Episode 70 Homes Under the Hammer

Hello and welcome to the show.

You can get a wide range of choice and some pretty decent prices

when you buy at auction.

Yes, and more and more people are finding out that every day.

Do you think you might be one of them and buy your home under the hammer?

As every property developer knows, each project has a life of its own

and you can never predict how it's going to go.

But the best thing to do is to take whatever happens in your stride.

Now, is that advice that today's buyers will need?

Let's see what they bought.

In Tunbridge Wells, Kent, there is a property that's safe as houses.

That is so heavy. An original safe.

While in Carlisle, this end terrace isn't safe from the elements.

Water, rainwater is a little devil. It just gets in wherever it can.

And in Stoke, safety is also on my mind

in this three-bed terraced property.

I'm not sure what's going on just there. That concerns me.

All these properties were bought at auction.

We will find out who got them and how much they paid for them

when these homes went under the hammer.

Well done, sir.

The spa resort of Tunbridge Wells in Kent has been a host

to the great and good for over 400 years.

At the most southern end of the town is the area known as the Pantiles

after Queen Anne donated money for ceramic paving tiles.

Not only does this area have a fabulous colonnade,

it also has lots of chic specialist stores.

The area around the Pantiles where the town started with its beautiful

Georgian colonnades still have the best of the town's properties.

But this little house is on the other side of the tracks,

which is still quite well-heeled in terms of Tunbridge Wells.

Now, it had a guide price of £190,000 to £200,000.

And look, there are three storeys here.

Here it is and it looks appealing.

So in a previous life I would guess this was a commercial building.

A little reception area. Hello, good morning.

Not quite what I was expecting in here at all.

And look, there is still an old...

That is so heavy. An original safe.

That would be a big job to get something like that out.

Interestingly, this building has gone to auction

and it's already got permission to convert into three separate flats,

which is great news because you can see how that would configure.

In through the door here.

This door, I'm guessing, would be the entrance to flat number two

which would be upstairs.

At the back you've got the same kind of space here

as at the front of the building.

A lovely old original sash window. That's absolutely beautiful

but I think it's out with the old and in with the new.

Plastic, unfortunately.

And you've got to think how you would configure the space

because you need a kitchen and a bathroom.

You've got a little toilet out the back there.

So where are the other entrances?

I am just wondering if the flat downstairs

is a similar layout to this one.

Go investigate.

So downstairs in the basement flat,

it certainly is a little bit dark and dingy here.

I've never been a fan of basements because they do tend to smell of damp

and it is just a little more oppressive.

Now, interestingly, on the plans which I have to how this

whole building is going to change, as I said a one-bedroom flat,

they've got the entrance to this basement flat here,

which means you're going to have to go through a whole load

of excavation to create a big doorway here.

I just find it a rather strange place to have the entrance

when, if you come through here,

you've got your second reception area,

very much mirrored the same as upstairs with the loo,

you've got a perfectly nice doorway here

which leads straight out to a little courtyard.

So I'm wondering whether it might be worth thinking

about changing that around.

It would mean you'd have to go back to the planners

but I think it might be a change worth doing.

Upstairs on the top floor, things should be more straightforward.

There is a similar two-room layout to the ground floor

with one room at the front and one at the back.

However, it doesn't have the extension where the toilet was.

And if you take a look outside you can see the neighbouring

properties are using a back door as an entrance to their basement

and have taken the toilet extension right up to the top floor.

So I'd have a rethink about some of these plans.

Just because they are approved,

it doesn't mean you have to stay with them

and you can't have another go at them and get it exactly right.

# No use complaining

# Don't you worry, don't you whine

# Cos if you get it wrong you'll get it right next time. #

We asked along a local estate agent to get his advice on how

he would lay out the entrances to the property.

This one has big advantages because you can get to the

side of the building, which you can't next door.

Here, you've got access at the side so you can actually

have access to the ground floor flat from the front door,

the upper flat from the side door and you can go around the back

and have access to the bottom flat from the outside as well.

So all three flats can have their own external front doors,

which I think will be a big feature.

I couldn't agree more.

Are there any negatives about converting this lot into three flats?

I think there's quite a lot of work to do here.

It is a house, it's not flats already,

so there is a lot of sound insulation and fire regulation work

to be dealt with, which obviously considerably increases the cost.

We are probably looking at anything up to £80,000 to £100,000 overall.

# But it's going to take money

# A whole lot of spending money

# It's going to take plenty of money

# To do it right, child... #

Yes, the cost of this renovation is not to be underestimated.

With a guide of 190 to 200,000, and development costs of up to £100,000,

would it be worth it in the long run to spend all that money?

What sales value could we expect for each flat?

Once completed, I think we are probably looking

somewhere in the region of 139, 145, maybe even 150,000.

So this really could be an exciting project for somebody

to just come in here and split it up into three self-contained flats.

Or maybe they might fancy leaving it as a little townhouse.

Let's see who the successful bidder was when the hammer went down.

Lot 108. Start me where you will. Start me at 190. 190?

Start me at 180 then. 180 right at the back.

Standing at the back. 180. I'm on the way. 182 on the side. 185.

It's against you. 185, it's with you. 188. 188 and 190.

After what had been a slow start, the bidding soon picked up.

We rejoin at 232,000.

232,000, I've got. 233, if you like?

For £232,000. 233, I've got.

234. 234.

And five. Another shake of the head.

At £234,000 on my left-hand side I have then.

It's in the room to sell it for the first time,

unless somebody else is coming in.

At £234,000 I'm bid for the second.

Third and final time.

If you are sure you are all done at £234,000, it's going to be sold.

Well done, sir. It's yours at 234.

That successful bid of 234,000 came from Andy,

a former fire protection consultant who was at the auction

with his brother-in-law, Steve.

You may recognise Andy and that's because he did

one of my favourite properties we've ever had on the show.

A converted water tower in Maidstone.

I'm really excited to find out what his plans are this time round.

Lovely to meet you again.

I know you built the amazing water tower that we absolutely love on Homes Under The Hammer.

And Steve, congratulations because you are now working with Andy

on this project and you even worked on the water tower, didn't you?

Yes, I did. I helped to tender all the quotes and stuff so yes,

I was quite involved with the water tower.

So let's talk about this one in hand.

Obviously it comes with planning permission for three flats.

You're a busy man. You're obviously knocking as many properties out as physically possible, is that right?

Yes. I've got a few on the go at the moment.

Steve helps me run all of them.

Steve gets all the bad jobs, I'm afraid. I get the good jobs.

So how does it work out for you both? Steve, tell me what you have to do.

All the dirty work, really.

All the stuff that Andy doesn't want to do, I get to take it on.

And you do all the nice stuff? Like what?

I do most of the planning and financial side of things

so I've got a lot of the architectural connections and that.

We sort of look at stuff and if necessary, like this place,

a couple of tweaks to be done on the planning and sort of do those sort of things.

It's great that Andy has someone to depend on to do the dirty work.

Although Andy is sticking to the approved plans

for three one-bedroom flats, he is going to re-jig them.

And given his experience, I'm sure he's spotted the obvious.

The access to the front of the property to the lower ground flat is very tight under the planning

and when you look out the window behind us,

we've actually got access straight into the lower ground floor identical to next-door.

Yep, he spotted it. Of course he did.

The current plans would mean excavating the front,

which is close to the road, and getting a concrete staircase in.

It does all seem a bit unnecessary.

But will the planner agree?

Something he might have an easier time with is the plans to mirror

the neighbouring property with an extension.

Quite interesting that you've bought this with planning, with plans.

But with your experience,

you've come along and you can see a better way to lay these flats out.

Yeah. I suppose we come in knowing the costs.

One of the plans currently drawn,

it shows the removal of half a chimney stack,

which we certainly won't be doing from a cost perspective

because that's really expensive for really, in my opinion, not much of a net gain.

I'm going to stop you there because the half a chimney stack

is in the front room as you walk through the door.

It's quite an attractive feature. A lot of people would like that

but there's a little safe just underneath it.

You're going to get that safe away and chop away at the chimney stack.

-It's not worth it.

-No, no. I might leave that safe in.

-Really?

Yeah, might be for a bit of a laugh.

So, when we come back the safe could still be in the wall?

-I don't know, we'll see.

-With something special in it locked up so whoever buys this,

there could be a prize in the middle. Ooh!

The set of keys I've got, one of them's meant to fit

but we'll have to see if we can get it to work.

I would love to see that. That would be fantastic.

'So, perhaps the safe is...safe?'

# Love will be right here

# Be right here... #

Converting a block like this isn't just about new kitchens

and bathrooms, or indeed the obvious planning issues.

There are other hidden building regs to think about.

One of the biggest things we've got to do is acoustic stuff, isn't it?

We've got to be party compliant

because it's a conversion into flats from offices.

You've got a timber deck floor down with somewhere with quite large ventilation holes though it.

So, you know, we'll have to sort that out because you don't want

to be sitting in your flat listening to people above.

'Well, I guess it depends if your neighbour has a good singing voice or not.

'Seriously, this is a big project

'and it might have all sorts of hidden horrors.

'So, what's the budget?'

It's between 90-100,000, we've put the budget in.

But we've obviously added contingencies on just in case

there is any unforeseen headaches.

How long is it going to take to complete the three flats?

And then we'll see if Andy agrees.

I'm hoping to be done within five months.

OK, so you think you can turn around this building,

three separate dwellings in five months?

Yeah, fingers crossed.

You must be pretty pleased with that because that's a quick turn around.

-I had six months in my mind, so five months is great.

-You're on a bonus.

Well, planning dependant. That'll be the ideal scenario.

Guys, good luck with this project. Andy, it's fantastic to see you.

I know you're going to do a great job here.

Steve, if you can do this in five months,

-you'll certainly be getting a medal from me.

-Thanks, appreciate it.

-Congratulations. Lovely to see you.

-Thanks a lot.

-Thank you.

-Cheers.

Well, big plans afoot to cram three one-bed flats into this property.

But given some of the projects Andy's already taken on,

well, I think this one will be a breeze for him.

Will it be Steve's super five months, though,

or a little more of a leisurely six months for Andy?

And will that safe still be there

and will they have put a little gem inside?

You can join me later in the programme to see how quick

those boys do it.

The city of Carlisle is steeped in history and wherever you go,

you walk in the footsteps of Roman soldiers and Jacobite rebels.

The Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery features exhibits

detailing the history of Roman occupancy of the region

as well as the story of Border Reivers.

The history draws in the tourists and the city these days is

a vibrant cosmopolitan hubbub with a growing student population too.

I'm looking at a property in Currock,

about a mile from the city centre.

It's a three-bed end terrace.

This is it. A very handsome looking building it is too.

£40,000 plus was the guide price.

Typical of Carlisle with its trademark red bricks,

this end terrace looks just a little grander with a few extra features

on the exterior.

Nice impressive entrance.

Sort of this porch area here with an inner door which is good

for keeping the noise and the cold out.

Then this sort of entrance corridor.

Stairs up to your bedrooms there.

But nice high ceilings.

Through here into the lounge.

It's quite an interesting design

because you've got this little archway which leads from this

front lounge area which, again, is nicely proportioned.

Big high ceilings too.

This rear lounge area which, again, a nice size.

All the fireplaces, things like that, want to be taken out.

I don't think this style of fireplace is ever really going to

tick many people's boxes.

But a nice fireplace in here would make a real dramatic effect.

So, it's a good size. Doesn't smell damp.

A few cracks in the windows and things like that

but you're probably going to put new double glazing in anyway.

Through the property into the back here where there is really good-sized kitchen.

At the moment, it's in need of a total refurbishment

but you've got space.

And yet more space underneath here which is underneath the stairs.

That could be a nice larder or storage area.

It's a lot of house for the money, isn't it?

# Here comes bargain day

# Bargain day... #

'A lot of house indeed.

'Now, let's have a look upstairs and see if this house

'really is a bargain.'

So, upstairs, and it really is quite a surprise.

It's huge. Three bedrooms.

The downside, the only bathroom is actually through that third bedroom.

That's not ideal. You'll definitely want to consider the layout.

But look at the size. Like downstairs.

Really nicely proportioned with some lovely fireplaces in this instance.

Erm... Oh, that's not good.

Just noticing up there signs of damp on this chimney breast,

and also looks like it's come in through the attic space there. Hmm.

I wonder what's causing that?

I need to go outside and have a look.

I wonder? This is the gable end wall.

As you can see, it's this beautiful brick.

But in places the pointing...

Look at that, you could get it out with your finger.

I mean, if you look up there just below the chimney stack,

looks to me like the pointing there has actually started to

deteriorate a bit like it has here.

The thing is, water, rain water, is a little devil.

It just gets in wherever it can.

So it will be penetrating through that dust

and probably causing that damp upstairs.

So, the only answer - get this wall re-pointed.

'Re-pointing can set you back a fair bit.

'It can involve scaffolding costs

'and then the manpower to take out the old mortar before you re-point.

'Some of those bricks will definitely need replacing.'

# It's a brick

# House... #

But with a guide price this low it's not much to ask

for a generous family home.

Well, at the back of the property,

a really quite useful little courtyard area.

There's an outside loo which, you know what, I'd just refurbish

and keep that.

What I'm much more interested in is the fact there's a door there

leading to a little alleyway.

I'm thinking, I wonder if there's an opportunity to maybe knock

this wall down and create off-street parking?

You could certainly get a car in there.

That would be something that would be worth having. Security and all that stuff.

So, it's just another positive to add to the house.

# Good, good, good Good vibrations

# Ba, bab... #

Positives are starting to stack up here.

We invited along an agent from the auction house that sold

the property to get her opinion.

It's a really good sized property.

Two good sized reception rooms,

access straight into a hall rather than into the lounge.

And three bedrooms upstairs as well.

Definitely a huge amount of potential.

At the moment you have the bathroom access through one bedroom

but with a bit of re-jigging you could easily retain

the three bedrooms and have the separate bathroom.

So far, so good.

But this house has a very low guide price of £40,000.

What could it sell for if renovated?

If the property was to retain three bedrooms,

you could look in the region of £90-95,000.

Well, that means plenty of room to make a profit.

But would it be successful as a rental?

On the rental market,

this property could achieve £450 per calendar month.

Well, a few bits and pieces to sort out, particularly that damp issue,

and then a thorough programme of refurbishment

and this already handsome property would turn into a real beauty.

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

Lot number 28. Right, 40 to start.

Let's not mess about. Been a bit of interest.

40 here, well done. 41.

42. 43.

44. 45.

46, 47...

As expected, there was a great deal of interest in the property.

We return when bids had reached £60,000.

At £60,000. Are we done?

61, new bidder.

62. Half. 62.

Half.

With you, sir, at 62. First time with you.

Second time with you.

Third and final time then.

On my left near the aisle. At £62,000.

Are we done?

Well done, sir.

And with the successful bid was Steve.

Steve had to bid a good bit more than the guide price in the end,

in fact, over half.

Paying £22,000 more to secure this house at £62,000.

So, I wanted to find out what he had planned.

-Steve, good to meet you.

-How are you doing? You all right?

-Good. Congratulations.

-Thanks.

Tell me why you wanted to buy this place.

I just came in and saw the potential

in it straight away when I walked in.

Just loads of work I could do myself

and just good project for the summer, really.

Is this what you do? Are you a property investor or what?

Joiner.

So I'm just going to do most of the work myself

and then drift a few friends in for the rest.

Have you done something like this before?

My brother's done a couple, yeah. I've helped him out on his ones.

How old are you? If you don't mind me asking.

-24.

-24, fantastic.

So, quite early on in your career.

You can have a portfolio of hundreds by the time you're ready to retire.

-Aye, hopefully.

-Is that the plan?

With a bit of luck, if it all goes well.

You are quite young,

and you have, obviously, had to raise a mortgage

or put money into this.

How did you manage to sort the finances out?

Because, obviously, for younger people it can be quite hard.

I was quite lucky.

I was left an inheritance off my granda

and he would've liked us to put it into some property.

That was his main thought, really, behind it all.

So, here I am starting it now.

-Right, so you think he'd be happy with what you're doing?

-Yeah, very.

Oh, that's great.

I am sure his grandad would be very pleased to know

he had helped his grandson get on the property ladder.

So, what does he intend on doing to the first of his possible

portfolio of hundreds?

Basically, just modernise it. New kitchen, new bathroom,

readjust the bathroom to the centre of the house

-so you don't have to walk through the bedroom.

-Yeah.

New windows, new carpets, do it up, really.

Top and bottom. Just everything.

As well as modernising the interior, Steve intends to repoint

that gable end and spruce up that somewhat tired-looking garden.

It sounds like he has got his work cut out for him, then,

but does his budget match his ambition?

So, what's the budget for the work?

-I've narrowed it down to about 20,000 now...

-20, OK.

That's quite healthy. That's quite a healthy budget.

-And that's with you doing quite a lot of work yourself, is it?

-Yes.

Steve does need to be careful.

Remember, he did pay quite a bit over the guide price.

If he were to overspend, he could end up a bit too close to the

top valuation resale price of 95,000.

And, while he's not planning to sell, it will reduce his yield

when it comes to renting.

He's hoping to have it ready for a tenant in three months.

So, does he think this area will be a popular rental?

It's close to a school. There's a school just up the road,

so if we get a family in here,

it's not too far to walk to take the kids to school.

Attract a good rental.

Excellent. How was the auction for you?

All right, nervous.

Especially when it started coming to me,

and I was kind of getting it,

then the guy on the phone would go a bit more.

I could feel my heart just racing.

It's quite addictive, really.

I'm going back, certainly.

-Were you happy with what you paid?

-Yeah.

The way things were selling today, I thought it would maybe go at 70.

-Oh, right.

-Just because everything was kind of selling a bit better.

But actually, 62 was my cut-off point,

which was happy to get it for that.

-Brilliant. Well, congratulations.

-Thank you very much.

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

-Cheers.

So, Steve putting his inheritance to good use

and buying his first investment property, and a good one it is, too.

His skills as a joiner will definitely come in useful

sorting it out.

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

Coming up in Stoke, Caroline is keeping a close eye on her budget.

Will the man be getting a wage or...?,

-No!

-Mates' rates?

-No.

-Mates' rates maybe?

THEY LAUGH

Meanwhile, in Carlisle, Steve's day job

gets in the way of his ambitious timescale.

Been more important bringing in the money in then spending it!

Back now to the picturesque spa town of Tunbridge Wells where

I visited this three-storey property with a guide price of 190-200,000

that had some interesting features.

There's still an old...

Ooh! God, that is so heavy.

..an original safe.

This building looked pretty tired,

but the good news was it had planning permission for three

one-bedroom flats.

However, I did have some concerns about the plans.

They've got the entrance to this basement flat here

which means you're going to have to go through a whole load

of excavation to create a big doorway here

and I just find it a rather strange place to have the entrance

when, if you come through here,

you've got a perfectly nice doorway here

which leads straight out to a little courtyard.

So, I'm wondering whether it might be worth

thinking about changing that around.

So, the plans weren't perfect,

but this place did have the potential

to become three good-sized flats.

So, would a buyer take that route?

Well, off to auction, and there certainly was a lot of interest.

The successful bidder, getting the property for 234,000,

with Homes Under The Hammer veteran Andy

who teamed up with his brother-in-law Steve.

While they intended to stick to the plan for three one-bedroom flats,

they certainly agreed with me about changing the access to the basement.

It looks like one original feature was, um,

well...safe.

-I might leave that safe in.

-Really?

Yeah, might be for a bit of a laugh.

So when we come back, the safe could still be in the wall?

Maybe, I don't know. We'll see.

With something special in it, locked up,

so whoever buys this, there could be a prize in the middle!

Setting themselves a timescale of five months,

and with a budget of 90-100,000, would Andy and Steve turn

this shell of a building into three desirable one-bed flats?

We returned just over nine months later to find out.

Wow! As you can see, the building has been completely transformed

from a shell to these beautifully finished flats.

Upstairs, and the layout is the mirror of the main floor,

with the boys adding a new extension up here to house the bathroom,

thus freeing up more living space.

The big question is, what happened to that basement layout?

Did they change the plans to put the entrance where we all thought

it should go at the back?

Yes, they did. Perfect!

So, how did it all go?

Well, Andy is abroad, so, take it away, Steve.

The first job was to strip everything out

and basically make everything safe.

So, we found that there was a lot of structural work

to be done in the basement.

We put in, I think, about six steels down in the basement.

That was quite a big job.

As it's holding up the rest of the building.

After that, we built our extension on the rear of the property

and then from there we started

getting all of our first fixings down.

Progressed through to the acoustic treatment on the floors

and the ceilings.

Had the place plastered, painted

and then kitchens in.

The bathrooms were a bit of a talking point

between me and Andy because we both had different ideas

on how we could make the bathrooms work.

But we came to an agreement in the end that the way that we've

done it is the best use of the space

and also maintaining the size of the bedrooms.

The wet rooms are a good solution to a very tight space,

but speaking of Andy, where is he?

Basically, he moved to Saint Lucia earlier in the year.

So, yeah, he pretty much left me

to just carry on and finish off the job.

All right for some! So, how did that work with Andy being so far away?

I see that he made sure certain features stayed intact.

We have got a good working relationship,

and, obviously, a good personal relationship.

He trusts me with the builds and it's good experience for me

not to have to rely on him to make decisions.

I'm happy to hear it all worked out and it's looking incredible,

much like the budget.

Having originally set themselves a maximum budget of 100,000,

they've actually come in at two grand under that,

which is brilliant!

This means their total spend on the conversion is 332,000.

But the timescales did not fare as well.

We originally hoped for five to six months to complete the job.

But, the building was in quite a bad state.

Once we stripped all the walls back, we discovered that there was

a lot of structural work that needed doing, as well.

Well, Steve and his team might

have finished three months later than planned,

but the place is looking brilliant.

So, what will two local estate agents think?

Let's start with the one

that saw the property last time.

What they have done here is amazing.

They've really gone through all three flats

and made three very nice self-contained units.

Very impressed.

I think the main selling point

is going to be the finish on these places

because competing properties may not be finished as nicely.

So someone might compromise

a little bit of space just to get that move-in feel.

So, onto the valuations. Let's start with the rental, shall we?

The rental valuations for these properties

would be similar for all three

and that would be between £600 and £650 per calendar month.

For the rental valuations, I think

we've got figures between £675 and £685 per calendar month.

That top figure would mean a rental yield of just

over 7% for all three flats.

But is that enough for them to change their plans to sell?

Yeah, that's why we're not interested

in the rental market, really.

We just wanted to get a quick turnover

and then on to the next project.

So, is that fast turnaround on the cards?

Will Andy and Steve make a decent profit on their £332,000 investment?

They have to make at least 110,000 to break even.

My valuation for these three properties, they're all the same.

It's going to be £115,000 to £130,000.

For the sale valuations, I would put them between £145-£150,000.

The upstairs flat being slightly higher and the downstairs bottom one

being slightly lower because it hasn't got the same outside view.

That top valuation would mean a potential profit

of 113,000 minus the taxes and fees,

while the lower valuation would mean a profit of just 13,000.

Yeah, it's about what we expected, to be honest.

The one that come a bit lower, I don't think that's realistic.

I don't think anyone would be would be selling these flats

at 115 to 130 at all.

So, Steve's confident he can get that top valuation

but what's next for him?

Off to join Andy in Saint Lucia?

He's trying to drag me out there. But we'll see.

You never know, he'll probably find a project out there that he

wants to develop out there.

But it would be slightly different in the 40-degree heat and humidity.

I don't mind, as long as it's near the beach, I don't mind it.

I'm in Shelton in Stoke-on-Trent.

It's an academic hub of the city, being home to

Staffordshire University and Stoke-on-Trent College.

With over 20,000 students enrolled in the previous academic year,

there is a steady demand for accommodation.

Good territory for a would-be property developer, I think.

All we need now is a property to look at.

Only five minutes from Stoke train station is the property

I'm here to see, right in the heart of students-ville.

It's a two-bed mid terraced house with a guide price of £35,000 plus.

Will it be more student accommodation? Let's find out.

OK.

If it is student accommodation, they won't be very happy with it.

It's not like mum's, I can tell you that.

In a bit of a state in here.

I can see there's plaster missing off the walls,

it's down to the bare brick.

I can see there's a door there that's been blocked up.

You need to put some double glazing in there.

Those windows look a little bit feeble. Not in great condition.

If you were thinking about putting students in here,

you could possibly put a wall up here, maybe,

just create a corridor and have that as one of the rooms.

If you wanted to.

Straight through into this second reception room here

which is more of the same.

It just feels a bit cold.

Doesn't smell too good, I've got to say.

You need to put some new flooring down.

Again, new windows.

And it's all very dated.

Into the kitchen, a galley kitchen.

Well, I say kitchen, it's sort of a lack of a kitchen.

There's nothing in here at all apart from a sink

and a bit of work surface.

All a little bit messy. This is just a rip out and start again.

It's got a good bit of space

but you would have to spend a few quid on turning it around.

'So, not a great start.

'It obviously has potential but it's immediately apparent there's

'an awful lot of work to be done here.

'And that smell? It's not great.'

# And I smell

# Ooooh, trouble... #

'Let's see if things improve upstairs.'

Upstairs we have two bedrooms, one either side of the landing.

It's in a bit of state, this one.

It's a decent size looking out onto the back yard.

And the other bedroom is here to the front of the property.

They're not in great condition, they haven't been tended to in some time.

And I'm not sure what's going on just there.

There's a big bucket, bowl of water.

That concerns me. Seems to be dropping quite a lot.

Windows as well would need changing. They're single-glazed.

Definitely get some double-glazed there

because you're quite close to the road.

And the smell is no better up here.

You have to rip all this out and start again.

I'm going to go outside and have a breather.

# Raindrops keep falling on my head... #

'The guide price of £35,000 plus is one thing,

'the to-do list is another.

'The roof and the electrics for starters.

'And you'd need to factor in a fair few skips as well.'

So, we do have a bit of a back garden, back yard.

It is small, it is overgrown, shrubs everywhere.

If you can see beyond it, though, it's very low-maintenance

because it's slabbed.

It's the kind of back garden a student would want -

very low-maintenance.

# That's why I'm easy

# Ah-ah-ah... #

OK, so maybe it's just the garden that's easy.

But this place is ticking all the boxes in terms of a student let.

With the added bonus you could turn it from

a two to a three bedroom without much hassle.

I think this is a no-brainer.

But what does a local estate agent think?

My first impressions since walking through the door, I can

definitely see the potential that this will have for a student let.

I think it needs a complete redevelopment.

It needs a new kitchen and a new bathroom and substantial work

throughout the property in order to get it up to a decent standard.

As I suspected,

the case for this being a student let just gets stronger and stronger.

So, let's hear those valuations, starting with the rental.

For a two-bed terraced property for the private market I would look to,

I would think it would achieve around £400 per calendar month.

For students, I think that this property will achieve £60 per room,

per week which, over a month, will be £720 per calendar month.

See? What did I say? A no-brainer.

So, what if you didn't fancy letting it out but wanted to do it up

and sell it on? How much could this house sell for?

I would look to sell this property between £60-65,000

as a two-bed terrace.

If it was a three-bed terrace for specifically, maybe, for students,

then I would say we could probably achieve between £65-70,000.

It's not in great condition in there and it does need a fair amount

of work doing, and it doesn't smell too good either.

But if you can see and smell beyond that, this place has potential.

Let's see who saw that potential when it went under the hammer.

What shall we say, then, for lot number one? We'll start it at 30.

It's got to be that.

29, I'll start, then. 29 bid. Thank you, at £29,000.

Looking for 30 now, then.

At 29... 30 bid.

At 30,000. 31? 31.

32. 33.

34. 35.

At 35,000 to my right, then.

At £35,000. 36, anywhere else?

Looking for 36... 36. At 36.

37.

With a lot of interest in this property,

we return when the bidding reached £42,000.

42, sir?

42.

43. 44, sir?

44.

45? 45.

Shaking his head. 45 with you, sir.

46, anywhere else?

If not, 45 once.

Twice. Third and last time. £45,000.

You bought it, sir. Well done.

With that successful bid of £45,000 was electrician Jez.

Together with wife Carolyn, who's a midwife, they already have

a property let up the road, so will it be more of the same?

I met them back at the property to find out their plans.

-Nice to meet you, Carolyn. Congratulations.

-Thank you.

-Jez, nice to meet you.

-Thank you.

So, who found this property?

I did, about two weeks ago. Two days before the auction.

-And you just fell upon it? Or were you looking?

-Looking.

We've got a property up the road, about 300 yards up the road.

We're looking to invest in more properties in the area

and we just happened to see the sign.

-So, did you get a chance to have a look?

-No, not at all.

We went in blind.

Oh, dear. You've broken one of the Hammer rules already.

You didn't view the property. So, I'm telling you off before we start!

Now you're inside, you've had a chance to see inside,

is there anything that has frightened you or surprised you?

Surprised with the state of the house, how bad it is actually.

I mean, we expected it to be worn out, tired, everything else,

but doors hanging off, ceilings hanging down,

the actual smell in the actual building. It's not very pleasant.

Yes, it's quite potent, isn't it?

-It is quite potent.

-Just a bit!

Jez and Carolyn have taken quite a risk buying blind

but hopefully, once the house has been cleared,

it'll start to improve.

Talking of improving, what are their plans?

Rent to student market.

The house up the road is full of students

and there seems to be a shortage of accommodation.

What are you going to do to it?

Basically, we're going to start from new doors

and new windows outside. Then obviously new doors inside.

We're going to have a new kitchen, new bathroom,

rewired and obviously re-plastered

and then it will be the cosmetics, the decorating and carpets.

So, the configurations is staying the same?

You're not knocking any walls down?

What we intend to do is make the front room a bedroom

so you'll access the house from the rear of the house

through the kitchen into the middle sitting room

and then two bedrooms upstairs and one through to the lounge.

That's a good idea, having the entrance at the back.

It means that the front room isn't going to lose any space

by making a hallway. Good thinking, Jez.

So, all good.

But there's that drip to discuss.

Jez, tell me about that because it's concerning me.

-Is it a concern of yours?

-It is a concern.

I was waiting for you to ask that question!

I haven't been in the attic yet. I know the radiator is leaking.

I know the water is coming from the radiator.

The floor is dry and has been dry for the last month

so with all the rain we've had, I'm assuming the roof is good.

We're hoping the roof's good.

But, yes, we're going to find that one out.

So, you'll get an expert to look at that?

Yes, I think someone's fallen through the ceiling, basically.

I guess there's so much work to be done here,

they can't afford to be fazed by any of it.

So, how much do they have in the kitty for the renovation work?

The top budget would be 20.

I think we can do it for around 16.

17.

-Don't fall out, now!

-Exactly.

Who's going to do the work?

All the electrical rewiring, that'll be myself and the lads.

I've got a team that normally helps us with properties that'll do

the fitting of the bathroom fitting of the kitchen,

skirtings and doors and windows, and then I'll come in and do

the decorating and the carpets afterwards. So, a combined effort.

-Carolyn, tell me what you're going to do.

-Cleaning!

And the accounts too.

So you'll keep an eye on the budget?

Yeah, definitely.

-Will the man be getting a wage?

-No.

Mates' rates maybe?

So it's a team effort here.

With help from their youngest son, Michael,

and nephew, Dominic, who are fortunately both electrical

apprentices, they plan to get the work complete in three months,

just in time for the students getting back.

Are you happy with what you've got, Carolyn?

Yes, I will be when it's finished.

I think, initially, it was a shock, walking through the door,

but I think if we can get it turned over how we would like it,

I think it'll be good.

I think you'll be OK.

I think you've got all your bases covered.

-Purse strings?

-Definitely.

-Labour?

-Labour's sorted out.

-That'll be fine.

-Good luck, I wish you all the best.

-Thank you.

-Good luck, pal.

-Cheers, thank you.

Carolyn and Jez have got their work cut out with this property

but I think they're spot-on, making it into student accommodation

and they do make a good team.

Carolyn's got the finances and Jez seems to have all the labour

covered, but I am slightly concerned about that roof.

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

Now we've seen what one of our buyers have done,

let's take a look at the others.

Did they get everything done on time?

And is there profit in the pipeline? Let's have a look.

Back now to the historic city of Carlisle

where I visited this handsome three-bed end terraced house

with a low guide price of £40,000 plus.

# The bargain store is open, come inside...#

Inside, the property was in need of a serious makeover,

including a new kitchen as well as a structural reshuffle to move

the bathroom, which was only accessible through the back bedroom.

# With a little mending, it could be as good as new... #

And there was also the issue of that damp

which required some investigating.

This is the gable end wall.

As you can see it's this beautiful brick but, in places,

the pointing, look at that.

Oh, my gosh. You can actually just get it out with your finger.

The thing is, water, rainwater, is a little devil,

it just gets in wherever it can so it will be penetrating

through that dust and probably causing that damp upstairs.

So, the only answer, get this wall re-pointed.

Despite the growing list of renovations needed,

I still thought this house was a real bargain.

As did the punters on auction day, who battled away for the property.

Well done, sir.

But, with a successful bid of £62,000

was joiner and all-round handyman, Steve.

Steve used inheritance from his late grandfather to buy the house

and plans to use the property to springboard himself into

a new and hopefully prosperous career in property development.

-How old are you, if you don't mind me asking?

-24.

Fantastic, so quite early on in your career.

You could have a portfolio of hundreds by the time you retire.

-Is that the plan?

-With a bit of luck, if it all goes well.

This being his first poverty development, Steve was aiming high.

He planned on modernising and decorating throughout,

installing a new kitchen, moving the bathroom out of the back bedroom

and re-pointing that troublesome gable end to stop the damp.

Intending on renting out the house, Steve had set himself

a timescale of three months and a budget of £20,000.

Well, it's now 13 months later and we return to see how he got on.

Wow! As you can see,

Steve has completely transformed the ground floor of the house.

Where once there were two tired-looking reception rooms,

he's removed the dividing doors

and created a real feeling of space with this open-plan design.

He also closed off the original door into the front room to create

extra wall space, and got rid of those dated fireplaces,

installing a tasteful period one instead.

Simple changes but to a dramatic effect.

Through into the kitchen and it's out with the old

and in with the new again

with these bright new units and modern fittings.

Upstairs and the transformation continues.

Upstairs in the back bedroom, you had to walk through

that back bedroom to get to the bathroom so what I've done,

I've taken that bathroom out of there,

moved it into the centre of the house.

With it being an end property,

I've been able to put a window in the bathroom now.

So it's made that bedroom in the centre of the house slightly

smaller, which doesn't matter too much. It's still a single bedroom.

Main bedroom on the front, I just kept the same.

I just plastered, some down lights, made it a bit smarter.

Then some mirrored slide robes in the hall to cast a bit of light

and make the whole space feel a bit bigger, really.

Indeed. Space is what Steve has achieved here.

Like the rest of the house,

Steve has completely re-plastered each room and installed new doors

and windows, breathing new life into this once tired-looking home.

I feel really good about it.

When I walk around and look at it,

especially the first day I walked in, it was like a '60s time warp.

I walk about now, I'm proud of what we've done and what we've achieved.

And so he should be.

Out in the garden, and Steve has tidied the place up a bit,

leaving plenty of space for his new tenants to make their mark.

But there's just one thing Steve's still to complete

as the bad weather has held him back.

There is a bit of pointing to do in the gable end.

Some of the faces of the bricks have bust off as well

so with the bricks being porous,

that will let more damp in so I just need a good couple of days

really, preferably in the next month or so before any frost comes.

So, only a couple more days of work

and the renovations will be complete.

But speaking of time, Steve originally set himself

a timescale of three months and, by my watch, it looks more like 13.

It's down to workload really.

I thought I would get a few days a week on it

but I've only been getting a night and a Saturday.

It's been more important bringing the money in than spending it!

# One, two, three, four... #

Unfortunately, not only has he gone over his timescale,

but he's gone over that £20,000 budget and has now spent 23,000.

I was a bit worried he could overspend, even though

his budget was healthy to start with,

but with a finish like this, he might just get away with it.

What will two local estate agents think?

First, the agent who saw it before.

My first impressions of the property, he's done a fantastic job.

They've completed the property to a really high standard

throughout, and made some really good changes.

I think they've definitely done the right thing

by moving the bathroom from the back of the house to the front.

They've got a really good-sized bathroom.

The third bedroom's a single but it's still really good size.

The main selling points of this property,

obviously the standard of finish that they've done here.

They've done a fantastic job.

Also, the location is good, it's close to amenities,

it's handy for the city centre,

you can walk to work from here quite easily.

It's ideal for people looking for around here.

These properties round here sell relatively easily

and especially in this kind of condition, I think

they'll have no problem at all securing a buyer.

That's all very positive, so Steve plans to rent this house.

His current spend is 85,000. So what kind of rental could he expect?

If this property was placed on the rental market,

I believe it could achieve in the region of £495 per calendar month.

If this property came to the rental market,

it should achieve £495 per calendar month.

I thought around about £500 a month. Thereabouts.

It's the sort of figure I had in my head at the time.

We won't quibble over a fiver a month.

£500 per calendar month would mean a yield of around 7%

but what sort of resell figure could he expect?

I think this property would achieve in the region of £110,000

on the sales market.

If I was to put this property up for sale, I would market it at £115,000.

Yeah. The values are probably about bang-on what I thought.

I thought about 110. Summat around that sort of way.

So, at that top valuation,

Steve could stand to make around £30,000 before taxes and fees.

Not bad for his first property development.

So, I wonder if he could be swayed into selling.

No. I think it's more of a long-term investment.

You know, with the rent coming in.

The property's going to be mine for as long as I keep it.

I can always sell it in the future.

Steve's property debut is a fantastic success.

I reckon the quality of his work is a real testament to his grandad.

I wish my grandad was still here

to come and have a look around it, really.

You know, he was right into what we were doing

and this is what he wanted us to put the money at,

so he'd have been proud.

MUSIC: Rip It Up by Orange Juice

Back now to Shelton in Stoke-on-Trent

where, earlier, I visited this two-bedroom terraced house,

bringing a whole new meaning to the term fixer-upper.

It wasn't just the mess that was bothering me.

I'm not sure what's going on just there.

There's a big bucket, bowl of water, that concerns me.

It seems to be dropping quite a lot and the smell is no better up here.

You'd have to rip all this out and start again.

I'm going to go outside and have a breather.

# Rip it up and start again... #

So, potentially, a hole in the ceiling

and a serious need of a clean-up.

That £35,000-plus guide price was starting to make sense.

However, being located in a recently-coined University Quarter

and the potential of becoming a three-bed

using that front reception room,

I thought this place was ideal for a student let.

# Rip it up and start again... #

So, off to the auction it went. Only to be snapped up...

£45,000. You bought it, Sir. Well done.

..by Jez and Carolyn for £45,000.

The pair already had a property on that street that they let out

to students and plan to do the same here.

However, this was their first purchase at auction

and, it turns out, a bit of a gamble.

-So, who found this property?

-I did.

-About two weeks ago. Two days before the auction.

-Went in blind.

Oh, dear. You broke one of the Hammer rules already.

You didn't view the property. So I'm telling you off before we start.

Despite the challenges,

the couple were determined to have the place ready

for the beginning of term

and set themselves a timescale of three months.

Armed with a budget of in between 16 and 20 grand,

depending on who's right,

and with the help of youngest son Michael and nephew Dominic,

both electrical apprentices, Jez and Carolyn had big plans.

New doors and new windows outside.

Obviously, new doors inside.

Going to have a new kitchen, a new bathroom, be rewired

and, obviously, re-plastered and then it'd be the cosmetics,

the decorating and carpets.

What we intend to do is make the front room a bedroom

so you can access the house from the rear of the house

through the kitchen into the middle sitting room

and then two bedrooms upstairs and one through to the lounge.

Big plans, indeed. So, how did they get on?

We return three months later to find out.

As you can see, Jez and Carolyn have completely overhauled

the ground floor and it looks brand-new.

-# You got me feeling brand-new

-Ooh!

-# You got me feeling brand-new

-Ooh... #

The kitchen looks stunning, with slick contemporary fittings.

It's the same story in the bathroom,

both finished to an excellent standard.

This property needed a lot of work

and it looks like Jez and Carolyn have done just that.

As planned, the front reception room will now act as a third bedroom

with the back room used as a sitting room.

Upstairs, the two bedrooms have again, like the rest of the house,

been completely gutted and now look fresh, bright, and airy.

No small job, this.

It took a while to empty the house.

As you're probably well aware, it was absolutely full of rubbish.

So, gutted it, then started stripping it.

All the doors had to come off.

Internal doors. Front doors, windows all came out, didn't they?

We've taken the plaster off, rewired it, re-plastered it.

New kitchen, new bathroom.

New radiators, heating system.

The biggest problem was the smell in the woodwork which was,

obviously, from a dog or dogs that were kept at the house.

To get rid of it, we had to get rid of floorboards,

take the half the staircase down, dig down and rebuild upwards again.

Well, that was worse than they thought it was going to be

but, thankfully, the hole in the ceiling

turned out to be better than expected.

It wasn't a hole in the ceiling, thank God.

They put sheets up to catch the Artex falling down.

The ceiling was in perfect condition.

Obviously, the roof wasn't leaking.

The roof is in good condition. So it did save as a lot of money.

At least they had one nice surprise from this house.

So, who's responsible for all the hard work?

Electrical work came under myself and the two boys.

Once that was done, a plasterer did the whole house.

New ceilings, new walls everywhere.

We had kitchen fitters in doing the kitchen and bathroom

and we had a plumber in doing the central heating.

The boys were great. Couldn't have done it without them.

Simon and Dominic, both electrical apprentices,

both want to get stuck in to property market when they're older.

I couldn't have done it on my own.

It's very much a three-way job, it's been.

And I'd say a job well done.

Intending to rent out to students, Jez and Carolyn

managed to keep to their strict timescale of three months,

Just in time for the beginning of term,

but how did the budget stand up?

We've gone over budget, probably, by about 6,000, in total.

I was looking at about 15,000, maybe 16,000, as Carolyn, originally said.

-I was looking at 17.

-Was it 17? Sorry.

-And a bit more.

-And it got a bit more.

-But we've got a standard we wanted to work to,

we've worked to the standard,

and we had a few problems to overcome during the process, so...

So, they went a little over budget, spending 22 grand on the renovation,

bringing their total spend on this property to around £67,000.

It still seems like a good investment to me

but will two local estate agents agree?

Let's start with the one who saw it first.

I'm particularly impressed with the level of finish,

especially with the kitchen and the bathroom,

compared to what it was like before.

I think that the current owners have done a fantastic job

in making the most of the current layout.

My first impressions coming into the property, it's very well presented.

Beautifully decorated.

Nice neutral colours with a good, strong colour carpet.

Really impressed.

So, on to valuations. Let's start with sales.

For the sales market, I think this property would look to achieve

around £65,000.

The sales figure for this property would be in the region of £75,000.

We thought 70,000, due to other houses up the road

that have been for sale.

Obviously, haven't been done out like this,

but are on the market for 70,000.

So, we knew the top price would be around the £70,000 mark.

That top valuation of £75,000 would mean a potential pre-tax profit

of eight grand on their £67,000 spend.

But Jez and Carolyn are looking to rent to students.

So, what will they get in that market currently?

As a three-bed student let,

I think that this property will look to achieve a figure

in the region of £720 per calendar month.

As a student-rented property, three bedrooms,

it would achieve around £780 per calendar month.

That's about what we figured, wasn't it? About £240 a month per student.

That's what we worked on. So, yeah.

-That's about right, isn't it?

-Yeah. Happy with that.

That £240 per calendar month per room is the lower valuation

and would still mean a really good yield of nearly 13%.

The good news is, the couple have already got tenants lined up.

They plan to take on another property soon.

I wonder if they'll have a new rule

when they go to the auction house next time?

Review it this time first.

HE CHUCKLES

Well, we hope you enjoyed seeing what the buyers did on today's show.

There are many more auctions and properties out there.

You'll see many more here on Homes Under The Hammer.

-Goodbye.

-Goodbye.