Episode 13 Homes Under the Hammer

Hello and welcome to the show.

Despite the property markets being very different all over the country,

buying a property at auction is still very popular,

with hundreds of properties being sold every month.

Yes, it's quite a big job, keeping track of all the homes that are sold

under the hammer, so therefore we need a new member of the team -

and I'm delighted to welcome Martel Maxwell.

-Hello.

-Thanks, guys. It's brilliant to be here.

I absolutely love property and I've invested in and built property over

a long period of time, and I can't wait to see people do the same here

on Homes Under The Hammer.

Leaky roofs, dodgy electrics, plumbing issues.

-Do I need to go on?

-I think we get the picture, Dion.

When it comes to renovating property, the potential issues are endless.

They certainly are.

So, what issues did today's buyers have to face when they bought

their properties?

In Lichfield - oh, it's exciting.

My first Hammer property.

And it has just what I need - complete privacy.

Well, I don't think I can quite believe my eyes at what I find in

this two-bedroomed bungalow in Stoke.

What on earth is that?!

Seeing really is believing,

especially at this mid-terrace in south-west London.

Look at this ceiling!

I think you actually call them stalactites.

All these properties have been sold at auction and we'll find out who

bought them and what they paid for them when they went under the hammer.

Sold.

# Sha la la la la la la... #

All together now...

# Sha la la la la la la la... #

Can you guess where I am? It's not Amarillo.

This is Lichfield -

sadly not the one in America, it's the one 18 miles north of Birmingham,

where singer Tony Christie made his home.

# When the day is dawning... #

Walking around Lichfield,

it's clear this place is not short of one thing, and that's

character properties, partly down to the fact it's a conservation area.

There are some really lovely cottages and period houses in the area,

so will the one I'm here to see today deliver in the character stakes?

Well, this is it.

It's a three-bedroom mews-style cottage with a guide price of

£124,000 to £128,000.

I can't wait to look inside.

OK. I won't lie.

I'm a wee bit disappointed.

An awful lot of character features have been taken out.

So, look at that fireplace. It's really modern.

And, obviously, an original was there at some stage.

And this is just a bit ugly, isn't it?

It's boxing in all the electrics.

But the positives are, it's a really good feel of space.

It seems so solid, and you do actually have an original beam along

the roof. So all's not lost.

And it does have a nice feel.

Going through to the kitchen,

not the biggest but, you know, it's big enough for all your appliances.

It would need to come out, fully modernised, and this wall,

I'm just thinking...

It's a very thick wall.

You would need to get in touch with a structural engineer for some

advice but if you opened this up and knocked through to the living area,

it would suddenly be a very open and modern feeling.

So, definitely something worth considering.

A very new boiler.

Actually, this surprises me, in a property of this age, that you have

what looks like a good new heating system.

So, not all mod cons are bad.

Right, outside.

Now, I knew from the auction notes not to expect a garden.

It said a yard. That is what it is.

It's very small, very concrete.

And in a house like this, you just expect to have a wee bit of greenery.

Well, you could think about taking this wall down because, of course,

there's no parking either.

Could make it wider to get a car in but we're in a conservation area.

Usually, what you can do to the exterior is pretty limited.

That said, you do have some outside space.

If you were in London, you'd probably view it as quite a roomy garden.

Get a water feature over there.

You could be inventive here though.

You could get a bit of decking, a little room for a barbecue.

All's not lost.

# I beg your pardon

# I never promised you a rose garden... #

Upstairs to the first floor and, OK, this is quite a small bedroom.

I guess you could use it as an office.

It feels quite cramped, it does.

But I quite like the quirkiness, a wee bit like a doll's house.

Here we have a bathroom, which again is pretty small but an OK size,

considering the size of the property.

Definitely needs taking out.

You need a shower in there too.

I'm through to a master bedroom.

This is a nice-proportioned room, high ceiling.

It all feels quite solid.

The floorboards...

But here, what a shame!

This breaks my heart.

An original fireplace has been taken out,

taking away some of the character again.

Oh! Another thing that breaks my heart.

The modern-ness of the UPVC windows,

not in keeping at all with the property.

But hold on, there's Lichfield's Cathedral,

and what a view of the spires you've got!

Do you know what? I can forgive the windows.

As long as you can see out them and see that, I'll forgive anything.

CHOIR SINGS

Earlier, we took a closer look.

Do you know, it's the only cathedral in England with three spires.

And back in the day, the seat of the diocese covered from the Humber to

the Thames. Part of the reason it's a Grade I listed building.

There's a lot of history in Lichfield.

Up more stairs to our top floor.

I love this beer garden.

You might not have your own garden but the people-watching you could do there.

And the natural light that comes in upstairs compared to the

ground floor is fantastic.

And through here to your top-floor bedroom, I like it.

You're in the eaves.

That's character all of its own.

A cupboard. Well, it's pretty small.

I'm just thinking...

I wonder if there's a way to put an en suite.

It would really add some terrific value to the house but there doesn't

seem to...

Here we go. So, here's a cupboard.

Great news, this stud partition is the lightest you'll get.

That could easily come down.

Let's see how much room there is inside.

OK. So, I'm not the tallest, but there's plenty of room for a shower.

Over there, a toilet.

Bring the partition out a bit, it's certainly possible, I think.

And then you have this door here,

which could double up to lock this room and then come over here.

Complete privacy.

Well, kind of.

Next, the opinion of a property expert from the auction house who

sold the property.

But will he find me hiding in the cupboard on the top floor?

First impressions of the property, it has been ruined, in a way,

with the UPVC windows that have been put in.

The loft extension doesn't look very pretty at all.

There's also the issue, there's no parking,

just a small yard, which would put people off.

Mm. Given that, is there anything good to say about the property?

It's literally right in the middle of the city of Lichfield.

It's a very easy walk to the local restaurants and shops.

So, what could this quirky cottage,

guided at £124,000 to £128,000,

be worth when renovated?

I'd anticipate achieving a figure in the region of £200,000.

So, there's not as much character as I'd hoped for but there's still

plenty of charm in this property and it's very unique.

And who couldn't fall in love with THAT view?

Let's find out who did, when it went under the hammer.

Ladies and gentlemen, lot 91, £100,000 to start that one.

80 then? Thank you, sir.

80, I'll take that one.

£80,000 on my left.

Seated at 80,000.

I'll take 90 now.

The lot got off to a rapid start.

We rejoin the bidding with the auctioneer looking for a bid of

-£125,000.

-125. 130, sir?

130, sir. Thank you.

130. 135, madam?

Do the same again? £130,000, for the first time, the second time,

the third and the very last time.

It's yours to number 128, sir.

Thank you very much indeed.

The successful bidder, securing the lot for just a couple of thousand

pounds over the top guide price, was Scott.

He set up a new property-developing company with his two friends.

We met up to see if they're going to be bringing on back the good times

and original features to the property.

Scott, congratulations.

Thank you.

Was it your first time at auction?

No, it's not my first time.

No. Last year I purchased another property at auction.

But it's still as exciting at this one, but it was far in excess of

what we initially anticipated paying.

What did your partners say?

What did they think when you broke the news?

I don't really know because they didn't speak to me for a while.

SHE LAUGHS

-Funny that.

-Yeah, I know.

But, er, they eventually came round.

We did have a viewing the week after the auction and we were all very

pleasantly surprised with what we found and they cheered up somewhat.

OK. So, I'm guessing, if you didn't mean to buy a property,

you didn't follow the Hammer golden rule of looking inside first?

Where can I hide? No, I didn't. No.

I didn't actually view the property.

You didn't read the legal pack?

Not really, no. There was an extra £10,000 in agency fees.

I had to pay their solicitor, the auction house,

which totalled it up to about £10,000 more.

So that was a bit of a hit but, still, I think

we're in a good position to make some money.

That'll teach you. Let's turn to the positives.

Cos it is... It looks like it needs quite a bit done but hopefully just

-cosmetic.

-There's a bit of damp in a few areas, which we'll rectify,

but on top of that, it'll be new kitchen, new bathroom,

and renovating throughout.

Any plans to change the layout?

Yes, the one change down here would be to remove this wall.

OK. So, that's...

Is that not going to cause a problem because of the conservation area?

-That's a proper wall.

-That's going to be something I'm going to take up

with the council - whether it's got any internal covenants on it.

I don't believe it will have - but that's a phone call I've got to make, yeah.

Now, time scale? When do want to turn this round by?

We're looking at about six to eight weeks.

Six to eight WEEKS, OK. So, you want a quick turnaround.

Yeah, we're going to turn it round quite quick, yeah.

We're going to throw a few bodies at it.

We've got plumbers, electricians, chippies.

So we cover all angles, really.

Also, I've got plans to put back in some of the original features it's

lost over the years.

You do. Like what?

Wrought-iron fireplaces, that sort of thing.

But also having the modern twist in areas as well.

I'm so happy to hear that.

-Thank you.

-Because although you're doing it as a business,

and to make a profit, you care that whoever comes in has a bit of the

-original character.

-Yeah, I like to bring back some of the past, yeah,

into the property, yeah, and bring back the original features.

-And your budget?

-About £20,000 we're looking at spending.

And do you plan to rent this out or sell?

At the moment, with our situation,

I'd like to flip it and move on to the next project.

I feel that we should say hello to your partners.

-What are their names?

-Ian and Steve.

Yes. Sorry, lads, but I think it will all turn out well in the end.

They have made up with you, yeah?

-Yes, we're all good now.

-Fantastic.

Can't wait to see what you do with the place.

-Good luck.

-Thank you.

Ian and Steve may not have expected to take this place on when Scott

went to auction but, thankfully,

they both seem to be on board and they don't seem to be fazed by the

project, which is fair enough, given their experience.

But will they be able to bring back some of the character features this

place so deserves?

I really hope so.

We can find out later in the show.

Hanley is historically one of the six pottery towns that make up the

city of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire.

More recently, it's thought of as the central hub and city centre of Stoke.

With plenty of shops, amenities and transport links,

it's easy to see why.

Well, just half a mile from Hanley centre is the property I'm here to see.

A two-bedroom bungalow, guide price £70,000, plus nice views.

Let's have a look. Blimey!

This driveway...

# You know the time has come

# Must be done, we're goin' down here... #

Well, I'll tell you,

the first thing you'd want to do is consider that driveway.

Wow, that is steep.

Maybe some steps to one side, so it isn't such a hazard if you were walking down.

I think, for a car, it would be all right.

But anyway, moving on from the driveway,

what have we got when you enter into the bungalow itself?

Well, obviously, some steps up to the attic.

We'll explore that a little bit later.

Kitchen to the left there.

I don't like the position of the immersion heater,

that's a bit in the way, isn't it? And all this stuff.

Get rid of all that. Open it up.

In a smaller house, a relatively smaller house like this,

you want to open it up as much as you possibly can.

So, replace all the units and try and open that up as much as you can.

Actually, bit of a surprise, you come in here,

a really good-sized living room,

which looks to be in fairly decent condition.

Relatively newish-looking central-heating system.

So that's quite a bonus.

I wonder if there's something you could even do to take out this wall,

open it up completely into the kitchen,

maybe put a breakfast bar or something like that in.

Whatever. Down this little corridor

you've got a bathroom and loo in one place, a bit small.

The first of your bedrooms there.

Again that looks a bit tiny.

Second bedroom, a bit bigger,

but this layout is just not working for me because through this bedroom

into...

Look. A little conservatory off a bedroom!

Does that make sense?

I definitely think there is internal jiggery-pokery to be done.

Intrinsically a good bungalow, it just needs some thought.

# Let's think it over, oh, yeah... #

This bungalow offers a puzzle but the missing piece is unlikely to be

in the overgrown back garden.

The split level means any extension could prove prohibitively expensive.

The easiest option would be simply swapping round the master bedroom

and living room.

The downside would be that the master bedroom faces out to the

front and is sandwiched between the living room and the kitchen.

So, where to put that bedroom?

Answers to property conundrums don't usually go over my head but in this

case...

Well, whenever you're looking round bungalows,

one thing you want to try and do, if you can, is look up in the attic space.

In this case, there is a loft ladder which makes it very easy but I do

know people who carry around little sets of ladders, so they can access

the attic space. As I said, it's a really important thing to do just to

check the condition of the roof itself, the joists, etc...

But in this case, being a bungalow,

what I'm looking for most is, is there an opportunity to maybe extend

up here, possibly put in a dormer or something like that?

And unfortunately I don't think it's going to work here because there

isn't the roof height that you would require.

The one thing that is good is that you've got floorboards down, which

definitely makes it a usable space.

However, what on earth is that?

Somebody's built some kind of little room up here.

A bit odd. I think that needs to go.

This would never meet building regulations, so it's a no-no.

Time for me to...

# Get down! #

..from here and hear from a local property expert.

We asked an agent from the auction house along to give the

two-bed bungalow a look.

First of all, did he see any opportunity

in exploiting that attic space?

My opinion would be that it's not really necessary to go into

the roof space to provide further accommodation.

One of the big selling points of the property is that it is a

true bungalow - all the accommodation on one level.

That really could be its main selling point anyway.

Pressure to get the most out of land supply has meant the number of

bungalows being built is in serious decline.

It's a pity, as many people like one-level living with a garden

and they suit people with mobility issues.

But that shortage means bungalows are fetching a premium in some areas,

so what value could you add to that £70,000 guide price?

After refurbishment of this bungalow, I would place it on the

market in the region of £120,000.

Well, a good little project for someone, this.

Bungalows enduringly popular and not too much work needed to sort this

one out. Who went for it?

Let's find out when it went under the hammer.

70 to start me on this one.

Two-bedroomed semidetached bungalow.

70, can I say? 70 bid in front of the door.

Thank you. At £70,000.

I'll go in ones on this.

To you at 71. 72.

There were plenty of bidders interested in this lot.

We rejoin it at £85,000.

£85,000 twice.

Third and final time...

Just in time. 86.

87. 88.

No? £88,000 for the first time.

At £88,000 for the second time.

All sure and done?

Sold to you, sir. 88,000.

Hiding from the view of our cameras was Rob and his wife Ali.

Rob is from Stoke originally but now lives in Edinburgh with his wife Ali

and they travelled down to tell me why they spent £88,000 on this

bungalow so far from home.

Ali, Rob, good to meet you both.

-And you.

-And you.

-Congratulations.

Tell me why you wanted to buy this bungalow.

It just felt the right time to get into property development.

We've been thinking about it for some time.

Yes, financially, it just seemed the right time so we bought this and

-another property.

-On the same day?

-Yes.

-Oh, wow.

We were signing for the other one when we purchased this one.

I was actually bidding on this while she was signing for the other.

No! You don't do things by halves, then.

-No.

-Just to add to the drama!

The normal course of action would be to maybe try one and see how it goes.

Yeah, no, we don't like to make it easy on ourselves.

THEY LAUGH

Rob, what do you both do?

Well, I'm not doing anything now.

I left my job to come here to do property development.

Oh, great. What were you doing before?

Customer service advisor at Edinburgh Council.

Oh, OK.

So complete shift of career.

-Yes.

-Great. How exciting.

How about you?

Well, I'm a writer, so I work from home anyway, so I shall just work around that.

Oh, OK. Is property going to be the main source of income from now on?

For the next couple of years.

We're just trying to raise a bit of extra

income to start a rural business.

Doing what?

Some market gardening and maybe a yurt village.

-Oh, great.

-That's our

-plans for the future.

-And you'll use property to finance that dream?

Yes.

This is a new chapter for Ali and Rob.

Their two sons, Dylan and Liam,

are grown up and ready to leave home, so Ali and Rob are

ready for a new adventure.

So, what plans have you got for the bungalow?

-Right...

-Well, basically, new kitchen, new bathroom,

but keep the bathroom layout as it is.

Move that wall further this way.

So we create a bedroom at the front here and the living area at the back,

-looking out onto the back.

-And we'll convert the back window

to French doors.

Keeping the conservatory?

Yes, keep the conservatory there.

But attached to the living room rather than a bedroom?

That's right, yes.

And the idea of moving rooms around and walls and all that stuff,

suddenly takes it into a slightly different league, doesn't it?

-It does.

-These are only stud walls,

so they are easy to take down and just move along a bit.

-Right.

-It's nothing too drastic.

He says!

As well as travelling from Edinburgh to do some of the work themselves,

they are also getting help from Rob's family, who live locally in Stoke.

His cousin is an electrician, so can make sure moving any wiring within

that wall is done safely.

However, they did get a bit of a shock after purchasing the property,

as they'd only viewed it from the outside,

so they didn't know about that, erm, odd room in the attic.

You'd think Ali would know better than judge a book by its cover.

So what are you going to do about that?

The apex isn't high enough to meet regs for conversion into a dormer,

so we'll just take that room down and leave it as a floored attic.

-Right.

-Good storage up there.

Definitely. So what's the budget for your works?

Right... We're probably looking at about...

We said eight, didn't we?

Eight grand with maybe a couple of grand contingency there, hopefully.

There's a little bit of wiggle room there.

What's the timescale for what you're doing on this place?

Well, because we may be working between the two at certain times,

we've given ourselves about four to six months, really, realistically,

especially with having to do the travel from Edinburgh at times.

It just takes the pressure off, I think,

to give ourselves a big enough window.

Will you do more after this or is it from these two into your dream rural

-business?

-We'd like to do a few more, wouldn't we?

Perhaps do this for a couple of years, if we can.

We'll see what others come up at the auctions along the way, yes.

Well, congratulations.

-Thank you very much.

-Good luck with it.

-Thank you.

-We'll come back to see how you get on.

-Thank you.

Well, Ali and Rob really jumping in with both feet, buying two

properties at the same auction, ha!

Well, for novices, that is certainly an adventurous way to go.

And although there's not too much work to do to sort this place out,

it could be a bit of a steep learning curve.

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

Coming up - I'm rattling around a mid-terrace in Sutton.

This is what it sounds like.

RATTLING

And find out if Ali and Rob were left rattled by their first property

-renovation.

-I think future projects will hopefully be easier.

Back now to the cathedral city of Lichfield in Staffordshire,

where I was praying to see some lovely character features in this

quirky cottage in a conservation area.

But sadly... I won't lie, I'm a wee bit disappointed.

An awful lot of character features have been taken out.

So, look at that fireplace -

it's really modern and, obviously, an original was there at some stage.

And really new windows, not terribly in keeping with the property.

You do have an original beam on the roof.

Thankfully, all was not lost.

There were some modern additions that were welcome.

A relatively new boiler and a loft conversion with a

bijou third bedroom that had a charm of its own.

However it was not the remaining charm that enticed the person who

bought the cottage into paying £130,000 for it at auction -

because Scott, well, he bought it blind.

He'd just formed a property development company with his two friends.

Thankfully they weren't likely to be too alarmed, as they all had a

construction background.

Thank goodness.

They were planning for a modern,

open-plan vibe but there was good news on the period feature front.

I've got plans to put back in some of the original features that it's

-lost over the years.

-Oh, you do?

-Yeah.

-Like what?

-Wrought-iron fireplaces, that sort of thing.

But also having a modern twist in areas as well.

I'm so happy to hear that.

Thank you.

Well, don't pat yourself on the back too quickly there, Scott,

because, as they say, the proof is in the pudding.

Armed with £20,000 and a timescale of six to eight weeks to turn the

house around, did Scott manage to bring out the character

in this cute cottage?

Using specialist paint suitable for UPVC,

the windows have been transformed.

So, what about inside?

It's certainly got character

but also with a nice contemporary touch, too.

Removing the wall between the kitchen and the lounge, with the

addition of a steel beam to support the weight from above,

has produced a modern, open-plan living area.

It's retained period features like the beams and also added

character features, like exposed brick and a log-burner.

On the first floor,

the bathroom has been reconfigured and the bath moved to the back wall,

giving more usable space.

The floor tiles and radiator also add some period charm to a very

modern room.

In the master bedroom,

Scott has indeed put original-style features back in.

This reclaimed cast-iron fireplace is charming.

The rest of the house has been finished to a very high standard.

It's been fully replastered and rewired, as well as having new

skirting and doors fitted.

Up to the top floor - the old cupboards have gone,

giving this eaves bedroom a little more usable space.

Outside, there is a new flagstone patio,

from which you can take in the view of that three-spire cathedral.

Overall, I would say that Scott has kept to his word by bringing back

the character to this cottage.

The property obviously is an old property.

Originally, it would have had a lot of original features.

A lot of that had been stripped out over the years,

but what we wanted to do was bring back that character feel and install

some original features.

We have done that by relieving some brickwork internally and also

putting a log-burner in, original beams back in,

so it brings the character back up, we feel, and produces a nice,

original feel to the house.

I absolutely love it!

It has really brought out the charm of this cottage.

The high-end finish is testament to the talent of the three business

partners and their team.

The project ran pretty smoothly.

We have all our own in-house guys,

so everybody is highly skilled and know what they are doing.

As with any project like this,

it is pretty much the logistics and the bringing together of all the

trades at the right time, but the project went pretty smoothly.

We finished on our deadline, which was eight weeks.

We did have to pull a couple of trades in that weren't our usual guys

because we were busy elsewhere, which sometimes has its own problems,

but the job pretty much ran very smoothly, yeah.

It may have been on schedule,

but this transformation can't have been cheap.

It certainly looks as though this renovation might have cost more than

their initial 20-grand budget.

We did go up on the budget.

We decided,

due to the area, it deserved a bit more investment into the property.

We actually doubled the spend, £40,000,

but that is including everything, labour, materials, any fees.

The extra spend has taken the total here to £170,000.

Time to see if two local estate agents think it is money well spent.

First, let's hear from the estate agent who saw it the last time.

I think the overall standard of the finish is very, very good.

They have done considerable works downstairs

to create one living space,

which I think is a bit detrimental to the property,

as it would not suit a family too well.

My first impressions of the property are that it has been done to an

extremely high standard throughout.

The kitchen and bathrooms are particularly high standard,

and he has kept the character throughout the property,

which is a really good selling point in a city like Lichfield,

where these kinds of properties are in high demand.

A bit of a mixed bag there, then.

Will the sales figures be as varied for this house that cost Scott and

his business partners £170,000?

If this was to be on the open market,

I would put it on the market somewhere between £200,000 and £225,000.

The current valuation I would give for this property would be between

£240,000 and £260,000.

Yes, we have had a few valuations ourselves.

We have had up of 250.

We decided to put it on at 250 for a quick sale,

but, yeah, £225 seems a little bit low, but, you know,

we will see what we get for it in the end.

That figure of £250,000 gives Scott and his team a profit of £80,000,

minus fees and tax, so what's next?

It's tied up a bit of money, so hopefully it sells quick,

so we can release that money and go on to the next project.

And the good news is that, since filming,

Scott has sold it for that asking price - subject to contract.

Good job!

The London Borough of Sutton sits south-west of the capital,

and it has got a lot going for it - Tube, overland train

and extensive road networks.

So, travel certainly is not an issue,

but there are plenty of amenities right here on your doorstep.

We are 15 minutes away from the centre of Sutton,

along this very pretty and quiet street.

Now, the property I am here to see is a two-bed mid-terrace house with

a guide price of £240,000 plus.

It is this beauty.

And I am going to have a look inside.

Wish me luck.

Right, as soon as you come in, there are bags everywhere,

but look at this wood panelling here.

Very old-fashioned wood panelling,

and this wallpaper takes me back a long, long way to Leicester.

Old-fashioned wallpaper, but it's not any more, is it?

That is kind of retro and kind of cool.

I do like the wallpaper, I've got to say.

What have we got in here? We have got the first reception room with

gas fire. Nice big window, though,

and a sofa that you would want to get rid of as well.

I think you'd have to clear all this out of here before you can even see

what you have got. Stairs going up to the bedrooms,

second reception room is just there.

And it is not a bad-sized room at all.

Again, it is just full of stuff.

Got a window out to the back garden.

Further down the hallway, if you follow me down here,

we have got the dining room.

Follow me here,

but the ceiling is actually coming in.

There is no support in that corner for the ceiling whatsoever.

I don't really want to go any further that way.

What I do know is, the kitchen is just through there.

It is just full of stuff, the wallpaper is coming off the walls.

There are holes everywhere in the ceiling.

All this rubble, rubbish, mess

will have to come out before you can actually see exactly what you are

dealing with.

Before moving a thing, though, you need to do a safety check.

We haven't taken any risks here,

and neither should anyone buying this place.

Get a builder in to see if you need to put in supports to hold up the roof,

and I would get the floor checked as well, if you have got any chance of

saving this place.

# So rescue me

# So rescue me... #

Right, upstairs, and it is really dark and dingy up here.

On the landing, look, it is just all falling away.

It's a bit of a mess.

Now, here is your family bathroom,

and just beyond the family bathroom is another door that gives you the

toilet. I do not want to go in there because,

just below the taps to the bath is where there is no support on the

ceiling or that floor, so I am not going to go in there at all.

I could find myself in the dining room.

Up a couple of steps, along the landing,

more retro wallpaper, this is the first

of the two bedrooms.

Now, as I look in here, full of stuff again,

you have got a window looking out onto the back garden.

It is not a bad size, you could get a double bed in there no problem at

all. But it has been left for so long,

even the polystyrene tiles are falling off the ceiling.

And into the main bedroom, another double bedroom.

Again, full of stuff, but look at this ceiling.

Now, is that cool nowadays?

Is it retro? Or is the paint just peeling off the ceiling?

I think it's the latter.

I think you actually call them stalactites.

Anyway, this is a good-sized bedroom.

There is a lot of mess and rubble in here,

but look at this I have spotted. This is an old-fashioned rattle.

This is what it sounds like.

RATTLING

Very, very noisy!

Right, where do you start with this house?

Clear it out, start again, see what you have got.

The state of this place is enough to rattle anybody,

but this is the kind of house that you do have to look beyond the mess.

# You're really lovely underneath it all

# Do you want to love me underneath it all? #

The upstairs bathroom is good news,

but the fact there is only two bedrooms is not so great.

There could be a solution to that.

Right, if you are looking to create a third bedroom,

that could be the way to go.

Now, check with your local authority to see if you need planning,

but it should fall within permitted development.

So it is worth investigating.

I don't really want to go up there and investigate any further.

I have to admit, this house does frighten me, it needs so much work doing.

# Big scary place

# Big scary place... #

The alternative to up is possibly out.

There is room at the back, but to create an extra bedroom,

you would need a two-storey extension,

which would be expensive and time-consuming.

So, I would look up for the extra space.

What does a local estate agent think?

How many bedrooms should this house have to meet local market needs?

A minimum of three or four bedrooms, I mean, three, certainly.

But when you extend the property into a four-bedroom,

then obviously people are looking for more downstairs space as well.

Expanding the size, on top of all the remedial work,

I am now getting really scared of this house!

The guide price was 240 grand plus.

Could the potential resale values make me less petrified?

As a two-bedroom, it could sell for £370,000 to £385,000.

If you were to extend into the loft, gaining just a bedroom,

you would be looking at

£380,000 to £395,000.

If you were to extend on the ground floor,

you may be looking at £400,000 to £415,000.

And how about on the rental market?

As a three-bedroom, you would be looking at a rent of around about

£1,350 to £1,400, and as a four-bedroom you would be looking at

£1,650 to £1,850.

Right, if ever there was a property that needed stripping back and

starting again, that is it.

There is a whole lot of work that needs to be done in there,

starting by cleaning it out.

But if you can see beyond the rubble and the rubbish,

I think there is a really nice family home to be had.

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

Well, it was in a busy auction room that the two-bed run-down Sutton

-house came up for sale.

-Third and last time, sold.

Unfortunately, it was sold out of sight of our cameras for 304 grand.

And the successful bidder was Dan.

I hope he likes a challenge!

Dan, nice to meet you.

-Dion, nice to meet you.

-Congratulations, pal.

-Thank you very much.

-Right, I am looking around.

Tell me what it was about this house that made you want to buy it.

Probably the wallpaper!

DION LAUGHS

Really, the condition of it.

I know it needs a lot of work, I am a builder,

and I know it is in our hands and we can turn it round the way we want it.

-Are you happy with what you paid for it, then?

-Not really.

-OK!

-To be honest, it went 24 grand over budget.

-The cardinal rule of auctioneering...

-Yes, yes...

I was coming to that as well, but you beat me to it, fine,

as long as you know!

When you say we, who is the we?

Myself and three other friends.

OK. Give them a name check, come on, give them a name check.

-Dan, Paul and Sam.

-OK, they are all in it together?

Yes, we are all in it together.

None of them viewed it, I was the only one that viewed it.

-OK.

-So I am the only one that has seen this,

so they are going on my recommendation that we can turn this around.

So they are going to be surprised when they come in here, like everyone else.

-When they see it.

-Yeah.

-So will you get them to come in now,

-beforehand...

-Oh, yeah!

-Make sure they actually see how it is before...?

I could either do that or not let them see it at all,

and then let them see the end product.

Yes, Dan, I think that is the best idea!

Because there is quite a few things here that might scare off any investors.

There is a decent crack in the room next door,

I have seen a hole in the floor, in the ceiling, I have seen damp.

-Yeah, anything else?

-Doesn't bother you?

No. So, it is a terraced house, it is between houses.

Structurally, you mentioned a crack, I am not concerned by it.

But, realistically, this house hasn't been touched in probably 60 or 70 years,

so we are going to strip it back to its original side walls,

front walls, wherever the joists are rotten, we will remove.

The back section will be completely reinstated, to bring the structure back.

OK, let's start on the ground floor.

-What are you going to do?

-In the middle room,

we are probably going to bring the family bathroom down to the ground floor,

then that in turn will create three bedrooms on the first floor,

and then the loft will be a bedroom with a separate bathroom.

So that will create, at the moment it is a two-bed,

it will actually make it a four-bed.

I have got to say, I do like a family bathroom on the first floor,

-I have got to say.

-Yeah, that is where...

But they can either go upstairs or downstairs!

-So they take their pick.

-So they are halfway.

-Yeah.

OK. What about the kitchen at the back of the property?

-What are you going to do there?

-We are going to knock through those walls,

creating one large space.

We are going to have French doors going out to the rear garden,

but there is no extension,

so we are not extending the actual footprint of the original house.

OK. Outside, the Serengeti out the back!

What are you going to do there?

Clear it, put a day room down the back,

which is going to be a kind of outdoor play room.

OK, that's cool.

And then some artificial turf and some decking.

Right, that is a pretty long list.

I would need more fingers, but

for all you are going to do, how much is it going to cost you?

We have budgeted 70 to 75.

OK, and how long is it going to take you?

We want to complete it within 10 or 12 weeks.

-Really?

-Well, it is an aggressive schedule, but we want to go at it.

We have got a

-team ready to...

-To come in and get on with it?

I can't wait to see it! All the best.

-Thank you.

-Good luck, Dan.

-Thank you.

Now, there is a man who knows exactly what he is doing,

and he is not afraid of anything this house can throw at him.

Dan is definitely a man with a plan,

but will he get everything done within that aggressive timescale?

You can find out later in the programme.

Well, we have seen how one of our properties turned out,

but what about the other two?

Will it be mission accomplished or a Mission: Impossible?

Yes, wait no longer, let's find out.

We are heading back to Hanley in Stoke,

where I saw a bungalow with a bit of a steep driveway.

And inside, things also went a bit downhill.

The entrance led to a kitchen then a spacious lounge.

So far, so good,

but it was in the master bedroom

that things took a turn for the worse.

Because through this bedroom into...

Look, this little conservatory, what, off a bedroom?

Does that make sense?!

# It don't make no sense... #

A simple and sensible solution seems to be to swap the master

bedroom and the living room around,

which was just the plan first-time property developers Ali and Rob

planned to follow. They spent £88,000 on this bungalow at auction,

but it wasn't the only purchase on the day.

This was in fact house one of two.

Now, the normal course of action would be to maybe try one and

-see how it goes!

-Yeah, no, we don't like to make it easy on ourselves!

So, Rob, what do you both do?

Well, I am not doing anything now.

I left me job to come in to the property development.

Oh, great, how exciting. How about you?

Well, I am a writer, so I work from home anyway,

so I shall just work around that.

To add to the drama, although Rob was originally from Stoke,

home for them was just a, oh, five-hour journey north to Edinburgh.

First-time developers with two properties,

potential new careers and long commutes -

this story could be a real page-turner, then.

Let's see how things have gone just over one year later.

# You change your position

# And you're changing me... #

It is all change in here.

The master bedroom is now in the old lounge,

and the dividing wall has been moved back to give more space to the new

living and dining room.

With double doors leading out to the conservatory, this is much better,

but there were still layout issues to sort at the entrance.

# But I've got a plan

# Why don't you be the artist and make me out of clay?

# Why don't you be the writer and decide the words I say? #

I'd say that, by removing the wall at the entrance,

this is a much-improved open space, which has been used by Ali and Rob

as a temporary home whilst they complete the project.

There is not a room in this bungalow which hasn't been reconfigured,

mainly due to the hallway being removed and incorporated into the rooms.

It means that the bedrooms are both accessed from the living room,

but for the extra usable space, I think it is worth it.

And it's not just the inside that has been transformed.

Remember that wild and overgrown garden?

At the front of the house, that steep driveway I remarked on

has been block paved.

I don't have a protractor to hand,

but I have been reliably informed

it is down to a 15-degree angle, from 35.

One thing that was definitely protracted was the amount of time taken to

complete the work, especially as Ali and Rob hoped to have this done in

four to six months.

It ballooned to about eight months for the bulk of the work.

And I had to take about a month off because I got a trapped nerve in my

back while I was doing the flooring in the kitchen.

And then we had a wedding in Chile!

And Christmas! And life just did not wait for us to catch up and finish

-the house.

-They certainly have had a busy year.

Ali not only had to help her sons Liam and Dylan

pack for their moves to Chile and Brighton, respectively,

but also pack up their home in Edinburgh.

Ali and Rob wisely decided living in Stoke would help progress both their

renovation projects better.

Now the work is complete on this house,

they are going to relocate again to a rental property.

How have they found handling their new careers in property?

It has just been a really great year, being our own bosses,

and it hasn't put us off doing it again either, so...

No, we've done tiling, bricklaying, that I had never done before,

and obviously the painting.

We are getting better as we are learning.

The couple did get in professionals for the work they couldn't or

shouldn't do themselves, so now they have a team they can rely on.

It is all a steep learning curve,

but I think future projects will hopefully be easier.

The budget, with a contingency, was £10,000.

There has been a steep climb to a spend of £20,000,

which is mainly due to the windows being renewed throughout,

and that monobloc paving.

We asked two local estate agents along to give us their views and

test the new drive. First, the agent who saw it before.

The layout of the property works well.

I think they have done the most they can with the space.

Maybe not ideal that both bedrooms come straight off the living room,

but that is just the best they could do with the current layout.

I am very, very impressed,

both with the standard of the finish and with the bungalow itself.

There are also not a lot of bungalows around,

and certainly not ones done to this standard.

It is an extremely saleable bungalow.

Sounds very positive,

so what kind of sales figures could

Ali and Rob expect for their £108,000 investment?

If I was to sell the property,

I would recommend a figure in the region of £135,000.

I would place this property on the market in the region of £140,000.

We are in a position where we have actually accepted an offer

of £130,000.

We had got another offer coming in at £132,000,

but it was a more complicated chain,

so we have gone with the first offer to see how that works out,

and we have got the other one as back-up, potentially.

There is no chain there, and we are happy with the profit,

so we will probably go ahead with that.

Electing to go for a quick sale will free up £22,000 profit,

minus taxes and fees, of course.

And the capital will allow them to finish the other property they

bought at the same time as this one.

This is a real success for a first project,

so does it mean Ali will be closing the book on her writing career?

This has basically become a full-time job, particularly for Rob,

but also for me.

I have had to put some of my work on the back burner,

although I have been keeping a journal, and I have got plenty of material,

so I will be writing about it at some point in the future.

Well, Ali, we are hanging on for the sequel for this work,

given you have another property to complete.

I have a feeling we will be seeing you on the show again,

with your next edition.

Back to the London Borough of Sutton now,

where I saw a two-bed mid-terrace house that was pretty scary,

and it was not just about clearing out the stuff or the renovations

that made me nervous. The ceiling is actually coming in,

there is no support in that corner for the ceiling whatsoever.

I don't really want to go any further that way.

What I do know is, the kitchen is just through there.

Above that small kitchen was the bathroom and toilet.

There was a lot more structural damage visible here, too.

This entire house needed to be looked at by a professional.

Good thing, then, the person that spent £304,000 for this at auction

was Dan, because he is a builder.

He and three friends formed a company to develop property,

and they must have had a lot of faith in Dan, because...

I was the only one that viewed it.

-OK!

-So I am the only one that has seen this,

so they are going on my recommendation that we can turn this around.

So they are going to be surprised when they come in here, like everyone else.

-When they see it.

-Yeah.

-So, will you get them to come in now...

-Oh, yes!

-..and make sure they actually see how it is before...?

I could either do that or not let them see it and then let them see

the end product.

Between the damp, the cracks, holes and collapsing walls,

floors, and ceilings, I thought option two might be best.

But none of this fazed Dan in the least.

He planned to take this building back to brick and then change it

from a two-bedroom into a profitable four-bed house.

They had a timescale he described as aggressive - 10 to 12 weeks.

14 weeks later, and we are back.

Outside, there is a big improvement, with new double-glazed sash windows,

but I think now we should take a look...

# Inside

# Hey! #

No, that's not an extension.

Everything you see here is within the same footprint as before.

The difference is mind-blowing!

# Guaranteed I can blow your mind, mwah

# And tonight I'm alive, ain't a dollar sign

# Guaranteed I can blow your mind, mwah

# And tonight I'm alive, ain't a dollar sign

# Guaranteed I can blow your mind, mwah... #

I was bang on about removing walls,

but I think the results back that up.

Although the original plan was to have a bathroom down here, instead,

there is a small utility and toilet.

That is because Dan and his friends have changed their minds,

as they think a family bathroom on the first floor is more important

when selling.

I have to agree. Let's see what is going on upstairs.

Removing the chimney breast and the wall has made this a proper

family bathroom.

Hold on stalactite to see the changes in the bedrooms.

But it's not the last room we have to see.

Dan took it up a notch, with a loft conversion,

and created a double-apex double bedroom with a little extra...

An en-suite shower room, which means there is a toilet on every floor.

Last, but certainly not least, the garden has had a full makeover.

Dan and his team have done a brilliant job.

This house has undergone an immense change.

When we came into the property,

a lot of it was masked by the clutter that was in here.

As soon as we cleared the house,

we found the cracks that were there

were coming from internal brick walls,

so once we identified and we pulled away the old carpet,

we could see that a lot of the internal structural walls were built

on floorboards.

So this has caused, obviously, subsidence within the internal walls,

so in turn we took those down and reformed them up in stud walls.

It was quite an extreme job in regards structural wise.

There was a lot of steels,

not only for the loft conversions but to create the openings that we

have made downstairs. And we have given strength back to the house.

It has been hard.

There have been some late nights, some early mornings.

The team worked very hard.

I think they are due a nice break now.

Dan managed to do the work here within his estimated 10- to 12-week

timescale, so that is good news to report to his three friends,

who co-invested in this project without seeing the house.

They have kind of left me to it. They have been involved,

they have been obviously visiting,

I have been keeping them up to date with progress, pictures...

We have not really had any complications other than the structural work and

the added amount of skips we have required,

so we went from possibly using 5 to 12,

so that is obviously a big cost for us,

but it is not only the cost of the skip,

it is also the cost of loading the skip, so it is kind of...

That is where the budget wasn't really where it should have been.

The extra skip costs put Dan over his maximum budget of £75,000 by

£3,000, bringing his total spend here to £382,000,

but has it all been worth it?

I think it was...

a lot to take on at the start, for our first project,

but I think the finish now has made it all worthwhile.

Well, time to see if two local property experts agree,

because we have asked them along to give us their thoughts on the

changes here. First, let's hear from the agent who saw it before.

Fantastic. I mean, it is a complete transformation from before.

Really light and airy, a lot of good modern touches to it as well.

Fantastic transformation.

Having had a look round the property,

I believe the quality of finishes are very good.

The room sizes are fantastic,

and there is also an outhouse as well, which gives that extra

little space for the new owners.

The demand in the area at the moment is strong,

so Dan and his friends are looking for a quick sale.

What could they hope to sell this for?

The property could sell for in the region of £525,000.

I believe this property would sell for anywhere between

£520,000 to £545,000.

We budgeted for 500,

so anything north of that has been a real good achievement,

so happy with it.

In fact, Dan has now sold the house for £530,000,

so they have made 148 grand profit, before taxes and fees, of course.

That is an amazing result, so how about Dan's three friends?

Are they chuffed with the project AND his hard work?

They are happy, so I have kept them up to date with pictures.

They haven't actually seen it all cleaned out from building materials,

so we are going to have kind of a topping-out party here, hopefully,

any time soon, just so, really, they can see the end product.

Different properties have different issues,

and the trick is to find a way to solve the problem without blowing

your budget and to do it quickly.

Yes, problem-solving can be the biggest asset when you are into the

-property world.

-Mm, yes, so we will be solving more problems...

HE COUGHS

..or not, here on Homes Under The Hammer for you next time.

-Bye-bye.

-Bye-bye.

-Bye-bye.