42:080:42:10

new plaster, new floors,

0:42:100:42:13

rewiring, new kitchen,

0:42:130:42:15

new bathroom, new doors, like everything.

0:42:150:42:18

You will see much difference when you come back after a couple of weeks.

0:42:180:42:22

Good. A couple of weeks?!

0:42:220:42:23

-Yeah.

-Six to eight weeks...

0:42:230:42:25

Six to eight weeks, OK.

0:42:250:42:27

And how much will the work cost, do you think?

0:42:270:42:29

-About...

-Over 10,000.

0:42:290:42:31

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Is that with you doing a lot of the work yourself?

0:42:310:42:34

-Then we can save some labour money.

-Yeah.

-You know.

0:42:340:42:37

Well, you have to admire their confidence

0:42:370:42:40

but this is as comprehensive an internal refurbishment

0:42:400:42:43

as you're likely to get.

0:42:430:42:44

I hope they haven't bitten off more than they can chew.

0:42:440:42:48

The idea is then to sell it on or to rent it out?

0:42:480:42:51

What will make you decide?

0:42:510:42:53

-He's going to make decisions.

-Is he? OK.

0:42:530:42:55

We'll try to sell first.

0:42:550:42:57

If we can't sell in two months,

0:42:570:42:59

then we'll try to rent it out.

0:42:590:43:01

And is this the sort of thing you do a lot?

0:43:010:43:03

Have you done this kind of thing before?

0:43:030:43:05

-This is first experience...

-First experience? Wow.

0:43:050:43:07

But you've got experience in...

0:43:070:43:09

I've been working the last 12 years, you know, building work.

0:43:090:43:12

But in property, own property,

0:43:120:43:14

-the first experience.

-Right.

0:43:140:43:16

-I bought up my commercial shop as well, with three-bedroom flat.

-OK.

0:43:160:43:21

It was repossessed and he done everything inside.

0:43:210:43:24

-Did he do a good job?

-Yeah, yeah.

0:43:240:43:26

-Well, listen, congratulations.

-Thanks.

0:43:260:43:28

Good luck with it and we look forward to seeing how you get on.

0:43:280:43:31

Well, Muhammed and Assad don't seem too fazed by the challenge ahead.

0:43:340:43:38

£10,000 budget though,

0:43:380:43:40

if you were getting somebody in to do the work,

0:43:400:43:42

I don't think you could do it for that,

0:43:420:43:44

but as they are doing a lot of the work themselves,

0:43:440:43:47

fingers crossed they'll do it on time

0:43:470:43:49

and, of course, within that budget.

0:43:490:43:51

You can find out how it all turns out later in the show.

0:43:510:43:55

Well, we've checked out one property,

0:43:580:44:00

what about the other two, Lucy?

0:44:000:44:02

I'm sure there'll have been some unexpected surprises, Martin.

0:44:020:44:05

Let's find out.

0:44:050:44:07

# London, quieten down

0:44:070:44:10

# I need to make a sound. #

0:44:100:44:12

Back to Hounslow now in south-west London.

0:44:120:44:16

Musicians Phil Collins and MIA cal this home,

0:44:160:44:20

but the regular soundtrack is aeroplanes,

0:44:200:44:22

as it's right on the flight path of Heathrow.

0:44:220:44:24

Earlier, I was reaching for the sky myself in this three-storey,

0:44:270:44:31

two flat property.

0:44:310:44:33

Guided at 440,000,

0:44:330:44:35

it was full of character and features.

0:44:350:44:38

Look at that, I mean, that... There's a whole set of them.

0:44:400:44:43

Look, there and here.

0:44:430:44:46

You've got high ceilings, cornicing,

0:44:460:44:48

my imagination's going a bit wild with this place.

0:44:480:44:51

I really like it.

0:44:510:44:53

And the person who also liked it enough to buy was Daniel.

0:44:540:44:58

We were old friends as he'd been on the show before.

0:44:580:45:02

Daniel, it's wonderful to see you again.

0:45:020:45:04

Nice to see you again, Lucy.

0:45:040:45:06

Was it three years ago I saw you?

0:45:060:45:08

It was three years ago that we did this.

0:45:080:45:10

What I've started doing is buy them in this area.

0:45:100:45:13

-I'm buying here, keeping an eye on the properties.

-Wow.

0:45:130:45:16

Daniel paid £580,000 at auction

0:45:160:45:18

and planned to use his property know-how

0:45:180:45:21

to turn this from two flats to three flats,

0:45:210:45:24

one three-bed

0:45:240:45:25

and then two two-beds on the first and second floor.

0:45:250:45:28

So, nine months later,

0:45:280:45:30

has everything gone to plan?

0:45:300:45:32

Well, I think this is a wonderful transformation

0:45:470:45:50

and the only compromise Daniel has had to make with the planning

0:45:500:45:53

is the ground-floor flat is a two-bedroom flat

0:45:530:45:56

and not a three, as he'd hoped.

0:45:560:45:59

But despite that, he's created three lovely flats

0:45:590:46:02

and there is so much to see here.

0:46:020:46:05

So I'm glad Daniel has come along to talk us through it.

0:46:050:46:08

This is flat number one.

0:46:080:46:10

We went and we extended the bedroom here and made a larger bedroom.

0:46:100:46:14

And the kitchen here, we put new fittings

0:46:140:46:18

and new windows in the kitchen.

0:46:180:46:22

The bathroom, as you see, it's all new fittings here.

0:46:220:46:26

And this was an extension to the house.

0:46:260:46:28

I went and got new windows, lovely tiles, and it's a lovely

0:46:280:46:34

breakfast area for the people in the flat,

0:46:340:46:36

going straight out to the garden.

0:46:360:46:39

I'm very pleased with the end, in here.

0:46:390:46:41

We went and we found these tiles. You can see, they look like originals.

0:46:410:46:46

We got it here, and we put it into the hallway as well.

0:46:460:46:51

I am disappointed those beautiful sash doors have gone,

0:46:510:46:55

but that was due to the cost of fixing or replacing them.

0:46:550:46:58

Daniel has followed through on his promise to add character with

0:46:580:47:02

these tiles. The first-floor flat has a lovely, open-plan living area.

0:47:020:47:08

The original two bedrooms have been spruced up,

0:47:080:47:11

while there is a glamorous-looking bathroom in this flat as well.

0:47:110:47:14

And the cracks in the wall were, thankfully,

0:47:140:47:17

not a sign of anything too sinister

0:47:170:47:19

and were expertly dealt with by Daniel's building team.

0:47:190:47:23

So, one more flat to go.

0:47:230:47:25

This is the top-floor apartment.

0:47:290:47:31

As you can see, we have built this large dormer into the roof.

0:47:310:47:36

We have succeeded in making a lovely two-bedroom apartment,

0:47:360:47:40

and this is the living-kitchen area, of the two-bedroom.

0:47:400:47:45

As you can see, it's a lovely finish.

0:47:450:47:48

By extending and adding the dormer, I think

0:47:500:47:53

he will have added real value.

0:47:530:47:55

But, in doing so, did he overshoot his budget,

0:47:550:47:58

which was 100,000?

0:47:580:47:59

And let's not forget, he had a £20,000 contingency.

0:47:590:48:03

We went into that contingency.

0:48:030:48:06

It was 110,000 and 20,000 of costs, interest, solicitors' costs.

0:48:060:48:11

We went and extended out into the roof.

0:48:110:48:14

That probably took the extra bit of time and it took my extra funds,

0:48:140:48:19

so I don't feel it's, for the product, the finish,

0:48:190:48:22

you always find an extra bit of money.

0:48:220:48:24

Daniel went over budget, spending 130,000,

0:48:270:48:30

and he went over his timescale by three months.

0:48:300:48:33

He wants to sell all three flats, and the only way to know

0:48:330:48:36

if he will make a profit is by asking two local estate agents.

0:48:360:48:40

But first, let's find out which one of the three flats is

0:48:400:48:43

best in the experts' opinion.

0:48:430:48:45

The prime flat would be the one with the garden.

0:48:490:48:52

It's always going to be the premium one, because

0:48:520:48:54

if you've got friends, family around, you can have barbecues.

0:48:540:48:57

The disadvantage that the first floor and the second floor have

0:48:570:49:01

is that they haven't got access to the garden.

0:49:010:49:03

Luxury living throughout.

0:49:030:49:05

I mean, the chap that's finished these properties has done it

0:49:050:49:08

to a really good standard throughout the whole property.

0:49:080:49:11

130,000 to renovate, 580 grand at auction,

0:49:110:49:15

that makes Daniel's total spend £710,000.

0:49:150:49:19

So, what is each flat worth? Will he make a profit?

0:49:190:49:23

The ground floor flat comes as a premium,

0:49:260:49:29

because it has a garden, etc, and slightly larger living

0:49:290:49:32

accommodation, so you'd be looking at a premium price of £360,000.

0:49:320:49:36

The first and second floor flats, they are about the same sort of size

0:49:360:49:40

and level, so I would say you're looking at around £350,000.

0:49:400:49:44

I would value the flats at £360,000.

0:49:440:49:46

The first and second floor flats I would value at £350,000.

0:49:460:49:51

Well, that doesn't happen very often. The agents both agree

0:49:520:49:56

on the figures!

0:49:560:49:58

So, a total value for all three flats of £1.06 million.

0:49:580:50:03

Daniel's pre-tax profit could be £350,000.

0:50:030:50:08

Oh, my gosh! I'm shocked at that. It's way above...

0:50:120:50:15

If I got those sort of offers, I would take it, straight away.

0:50:150:50:19

A potentially poochy, oh, I mean peachy result for dog-mad Daniel.

0:50:200:50:25

He has recently had some additions to his household.

0:50:250:50:28

# And they call it puppy love... #

0:50:300:50:35

Since I last met you, I had a lovely Bichon, and they had two pups.

0:50:350:50:42

I hope you don't mind, but one of them is called Lucy, after yourself!

0:50:420:50:46

Lovely character, bossy, tells the other dogs what to do.

0:50:460:50:51

I'm not saying it's anything associated, but...

0:50:510:50:55

Lovely, as you, you see.

0:50:550:50:57

Oh, you absolute flatterer, you!

0:50:570:50:59

But of course, my bark is worse than my bite. Ruff!

0:50:590:51:03

Back to Tipton now, where I went to see a two-bed bungalow

0:51:090:51:13

guided at an astonishingly low £39,000 to £44,000.

0:51:130:51:19

The outside looked a little tatty, but I thought...

0:51:190:51:23

How bad can it be?

0:51:230:51:25

Well, apparently, THAT bad.

0:51:250:51:28

Those holes, that's woodworm.

0:51:280:51:30

Those little devils have been munching away merrily here,

0:51:300:51:34

haven't they? Look at that.

0:51:340:51:35

Damp, woodworm, this is a textbook disaster, isn't it?

0:51:350:51:39

HE LAUGHS

0:51:390:51:41

And it didn't stop there because, in addition to the woodworm,

0:51:410:51:45

there was no toilet.

0:51:450:51:48

A kitchen about which, well, the less said the better,

0:51:480:51:51

and some very interesting wallpaper.

0:51:510:51:53

But at least the psychedelic pattern hid the cracks in the wall.

0:51:530:51:58

Stepping up to the challenge, though, were cousins Muhammed

0:52:020:52:05

and Assad, who paid £71,000 for it.

0:52:050:52:09

Assad is a builder, thank goodness, because this is no job for novices.

0:52:090:52:14

But this was to be the cousins' first project together.

0:52:140:52:18

And what a doozy!

0:52:180:52:19

# Yeah, yeah

0:52:190:52:21

# Do you remember the first time?

0:52:220:52:25

# I can't remember a worse time... #

0:52:250:52:28

Actually needing everything new.

0:52:280:52:29

New plaster, new floors, rewiring, new kitchen, new bathroom, new doors.

0:52:290:52:35

Like, everything.

0:52:350:52:38

You will see much difference when you come back after a couple of weeks.

0:52:380:52:42

-Good! A couple of weeks?

-Six to eight weeks.

-Six to eight weeks, OK.

0:52:420:52:46

Three months later, we've returned to see

0:52:460:52:49

if this bungalow has been brought back from the brink.

0:52:490:52:53

What a transformation!

0:53:230:53:25

I especially like the most welcome feature -

0:53:250:53:28

flooring you can actually stand on without falling through.

0:53:280:53:32

Muhammed and Assad certainly had challenges with this first

0:53:360:53:39

project together. The woodworm being the most worrying.

0:53:390:53:43

So, how did they get on?

0:53:430:53:45

The floor was quite damaged, you know.

0:53:450:53:48

It took time to replace all of it.

0:53:480:53:50

We changed the joists, floorboards, skirting board.

0:53:500:53:55

But there was even more work to be done.

0:53:550:53:59

We put in new electrics throughout,

0:54:000:54:03

and central heating, new floors, new doors, a new kitchen, new bathroom.

0:54:030:54:09

Outside we are completing the back garden.

0:54:090:54:11

We created a new room in the loft.

0:54:110:54:14

It was a lot of work.

0:54:140:54:16

Flooring the loft creates valuable storage space

0:54:160:54:20

which, in a bungalow especially, makes a lot of sense,

0:54:200:54:23

since you're often slightly tight on storage.

0:54:230:54:26

And I'm willing to venture it will add a bit of value, too.

0:54:260:54:29

As we all know on Homes Under The Hammer,

0:54:290:54:31

bathrooms and kitchens are really important in the property market

0:54:310:54:34

and generally, what you spend on those,

0:54:340:54:36

you'll get back in returns on your investment.

0:54:360:54:39

And Muhammed and Assad have done a great job on both these rooms.

0:54:390:54:43

Yeah, basically, there was a bath here. We moved the bath, yeah?

0:54:430:54:48

There was the window on that side.

0:54:480:54:50

We moved the window this side and put the shower on that side.

0:54:500:54:53

There was toilet here,

0:54:530:54:55

so we moved toilet from this side to that side and we put the sink here.

0:54:550:55:00

The sink was here, it was so tight, this side.

0:55:000:55:04

We put new tiles as well, and basically it looks more special

0:55:040:55:08

and nice now, it has more room now.

0:55:080:55:10

And new radiator as well.

0:55:100:55:12

All this took three months,

0:55:130:55:15

a bit over their original six to eight week timescale.

0:55:150:55:18

Have they similarly gone over their budget?

0:55:180:55:21

Our original budget was 10,000.

0:55:230:55:26

It's nearly 15,000 now, it's just for material.

0:55:260:55:30

We didn't include the labour.

0:55:300:55:32

We are over 5,000, but we are happy with it.

0:55:320:55:35

We have done a great job, you know? Everything's new now.

0:55:350:55:38

So that's, like, it's a little more.

0:55:380:55:41

It's time for two local estate agents to have a look

0:55:410:55:44

and tell us what they think of this investment project.

0:55:440:55:48

Will this first joint venture be a profitable one?

0:55:480:55:52

First, the agent from the auction house who sold it,

0:55:520:55:55

and he remembers it well.

0:55:550:55:58

Having seen it before they bought it, to what it's like now,

0:55:580:56:02

I think they've done exceptionally well.

0:56:020:56:05

They've turned it into a residence that would be fit for anybody.

0:56:050:56:11

From the perspective of selling it, the benefits, primarily,

0:56:110:56:15

are that it would suit elderly people as well as first-time purchasers,

0:56:150:56:20

so you've got a bigger marketplace to aim at.

0:56:200:56:23

These properties do lack little bit of storage,

0:56:230:56:26

so doing the attic and putting a proper ladder in also helps.

0:56:260:56:30

They intend to sell the property on, so what do the agents think

0:56:300:56:34

the cousins' £86,000 investment could make for them?

0:56:340:56:38

Bearing in mind the agent who visited first time thought

0:56:380:56:42

a refurbished two-bed bungalow would make £90,000 to £100,000?

0:56:420:56:47

So, have they managed to beat this figure?

0:56:470:56:50

I think, on the open market, this property is worth £125,000.

0:56:500:56:55

On the open market, I would expect the property to achieve

0:56:550:56:59

something in the region of £120,000 to £125,000.

0:56:590:57:04

I think the change in price is that they have made a good job of it.

0:57:040:57:08

When I first came round, it really wasn't very good at all.

0:57:080:57:12

But they've done a really nice job.

0:57:120:57:14

Muhammed and Assad's hard work has paid off

0:57:150:57:18

and that top valuation of 125,000 could mean their hard work has

0:57:180:57:24

paid off to the tune of a pre-tax profit of £39,000.

0:57:240:57:31

That's good!

0:57:310:57:33

That's a good feeling.

0:57:330:57:35

That's over 10,000 we are looking. Got to change that price!

0:57:350:57:39

As first projects go, I would say this has been a very successful one

0:57:400:57:45

for the guys, but most importantly, have they enjoyed it?

0:57:450:57:49

It has been, yeah. Having fun, the full day, having tea, you know?

0:57:500:57:56

It's been a lot of fun, yeah. I like this. It's been a pleasure.

0:57:560:58:00

Well, that's it for today's show, but we'll have more bungalows,

0:58:030:58:07

houses, semis, whatever for you next time,

0:58:070:58:10

here on Homes Under The Hammer.

0:58:100:58:12

-We'll look forward to seeing you, then.

-Goodbye for now.

-Goodbye.

0:58:120:58:16

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