Episode 24 Homes Under the Hammer

Hello. From young families making a start to retirees making a new start,

all kinds of people getting into property.

No matter who you are, you've got to make sure with your investment

-that every single penny works for you.

-Yes.

So how do you ensure you're going to get the best possible deal?

Well, one way might be to head down to your local property auction.

The property market can give great returns,

but you've got to make sure you buy wisely.

So is that what today's buyers managed to do?

Well, let's find out what they bought.

First up in Folkestone, Kent, a staircase has me dreaming.

I could imagine myself wafting down the stairs

on a lovely evening, champagne in hand.

Whilst in Leytonstone, there's a few steps too many for me.

HE PANTS

That is a lot of stairs.

And in Fenton, Stoke-on-Trent, I could do with a stepladder

to spot the problem here.

My guess is it might be the roof! Uh!

Unfortunately I can't quite see it.

All these properties have been sold at auction.

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

when they went under the hammer.

Sold, 295.

This is Folkestone in Kent. In the Edwardian era, Folkestone was

a fashionable seaside resort, attracting royalty

and members of high society to its hotels and seafront.

These days the resort attracts a different kind of clientele.

Londoners and others drawn by the comparatively reasonable

house prices and the under one hour commute by train into the capital.

We're just a short five-minute walk from Folkestone town centre

on this lovely residential street.

And the property I'm here to see, well,

it's a rather nice-looking period, five-bedroomed semidetached house,

and it went to auction with a guide price

of £200-£205,000.

Looks beautiful from here. I'm going to go in.

Well, isn't it lovely to see a house like this left intact that

hasn't been divided into flats? What a beautiful hallway.

Wow!

Fantastic reception room, big, lovely windows, high ceilings.

I'm not sure about this little rail here.

There must have been a curtain or something going across there.

But this is spectacular.

Oh! And the staircase.

I could imagine myself wafting down the stairs on a lovely evening,

champagne in hand. Anyway, less of that.

But that is absolutely stunning.

And this really is a corking family home. Look at it.

You've got cornicing, no ceiling rose. But a great space.

A wonderful fireplace. Look at this.

Really exciting, there is so much you could do in here.

And it just has a fantastic feeling of a family house.

Be interesting to see what comes of this one.

# It's a big ol' empty house

# Where there used to be a home... #

On the ground floor, you also get a large kitchen and a cellar.

This property offers so much square footage,

it really is a spacious family home.

And that lovely staircase just keeps on going up two floors,

with five bedrooms in total.

So up on the first floor you've got three bedrooms,

one at the back there, with a shower room and a bathroom.

Also on this first floor, at the front of the house,

there are two more bedrooms,

the larger of which comes complete with en suite facilities.

But there's a musty smell on the landing

and I think I've tracked down the source.

You only need to look at this wall. You can see from the top down,

there are signs of damp.

And down here, the skirting board, look - signs of dry rot.

So the floorboards and the joist could also be affected.

Now, it could be caused by poor guttering,

possibly the bricks need repointing, but whatever the reason,

it needs to be sorted - and sorted fast.

The rest of the house appears to be in pretty good condition.

The remaining two bedrooms are right at the top of the house,

up in the eaves.

Head height is a little bit restricted in places up there,

but I think the rooms are large enough to compensate.

However, I've spotted the view out back, which isn't exactly in

keeping with a period property like this.

I've been saying this is a lovely family home,

but parking is on the street, and it is not great.

It is quite busy out there, and this garden, well, it is not huge, is it?

You've also got this enormous office block looming over you like...

like a big bronze mirror.

A real shame.

The garden is smaller than you would expect for a house of this size,

and the lack of parking, well, it may discourage the family market

but it may not matter to commuters, so perhaps dividing

the property into flats, well, that could be the answer.

Though you might make more money selling or renting several flats.

But remember, first off, you're going

to need planning permission. Secondly, there are far

greater costs involved compared to just refurbishing what's here.

You've got to have those extra kitchens, those extra bathrooms,

boilers, you've got sound and fire proofing to install and so on.

So you've got to weigh up the costs versus the potential profit,

and work out what really is the best option.

We called in a local estate agent to find out what the property is

worth either whole or divided into flats.

Ideally, this is a big family home,

five-bedroomed family home with numerous bathrooms and facilities.

Lovely for that.

But there isn't a lot of demand also for this sort of size of house,

the size of family, without parking.

It is only on-street parking.

So one would have to look at the options of converting it into flats.

Perhaps even a house of multiple occupation,

but there are limitations in Folkestone for that.

As I feared, this lovely, big old house could be split up to

create multiple plots or even rent rooms out individually.

However, an HMO doesn't sound likely,

so how could flats be laid out?

We'd obviously have the downstairs, which could be a large one-bed,

possibly a two-bed, kitchen-bathroom.

On the mezzanine floor, you've got a self-contained one-bedroom unit

and then on the upper floors,

possibly two more two-bedroomed flats.

So one would need to work out positions for kitchens

and bathrooms to be able to work out whether that would fit.

The question is, to keep intact or divide and conquer?

Which gives the best return on the investment?

If this house was refurbished to a nice standard, it would

be worth in the region of £240,000.

And subject to plans and planning, what about the great divide?

That would achieve the highest return for the owner,

and I still think you would achieve in the region of £270-£280,000.

But with a guide price of 200 to 205,000,

that doesn't leave a great deal of room to fix the damp,

manoeuvre through planning permission

and install all those bathrooms and kitchens.

I've got a soft spot for this house, I really do love it.

But will it stay as one lovely big family home or will it be

carved up and subdivided into flats?

Well, the decision is down to who bought it.

Let's head to auction and find out who bid for this one.

We move now to lot 99.

It is a five-bedroomed semidetached house,

potential to convert to flats.

That would, of course, be subject to all the necessary consent.

Got a guide of 200, 205. Start me at 200.

190, then.

Or 180. 180. 180, I have, thank you very much.

£180,000, I'm bid. 182, do I see?

182. 185...

After a sluggish start,

bids climb back up near the bottom end of the guide price band.

We rejoin the bidding at 196,000.

And four is bid. And 196.

And 198. And 200.

At £200,000, I have.

202, do I see?

At £200,000, then, for the first time,

gentleman in the check shirt, at 200,000.

For the second time at 200,000.

For the third and final time at 200,000, then,

are you all done?

Sold at 200,000.

Thank you very much indeed.

Partners Leslie and Nigel had the successful bid of 200,000,

right at the bottom end of the guide price range.

Nigel runs a building company and employs Leslie and Ashley,

his property buyer.

Back at the house, I met up with Leslie

and Ashley to discuss the plans.

Leslie and Ashley, lovely to meet you both today. Congratulations.

Now, what was your involvement with this house prior to the auction?

Well, I didn't do too much before the auction.

Ashley did it with my partner, so they selected it.

And I just bought it.

So, Ashley, what is your involvement with this project?

Well, I'm a construction buyer, so I'm looking at these places

and thinking how much we can spend

and get some bargains to do these places up.

But this particular house was one of about six that we looked at

in the area that were in the auction.

It came up first, so...

-we kind of had to go with it.

-And you got it.

-Yeah, we got it, yeah.

-So what are you going to do with it?!

-OK, well...

-Are you going to keep it as a house or is it going to be flats?!

-Well, I think we will probably keep it as a house.

-Yes! Really?

I'm not sure that if you spent all that money, got the planning,

all that sort of stuff you'd have to go through,

-whether it is worth the extra.

-Who is going to be here? Your partner?

-Yes.

He is champing at the bit to get going, actually.

-Is he really?

-Yeah, yeah. He wants to be in here today.

He is going to be here tomorrow.

Let's start off by talking about the damp you've got here.

That's...that's the biggest problem, the damp.

I don't think... Structurally, I think it is fine apart from that.

It is a sturdy house, definitely.

It is just redecoration and

kitchen and bathrooms.

-Basically.

-And how much do you think the damp is going to put you back,

or cost you?

Um. Well, we've barely scratched the surface of it at the moment,

we don't know where it is coming from. You know, there's a fair idea,

it is probably the gutters and the tiles hanging on the side. It is probably a problem with that.

But I wouldn't expect it to set us back too much, really.

How much involvement are you going to have in this, because

-obviously you're going to be heavily involved in this building?

-I'm designing the kitchen.

SHE LAUGHS

And, yeah, I'll say what colours and stuff like that.

Any changes upstairs at all?

So, on the first floor, there are two bathrooms which we are going

to make into one bathroom and increase the size of the bedroom.

And then...on the top floor,

we're going to add a bathroom.

At the moment there's just two bedrooms, and...

The main bedroom on the first floor has a shower room,

so we'll keep that. So the two bedrooms on the first floor,

they will be serviced by the one bigger bathroom.

OK.

They haven't yet decided whether to rent this one or to sell it on,

but they've given themselves a timescale of two to three months

to complete all the renovations.

So obviously you hold the purse strings.

What sort of budget are you looking at with this house?

It's got to be under about four...under about 50,000.

Oh, you nearly said 40, then you went up a whole 10,000.

Well, yes. 40 to 50,000, I think, because if I was to move in,

I would be spending more, like, 100,000 on it.

-But, you know, got to be realistic.

-We've got to pitch it right

so that we're not overspending on the kitchen.

But we want prospective buyers to walk in and say, "Wow."

Um...because the kitchen is going to sell the place in a house like this.

So this really is ready to go for you guys.

We'll probably get the guys in here tomorrow,

carpets will be away, the kitchen will be away.

We'll see what space we've got for the kitchen and then we'll crack on.

Look, congratulations, and I'm glad you did so well at auction day.

-I can't wait to see your kitchen.

-Yes.

And I'm hoping this will be a quick turnaround for you guys,

and it will be interesting to see what it turns out like.

-OK.

-Lovely to meet both of you.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much, take care.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

I am secretly glad that Leslie and Ashley are keeping

this as one large family home rather than dividing it into flats.

I think it will make such a lovely house for somebody.

But will that kitchen have a wow factor and still be on budget?

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

Leytonstone, East London

underwent a bit of a face-lift before the 2012 Olympic Games.

It is a desirable, up-and-coming area with plenty of shops, amenities

and good transport links and I am on the trail of a property today.

Yes, it is off a busy main road

but it is very, very close to the local amenities.

It is a two-bed second-floor flat with a guide price of £175,000.

Plus, now, if it is on the second floor, it is up there.

Let's have a look.

If you are considering buying a flat up steep or narrow stairs,

it is always worth forewarning tradesmen and furniture removal

companies in advance so there are no surprises when they get there.

All I can say is, I've got to get back in that gym.

That is a lot of stairs to a flat.

I'm not really breathing that heavy

but when you are carrying things, it might be a little bit too much.

Anyway, what do we have? Hallway here.

Back bedroom there, single bedroom,

just at the back of the property here.

Nice-sized bathroom in there, get that tidied up a little bit,

just renew that.

And the main bedroom through there which looks to be a decent size.

I'll investigate that further. Into this big area here.

Dining room, lounge, all-in-one here.

Now, what is screaming out at me is... Oh, hold it a minute.

Lime-green microwave. Make sure you get that option to keep

if you want ,but I wouldn't.

But what is screaming out at me is this wall here.

You could actually take this wall down

and have a nice big open-plan lounge, dining room and kitchen.

The other option is, you could actually bring the wall down

just to about so high and have a bit of a breakfast bar

with stools underneath, a bit of a level sort of eating area there.

So options are aplenty.

My choice would be, get rid of this wall, open it up,

be very pleasing on the eye.

I'm going to investigate further the rest of this property.

Through into the main bedroom. It seems to be a nice size,

there is enough space in here for a double bed, as you can see.

Doesn't seem like there is a lot in here that needs to be done

but this built-in wardrobe has taken up a lot of space

away from this wall so I'd be inclined to get rid of that

and create a bit more floor space.

But worryingly over here, there seems to be a bit of damp which is

still sort of damp to the touch, as well.

You would need to get a specialist to come and check this out

and it could be costly.

Apart from water, ingress can be down to how well

the drainage is maintained.

A check on the guttering is essential.

# Raining in my heart. #

So I decided to practise what I preach.

So, out the back here,

this is where the off-street parking is for the flat.

Now I want to have a closer look to see if I can see anything

of where that water would be coming in.

If you look up there, you can see the different types of brick

and there is no coping stone on the top of that wall,

so that could be the cause of where the water is

seeping into the property and causing that damp.

I'd get it looked at.

But now to hear what a local property expert thinks of this

second-floor two-bed flat, guided at £175,000.

# Things are looking up

# I've been looking the landscape over. #

The property as it is at the moment needs work.

We will look probably to change the bathroom, completely change

the kitchen and to fully refurbish it.

The agent believes this property was built in the 1930s.

How many face-lifts and refurbishments it has had

since then is anybody's guess.

But she can tell us what

the flat's rental value could be after a modernisation.

Once renovated, this property could rent out

in between £1,050 per calendar month to £1,100 per calendar month.

And if the refurbished property was put on the market for sale, what

sort of improvement on the £175,000 plus guide price could be expected?

Once renovated, this flat could resell at the value

between £300,000-£310,000, being renovated to a high standard.

At first glance, this flat doesn't seem to need a lot of work

doing to it but there are a couple of issues.

The damp you would have to get sorted

and there are a lot of stairs.

Let's see who was fit enough to take on the challenge

when it went to auction.

What shall we say, 140 for Leytonstone?

140. 140. 140. 140.

Yes, 140, thank you. 42 and a half?

After a hesitant start, the bidding increases slowly but steadily.

We rejoin at £150,000.

150 here, third row. 52 and a half now.

52 and a half. Thank you. 55.

55. 57 and a half.

57 and a half. 60.

60. 62 and a half.

62 and a half. 65.

65. 67 and a half.

No. 165 here.

Somebody else wanting to come in? Lot 44.

Third row at the back, against you at the back.

Third row here at 165.

First time.

Might take a thousand.

Second time.

Third and final time. Bidding?

At 165 then, it is going, all out, 165 for Lot 44, third row here.

GAVEL BANGS

Yours, sir. Thank you, well done.

Ghazala and Fawad placed a final bid of £165,000 -

10,000 under the guide price.

They have two other properties including a shop that Fawad

runs his business from.

Ghazala is a student studying Community Services

and I met them both at the top of those stairs.

-Ghazala, nice to meet you.

-Nice to meet you too.

Fawad. Congratulations to you both.

-Thank you very much.

-Tell us about the auction, how was it?

It was my first time at auction

and it was amazing, and lots of people.

-Was it good fun?

-Yeah.

-It was very good fun. Good business as well.

-Of course.

-Of course.

You've got the property that you wanted,

what do you intend to do with the property now?

-We'll fit a new bathroom...

-OK.

-..and a new kitchen.

Um, we'll change the flooring... The carpet and put the flooring

and we'll change the doors as well.

OK. So who is the person that is going to be in charge?

She!

-She's the boss?

-Yeah, she's the boss.

-And what do you have?

Do you have painters and decorators?

-Er, yeah. Painters, plumber...

-OK.

-And decorators as well, yeah.

-Do you know the guys? Regular people that you normally use?

-Yes.

What about family? Is there going to be any more family that get involved?

-Any more family going to help you?

-Yeah.

-Yeah, my cousin help me and my son is helping me.

-Good, good, good.

And what about the budget?

How much do you think you're going to have to spend to get it

where you want it to be?

It will be around £7,000-10,000.

And your timescales? How long do you think that will take?

-Four to six weeks.

-That's good.

-Yeah, yeah.

-Now, this wall.

Are you going to keep it as a separate kitchen or maybe bring it into one?

It will be open-plan kitchen.

-We will knock the hall wall out.

-Mmm.

And we will extend a big kitchen there

and we will make one window in the wall.

OK, window going on that wall, outside the property?

-Outside, yeah, outside the property.

-Bring some more light in.

-Yeah.

-Very good idea.

-Yeah, we're going to make a hole in about there

-so we can use as dual purpose as well.

-Clever.

-And modern.

-More modern, exactly. Modernise the place.

-Modernise the place.

-And people like that now, don't they?

-Yeah.

And how are you going to deal with the damp?

Cos there's a bit of damp and in the main bedroom.

Um, we will check the external wall,

maybe the water is coming from the external wall.

And we will fix the problem with the damp first

and then we can remove the paper, wallpaper.

No, I agree and you're right to do so.

Make sure you get all the problems sorted out first,

otherwise you can start work on it and it just continues to come

through, so get that done as soon as possible, without a doubt.

-And there's a lot of stairs up to the property.

-Mmm.

-Mmm.

How is that going to affect the builders?

Oh, um, there's a window in the bedroom and we will use a chute.

That's good idea.

-They can have a chute straight from the bedroom window.

-Yeah.

-Into a skip?

-Yeah.

-Yeah, into the skip.

-Is this your first property that you are buying together?

-No.

Actually, it is our third property but from the auction,

-it is the first property.

-First property in the auction.

And would you go back to the auction? Would you do it again?

-Yes, as soon as possible!

-As soon as possible?

-Yeah! Yeah.

Now, what is it about the property developing that you like?

Um, actually, it is my interest and my husband's interest.

Like, we've got our own business

and we want to increase our business into, like, property development.

So at the moment, we've got quite a small house

and we are looking for a big house for us.

My family is quite big, so this is the only, I think,

good and interesting way to go,

like, into property and earn some money.

-Achieving something.

-Yes.

So, what are you going to do when everything is finished

and you've got it how you want it? Are you going to rent it,

are you going to sell it or are you going to keep it?

-Um...

-If we achieve good price, maybe we sell it.

-Otherwise, we will rent it.

-Not quite sure yet?

-Not quite sure yet, yeah.

-Listen, Fawad, good luck.

-Thank you.

-I wish you all the best. Ghazala, well done.

-Thank you.

Keep him in check.

What lovely people Ghazala and Fawad are.

But there is a damp issue they would have to get to

the bottom of and how much will that impinge on their budget?

But it's a lovely story that they're doing this to have a bigger family home.

Let's find out if they achieve it later in the programme.

Still to come...

In Fenton, Stoke-on-Trent, my advice is really rather simple.

Sort that out, sort the damp out.

And in Leytonstone, East London, we'll return to discover

if that small flat at the top of those stairs hit the heights.

Back now to Folkestone in Kent where previously

I looked around this five-bedroom semidetached.

This large family house had lots of period features,

including this fabulous staircase.

But this tired old house was not without its problems -

rotting wood and damp being the main jobs to tackle.

The house sold for £200,000 to Leslie at the auction with

her partner Nigel and they also work together at Nigel's building company.

A complete large house like this is somewhat of a rarity in these

parts, as many similar to this have been converted into flats.

I met Leslie and the company's construction buyer, Ashley,

eager to find out what her plans were.

-So, what are you going to do with it?

-OK.

-Are you going to keep it as a house, or is it going to be flats?

-I... We...

-Well, I think we'll probably keep it as a house.

-Yes! Really?

I'm not sure that if you spent all that money,

got the planning, all that sort of stuff,

whether it's worth the extra.

Let's start off by talking about the damp you've got here.

Yeah, that's the biggest problem, the damp.

We've barely scratched the surface of it at the moment.

We don't know where it's coming from but I wouldn't expect it to

set us back too much, really.

So obviously you hold the purse strings.

What sort of budget are you looking at with this house?

It's got to be under about four...under about £50,000.

-Oh, you nearly said 40, then you went up a whole £10,000.

-Well, yeah.

£40,000-50,000, I think, because if I was to move in, I'd be

spending more like £100,000 on it but, you know, good to be realistic.

We've got to pitch it right so that we're not overspending on

the kitchen but we want prospective buyers to walk in, and say, "Wow!"

Well, we're back just over four months since our last visit

and I need to know, has Leslie's kitchen now got the wow factor?

# I need to know now, know now

# Can you love me enough...? #

Yes! I'm going to say it. Wow!

# I need to know now, know now

# Can you love me again...? #

Lighter coloured tile flooring, glossy units

and brighter paintwork make the most of the available light.

High-end appliances complete the kitchen's look and functionality,

which is also much improved by the generous breakfast bar.

Wafting up my beautifully-restored staircase

to the top floor, where there used to be two bedrooms.

There's now one bedroom

but it's right next to the former second bedroom, which functions

as a dressing room/study with an en suite shower room.

It sacrifices one of the five bedrooms

but I think it's worth it and if you don't agree...

# There's nothing I can't do... #

Down two flights of stairs now to the first floor landing,

where the front-of-house largest bedroom looked like this,

with its small en suite.

New units make the most of the available space.

The second bedroom at the rear of the house has also had a face-lift.

The small bathroom

on this level sat next to the small separate toilet.

The answer - combine them.

Then there's room not only for a bath, but a shower too.

Finally on this level,

the smallest bedroom has benefited from a brighter colour scheme.

Downstairs again,

the rear reception wasn't helped by the dark carpet and retro lighting.

Modern lights show off the cornice work and a neutral carpet and finish

highlight the period fireplace, which I'm glad to see has remained.

And the same can be said for its brother in the front room,

which has also left its darker colour scheme in the past.

Outside, there's been plenty of weeding done and a new lawn laid.

Time to catch up with Leslie and Ashley. They must be shattered!

We haven't actually been here that much, really.

We just came along, picked the carpets, picked the colours,

-gave a few instructions!

-They're a great team, though.

They've worked quite hard to get to where we are.

Holidays interrupted the workflow, so the work's taken

three and a half months, just over the original plan of two to three months.

The main structural problem was the damp,

which was sorted by replacing the faulty drainpipe.

So, what about the original budget of £40,000-50,000?

It's about 50-60, I reckon. It's a bit more we budgeted, but...

I think, you know, with the carpets, and the kitchen -

I picked quite nice appliances rather than cheap, cheap.

No, we didn't go for the cheapest carpets either.

We could have gone from a much cheaper carpet

but I think it was worth spending um, spending the money,

because you walk in the front door now and it's just, "Wow!" I think.

Because the staircase is such a lovely feature,

we wanted to make it stand out.

The proof of the pudding will be in what we get for it, I think.

That's going to be... And how easy it is to sell.

Yes, that is the crucial question,

as Leslie was never intending on living here or renting out.

Two local estate agents should help answer that question.

Leslie played £200,000 for the property at auction

and a further - let's say - 50,000 renovating.

So was it money well spent?

First up, the agent who'd seen the property before the renovation.

I think they've made wonderful changes to it.

The quality of finish

and the decoration that they've done is of a pretty high standard.

I particularly like the kitchen.

It's been done very well, looks very modern. It's very big.

You could fit a table in there.

Makes a good family kitchen.

And what about going from a five-bed to a four-bedroom house?

I like the top bedroom.

I think the fact that they've made a dressing room

and an en suite with it has enhanced that, made that a good living space

upstairs, a good bedroom space and rest space, so yeah, good move.

I think making the bedroom into a dressing room is a good idea.

It doesn't really affect the price too much

and it makes it a good property for sharers.

Well, there's a turn up for the books.

Now whilst we're on the subject of price, Leslie's total spend

so far is around £255,000.

So what's the property worth in today's condition?

I would value this property at £275,000.

If they're going to sell the property,

I think they should sell it for around £280,000-290,000.

Taking the average of 280,000 would make Leslie a potential profit

of £25,000, minus the usual taxes and expenses.

We're hoping for at least 300 on this.

-And we're, I don't know, reasonably confident...

-Yes.

-..that we'll get that.

-Be interesting to see.

One thing is for sure, this tired old house now has a new lease of life.

Stoke-on-Trent is made up of six large towns and today,

it's the turn of Fenton, home of Stoke City Football Club.

And it also boasts this local nature reserve called Smith's Pool,

a popular spot for joggers, nature lovers and anglers.

It's known locally as the Lido.

MUSIC: Lido Shuffle by Boz Scaggs

So, what about somebody fishing for a property bargain?

Well, joking aside, having recreational space like that water -

fantastic thing to have around or in the environment

of the property you're considering buying.

Which was, in this instance, up for auction -

a two-bedroomed classic mid-terrace, guide price at 60,000 quid.

This is it. Let's have a look.

Well, let's sincerely hope that any water is kept well

and truly out of this property.

And actually, walking through the front door and straight away,

you get a really good first impression.

Nicely decorated - carpet all clean, I mean -

it's obviously a little bit dated but no smell of damp. Lovely.

I mean, a very traditional design, as you might have expected.

Front room there, rear room here. Ooh! Interesting fireplace design.

Joking. I think they've taken the fireplace away.

But stairs up to your bedrooms there,

and then through into the kitchen. It's that classic layout.

Probably a two-up, two-down which has been extended to provide a kitchen here.

Er, what can I say about this?

It needs modernisation, obviously, and then through there

to your bathroom and loo. It's not upstairs.

It's pretty much exactly where you'd expect it to be,

at the back of the property there.

On the way, yes, sort of a er, cylinder, hot water cylinder there.

And that's it.

Ah! Not quite. That's a damp patch.

It's a very odd place for a damp patch.

Could be coming from a pipe break in theory, I guess,

but that definitely needs further investigation.

From the back yard, you can see that these kitchen extensions

are standard design for this type of terrace property

but as to the source of that leak, I'm none the wiser.

I guess it might be the roof. Unfortunately, I can't quite see it.

Time for a visit upstairs where I should get a better view

of the kitchen roof.

So, upstairs, and as well as the two bedrooms, hopefully,

a solution to that damp issue.

And what I'm trying to look at here is that roof of the extension.

Now, whenever you visit a property, try and use all of the windows

or whatever to look out onto roof spaces, whatever you might be

able to see, it's a really good way of doing a bit of exploration.

You can check the gutters out, you can check the ridge.

In this case, I'm looking at the tiles.

There you go, it's not rocket science, is it?

In the middle of the roof there, there is a loose tile

and I reckon that's bang above where that damp patch downstairs is.

Sort that out, sort the damp out.

So, apart from that loose tile, everything else seems tickety-boo.

The two double bedrooms need redecorating,

but a definite bonus is the double glazing.

Get the central heating system checked out, new bathroom, new kitchen

and, hey presto, you've got yourself a smart little property.

But that's just my opinion.

To get another perspective, we asked an estate agent

from the auction house that sold the property to have a look around.

What's appealing about this property is its location.

The street is very, very popular.

You do have the railway lines right opposite,

but the trains are very infrequent and very light.

You've got the added advantage of having the park behind,

with the lake.

And there's no parking problems and you haven't got another

row of houses looking directly at the property.

If I owned this property, I would refurb it.

Kitchen, bathroom, new carpets. Probably have the walls skimmed over.

New decor, but that is literally all this property needs.

With a guide price of just £60,000, what are the potential re-sale

and rental values that could be achieved after renovation?

This property should see figures in the region of

£425-£430 per calendar month.

When it comes to resale, an asking price on this property

would be £90,000.

So, let's make it simple. What is there not to like about this house?

-Good location.

-HE STAMMERS

You don't need to do that much to it.

Shift a few roof tiles to sort out that bit of damp.

A great one to go for.

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

Unfortunately, on auction day,

our cameras didn't catch the bidding on this lot.

But the successful bidders were local couple Tony

and Sylvie-Anne, who paid bang on that guide price of £60,000.

I met up with them back at the house to find out about their plans.

-Tony, Sylvie-Anne, great to meet you both.

-And you.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

-Good little house. Tell me why you wanted to buy it.

I like the location of it. The street, plenty of parking.

Nice little front. Yeah, it's in good condition.

Doesn't need a lot of work.

It's fairly clean and tidy, shouldn't take long to do up

and put back on the market.

So, is this a new venture for you,

-or is this something you've done before?

-I've done it once before.

-A lot worse than this.

-Right. Tell me.

-As you open the front door, you could see the roof.

-Really?

-There was no floor.

-A lot of work.

-Wow.

Was it very cheap or...?

-Not really.

-It wasn't that cheap.

-No, but it wasn't through an auction, unfortunately.

-Right.

-But it was a good experience.

-Looking back.

-Yes.

-Yes.

How recently was that?

-Two years ago.

-Yes, two years ago.

-And did you do that up and sell it on?

-I'm renting it.

-Renting, OK.

So, what tempted you to go to the auction?

I've been to a few auctions.

I've seen property online that I generally go and have a look,

see what it looks like,

then have a viewing and then maybe go to the auction.

-Right.

-But the others, they went for too much money.

-Right. You got this for a good price, didn't you?

-Yeah.

-I think so.

-Definitely.

So, Sylvie-Anne, what's your involvement in all this?

-I'm the decor person.

-Are you? Oh, great.

So I'll probably be choosing the tiles, carpets, painting.

I'm no good at that.

So Tony does the hard work and I'll do the easy stuff.

But definitely give a flavour

-and you create the feel of the place, don't you?

-Yes.

Have you thought about how you're going to decorate this one?

-It's quite pleasant as it is.

-Probably just paint.

Sort out the ceilings and bits and pieces that need doing

and just paint over it.

New carpets.

# Let's put a new colour paint on this lonesome old town... #

Tony and Sylvie-Anne plan to rent out this house

and so painting over the existing paper

seems like a very reasonable plan.

Particularly since their budget is a fairly modest £5,000-7,000.

With major purchases being a new bathroom and kitchen,

they're keen to do as much of the work as possible by themselves.

But will the small patch of damp I found earlier be a problem?

Obviously an unusual bit of damp in the kitchen there.

Have you sussed out where that's coming from?

-A missing tile, isn't it?

-Yes.

-It is a missing tile, yes. Definitely.

Something so simple. Which is good news, isn't it?

You never know what you're going to get until you start work, really.

-For sure.

-Yeah.

-Do you work?

-Yes, TV aerials.

-Oh, OK.

-Satellite dishes.

Right, OK. Brilliant. So you're up and down ladders all the time.

I shall be up on the roof.

Yes, you should be able to fix that roof no problem.

Tiles, not a problem.

You've probably got all the proper ladders and everything

-and all the safety kit.

-Yes, so it's all systems go.

-Right.

-What is the timescale?

-No more than six months.

-OK.

So, obviously, the last project, a lot of hard work

and this one comparatively easy.

What did you learn from what you did last time?

Ooh, you just have to get on with it, basically.

If you hit problems,

you've just got to work your way through or get someone in who can.

-Get a man who can.

-And there is no problem that's insurmountable.

-It just costs money.

-Yes, money.

So, what did you think about Tony taking on the last project?

I thought he was crazy.

But I don't think this house will have the same...

the same effort as the other one.

You must have been a bit nervous, though,

when he said, "You know what? I'm going to try it again!"

-Just a bit. Just a bit.

-How did you broach that one, then?

-I said, "Oh, I've been to see a house."

-Yes.

-What did she say?

-"You are joking?"

-Sort of.

And then it was like, let's go to the auction and...we just got it.

And will how easy or otherwise this project turns out to be

affect your decision processing in terms of whether you do any more?

-Might consider one more.

-Maybe.

-Yes?

-Maybe one more.

Right.

Unless you unearth some horrors, but I don't think you will.

-Not here, not here.

-I hope not.

And Stoke, why Stoke?

-Stoke is as good as anywhere.

-I'm a great fan of Stoke. Absolutely.

-Totally.

-There's some good properties in Stoke.

-It's not far away, either, is it?

-No, we are only 10, 15 minutes away.

Right, and that makes a big difference.

When you are renting out, will you be managing the property?

-Probably not.

-Hand it over.

-A lot of hassle.

Right, so you'll pay a proportion...

-Listen, congratulations. Good luck with it.

-Thank you.

-I look forward to seeing how you get on.

-Thank you.

Well, I'm glad that Tony wasn't

so put off by his last property renovation experience that he

missed this place, because I think he and Sylvie-Anne

have got themselves a great house here and not too much work.

In fact, being an installer of aerials, he's got all the equipment

he needs to sort out the only major problem - that loose tile.

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

Doing up a property always seems to take longer than you'd think.

Yes, did our buyers manage to do everything they'd planned?

It's time to go back and find out.

Back to East London now, in the desirable

and up-and-coming area of Leytonstone.

I looked around this two-bedroom second-floor flat that had

a guide price of £175,000.

It wasn't the biggest of flats, but I could definitely see potential.

But what is screaming out at me is this wall here.

You can actually take this wall down and have a nice big open-plan

lounge, dining room and kitchen.

The other option is you can actually bring the wall down just

to about so high and have a bit of a breakfast bar with stools

underneath, a bit of a level sort of eating area there.

Options are aplenty.

My choice would be get rid of this wall, open it up,

be very pleasing on the eye.

I'm going to investigate further the rest of this property.

What I found was a flat in need of updating

and one with a damp problem, thanks to some faulty guttering.

But that didn't put bidders off as the flat proved

popular on auction day.

Yours, sir. Thank you, well done.

Snapped up for £10,000 under the guide price of 165,000,

the successful bidders were husband and wife Fawad and Ghazala.

They already own two other properties

and were keen to build up a property portfolio.

Now, this wall.

Are you going to keep it as a separate kitchen or maybe

-bring it into one?

-It will be open-plan kitchen.

We will knock the whole wall out.

We will extend the kitchen there and we will make one window in the wall.

We will make an island.

OK, window going on that wall, outside the property?

-Yes, outside the property.

-Bring some more light in.

Fawad and Ghazala had hoped to rent the property out and have given

themselves a four- to six-week timescale

and a budget of between £7,000-10,000.

Four months later, we've returned to Leytonstone to see

if all has gone to plan.

Nice.

By getting rid of the old wall and extending into the hallway,

they've not only created an open-plan kitchen/diner, but also increased

the size of the once-pokey kitchen and made it modern and appealing.

Is it me, or is that living room just that little bit smaller?

Yes, by using the sizeable living room,

they've been able to create an extra bedroom as Ghazala explains.

This is a completely new room.

It used to be a part of the living room.

It is a double bedroom now. It is beautiful.

Lovely to see someone so pleased with the work they've done,

and remember, Fawad and Ghazala plan to rent this property,

so adding a bedroom could be a smart move.

The rest of the flat is looking so much better with the two

pre-existing bedrooms looking refreshed.

And the brand-new bathroom suite is something to be admired.

So, with the flat looking transformed and far more rentable,

it's time to hear how it's gone for Fawad and Ghazala,

not to mention nine-year-old son, Yousef.

But first, let's have a chat with Mum and Dad.

I am pleased with the kitchen.

In my point of view, it is beautiful and it is most expansive.

The kitchen and bath are both specialist,

the small bath as well is very nice.

The couple sound delighted with what they've achieved here,

and even though there was a change of plan,

they did manage to stick to their four- to six-week time schedule.

But I can't imagine their original budget of £10,000 has survived.

We spent about around £23,000.

Because we replaced the new windows, of course, we increase

the one bedroom, and also in these days, things are more expensive.

As well as those changes,

they had to do some work to the roof to tackle the damp problem.

And to keep costs down, Fawad managed the project himself, with family

and friends helping and even Yousef being called into action.

I cleared the rubbish and I put some in the recycling.

And all the other rubbish, I put outside, so they could collect it.

I like the kitchen and I like the bedrooms.

So, with Yousef's stamp of approval,

it's time to check the opinions of two local estate agents on this

flat that has seen a total investment of £188,000.

The changes are very good.

I like the fact that they've put another bedroom,

making it into a three-bedroom flat,

and this will add value to both sales and lettings.

The extra bedroom has squeezed the living area somewhat.

However, for a rental investor, it's not really going to be a big issue.

So, sounds like adding that third bedroom was a wise choice.

But before rental figures, let's hear valuations.

In my opinion,

the sales value for this property will be approximately £250,000.

On the sales market condition, I would say that this property

would resale at a price between

£310,000 and £320,000.

Having the third bedroom, it would

probably add value to the property in between £10,000-15,000.

Wow, quite a difference in values, thanks to the first agent

believing that neighbouring properties are of a higher standard.

So, that means, depending on whose estimate you take, pre-tax profits

on this property could be from anywhere between

£62,000 and £132,000.

However, this property has always been destined for the rental market.

Taking into consideration the current market conditions,

I would let this property at a price in the region of

£1,350-£1,400 per calendar month.

In my opinion, the rental value of this property is

approximately £1,500 per calendar month.

That higher valuation of £1,500 per calendar month would mean

a healthy yield of around 9.5%, meaning that for Fawad and Ghazala,

this first renovation project has been a success.

It is excellent here and it is our first time,

so for the first time it is very good.

Very good experience and it is a very good job.

Earlier in the show, I was in Fenton in Stoke to see a two-bed

mid-terrace guided at £60,000.

We see a lot of two-up, two-downs on this show,

but this one was in really good nick and just needed an update.

It's that classic layout.

A two-up, two-down which has been extended to provide a kitchen here,

and then through there to your bathroom and loo -

pretty much exactly where you expect it to be. That's it.

Ah, not quite.

That's a damp patch. It's a very odd place for a damp patch.

That definitely needs further investigation.

And investigating I went,

leaving no stone unturned to find the source of the damp.

# I looked under chairs

# I looked under tables

# They call me the seeker... #

My guess is it might be the roof.

# I've been searching low and high. #

There you go, it's not rocket science, is it?

In the middle of the roof there, there is a loose tile

and I reckon that's bang above where that damp patch downstairs is.

Sort that out, sort the damp out.

Paying £60,000 on the nose was TV aerial repairman Tony

and his wife Sylvie-Anne.

It seemed ideal for their rental portfolio and this purchase

was a big improvement on their first foray into the market.

-As you opened the front door, you could see the roof.

-Really?

There was no floor.

You must have been nervous when he said,

-"You know what? I'm going to try it again."

-Just a bit, just a bit.

How did you broach that one, then?

-I said, "Oh, I've been to see a house."

-Yes.

We met up with Tony and Sylvie-Anne seven months later to find out

whether they managed to bring this outdated

property into the 21st century.

No signs of damp and brought bang up-to-date.

Since you last saw the house, all the doors have been changed.

Doors, kitchen, bathroom.

-Painting throughout, bit of electrics, bit of plumbing.

-Carpets.

The kitchen, everything was taken out.

-New kitchen sink, cupboards, hob, new doors.

-Tiling. Painting.

The normal.

And what about that damp patch in the kitchen? Was it straightforward?

The damp really wasn't a problem. It was probably down to a broken tile.

No more damp has come in, so it looks like it's fixed.

Sylvie-Anne and Tony also opted to update the bathroom.

We did consider leaving the bath and the sink in,

but then decided to take everything out, put a complete new

suite in, electric shower, mirror, shower door, brighten it up.

The couple planned to spend £5,000-7,000 over six months.

So, did they meet those targets?

If you take the odd days we've been here,

evenings and the weekend, probably about three months.

I'd say about three. The work has been pretty hard at times

because I've had to fit the aerial and satellite work in.

I'd say it's cost about eight.

Just slightly over the main budget.

And is the plan still to let this out?

It's on the market with an agent to let.

There's been several people come round.

Quite a few viewings, so we're hopeful that

within a month there will be somebody moved in.

I think it'll go, yes.

Time to find out what kind of rental they could attract.

We asked along two local estate agents to give us their thoughts.

I've had a look around the property, I'm very impressed.

Especially with the kitchen and the bathroom.

They've both been newly fitted, they bring a lot of light into

the property and they are in a very modern, contemporary style.

I really like the property, especially

the location of the property - it is a very, very popular street.

Internally, the property has been done through to a good standard,

especially in the kitchen area.

Further improvements that could be made to this property,

generally, reskimming of the textured wallpaper.

It doesn't appeal to everybody,

it's just an extra headache for people to deal with.

But other than that, I think

everything's been done through very nicely.

The only thing they could do to further enhance the property

is perhaps change the fireplaces in both reception rooms

and re-plaster the walls.

Having spent £8,000 renovating a house they paid

£60,000 for at auction,

Sylvie-Anne and Tony will be hoping for a good rental yield.

But might it be worth selling?

If I was to place this property onto the sales market,

I'd market between £75,000 and £80,000.

If we were to market the property,

I'd suggest a figure in the region of £78,000.

-More than expected.

-Yes, top end.

-Yes.

-About 80 was what we were thinking.

-Yes.

At £80,000, the couple would make a modest pre-tax profit of £12,000.

But what about the all-important rental figures?

And do they match with what the couple are marketing

the property for?

If we were to let the property, I would suggest marketing

the property in the region of £425 per calendar month.

If I was to place this property onto the rental market, I would

market somewhere in the region of £425-£450 per calendar month.

-They're the same.

-Spot on, really. Yes, spot on.

That's what we're asking.

And if they do get a tenant at that £450 per calendar month figure,

that would be just under an 8% yield.

This development was certainly easier than their first and,

with that healthy rental income, are they keen to do another property?

You can always have enthusiasm before you start,

but a few months into it, it can get a bit wearing.

I'd like to look at a third place.

Maybe.

THEY LAUGH

We'll see more proud owners

and what they've done with their properties next time.

-Make sure you join us then for more Homes Under The Hammer.

-Goodbye.

-Goodbye.

-Bye.