Episode 21 Homes Under the Hammer

Hello and welcome to the show.

Now, when it comes to investing in property,

one of the best ways to get a grip on things

is to look at the local housing market.

Yes, if you do a bit of research

it can give you a bit of an advantage in the property game.

And when you've got that homework under your belt,

why not take that knowledge to auction

and find out what's on offer?

In many ways, a property project's like a relationship,

you need to put in a lot of quality time

and there are a few compromises along the way.

Yeah, let's hope that none of today's stories ended in divorce.

Here are the properties that we're featuring on today's show.

I am at a grand old house in Kidderminster,

with some not-so mod cons.

This is a new sandwich toaster.

Definitely not.

This London flat might be quite small,

but I still find some hidden extras.

As I said, we're in London,

so this could almost count as a second bedroom!

While I find a free trampoline in a house in Stoke,

but it's not all it's cracked up to be.

Oh, my word!

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

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

Yours, sir.

DION: We head now to Kidderminster in Worcestershire.

A large, picturesque town with a very busy high street,

it lies just 17 miles south-west of its neighbouring Birmingham

and 15 miles north of Worcester.

Just a ten-minute walk from the city centre and just off the main road

is the house I am here to see.

And here it is. And it looks very nice, too.

It's a four-bed, detached property with a guide price of ?250,000.

It does look nice from the outside.

I'm going in.

# Why does it always rain on me?

# Is it because I lied... #

OK, we're into a small porchway area,

one step up into a decent-sized sort of hallway

and as soon as you walk in, you've got this feeling of 1930s,

cos you've got panelled walls...

Same there on the banister.

Bakelite light switches as well.

Really old-fashioned, definitely a '30s feel.

Textured wallpaper.

You do have central heating, though, that is a bonus.

The first reception room is a decent size with a nice big window.

It's the decor from a long time ago.

Nice, big lounge there or looks like a nice lounge,

I'll have to go back and explore that a little bit later,

and then into the kitchen, which is a decent size.

All the original cupboards, still there.

They would have been there from the time this house was built,

they've even got a little bit of wallpaper on the ceiling as well.

That's a strange one. Those tiles would have to come down, definitely.

But there's enough space in here, if it's your choice,

to start afresh and start brand-new.

And look at this. This is a new sandwich toaster.

Definitely not.

This is a range cooker that would have been here

from the very, very beginning.

Maybe it was even used to heat part of the house as well.

And you've also got a large pantry there with lots of shelving

and a door off to the garage as well.

So, there's so much space, so much scope.

I'm looking through that big window right now

and I can see a huge back garden.

I'll explore that a little bit later as well.

That lounge first.

OK, through into the lounge and it's a good-sized lounge.

It goes from the front of the house to the back of the house.

And it's loaded with period features.

You've got portal windows, round, stained-glass windows just there.

This old, really sort of psychedelic carpet runs through

all the way into the lounge.

And here, you've got some steel-framed glass doors

and windows, definitely an original feature.

I'd like some big bi-folding doors straight on to the back garden.

Now, sometimes in houses of this period,

carpets can actually hide a very nice flooring

and I'm hoping this is going to be no exception.

Let's have a little look down here...

..and see. And as you can see,

this is the original parquet flooring.

If can you imagine giving this a bit of a clean-up, get it shined,

get it polished up, this may run all the way through to the front door.

This carpet will definitely be coming up.

# I'm the type that they classify

# As quaint

# I'm old-fashioned... #

Upstairs, the four bedrooms are all huge.

This bedroom has an odd little alcove with a cute window.

I think there's room for at least one ensuite up here.

The big let-down is that rather odd combo,

a separate toilet with no sink, and a sink and a bath.

I've never understood that. It needs to be sorted.

There's an attic that needs more work, but that does mean more space.

This property may be dated but these houses were built to last.

But that doesn't mean that's the end of the construction here.

So, out into the back garden, and it's a huge back garden,

it's absolutely massive!

And the potential out here is...

You can do whatever you want, you could lawn it,

put some lovely flowers up, anything you want.

And with a garden this size, there's always potential

to extend on the back of the house, and this is no exception.

It could be a single or a double extension.

And still have yourself loads of space out the back

for your trampoline,

your swimming pool and your golf course!

Slightly over the top, but you know what I mean, the potential's huge.

OK, it might be more pitch and putt

but I think this house, guided at ?250,000,

is a birdie opportunity when it comes to potential.

I'm hoping a local estate agent will agree.

My first impression of the property, it's very impressive.

It's a nice and big property, it's got a good frontage.

If this was my property, I would add a single-storey extension,

open up the kitchen into a kitchen diner to add more living space.

So, what could the house be worth with that single-storey extension?

Once renovated, I believe this property could achieve

in the region of ?330-350,000.

What about my double-storey extension idea?

Once renovated and extended to two more bedrooms upstairs,

I believe this property could achieve

anywhere between ?380-400,000.

This is a decent-sized house with a huge back garden.

But one thing I will say, you'll need a significant budget

to get all the work done.

And that's before you even start thinking about

any kind of extension.

But the potential for this house is huge.

Let's see how it got on when it went under the hammer.

On the day, the guide price was increased to 250-275 grand

but the auctioneer had to start lower.

At 230,000 to get us started,

who will bid me?

At 230,000, I'm bid.

240, thank you, sir.

At 240, at 240 I'm bid.

After a slow start, the bidding begins.

We rejoin at ?265,000.

At 265 and thank you. 270, sir?

270, thank you.

275? 275? Thank you.

At 275, 280?

You will need to make your mind up, sir.

At ?275,000...

On sale, are we all done?

Congratulations.

The successful bidders who paid 275 grand for the house

were Kevin and his partner, Jane.

Kevin is a local lad who runs a kitchen design company.

Kevin has designed just about everything

when it comes to making a home,

from furnishings to kitchens and bathrooms.

In the last five years, he's got into construction.

And I'm not "lion" when I say that could be useful here!

Hey, don't be knockin' my joke!

Kevin, nice to meet you. Nice to meet you.

And congratulations. Thank you.

I love this house. What attracted you to it?

Well, I passed it for many years because I actually live

quite local to here and it's always stood out

because the property's been empty for quite some time.

It's a big house, isn't it? It is.

And lots of potential to do stuff with it,

so I couldn't believe my luck when I drove past and saw the board go up.

Well, you know what they say,

the harder you work, the luckier you get.

Kevin is going to live here with his teenage son, Aaron.

This is actually also a business deal.

He's bought it with business partners, including Jane.

And he'll be the one renting it,

so there'll be a return on their investment.

Well, now it's yours, what are your plans?

Well, it needs a complete refurbishment,

as you've probably seen walking around,

and you know, there's a new heating system, electrics need to be done.

Basically update it but also going to try

and keep the original features in the house and what have you,

because it's a beautiful building from outside,

even though it is quite big.

I think the restrictions are really where the kitchen is and so on,

so there are plans for an extension, which we're pursuing at the moment.

OK. And obviously, subject to the answers that we get from that,

we may also be extending as well as doing the refurbishment.

The plan is to put a dormer on the side, which will create two en-suites

to the main bedrooms and the kitchen because, you know, obviously...

Because you can! Yeah, I can.

And I've got the opportunity to hopefully do

quite a nice kitchen for myself.

It's something I've dreamed of for quite some time

and that's what I'm planning to do here.

Just in a little bit more detail, upstairs,

how are you going to change the configuration?

Are you going to change the configuration?

The four bedrooms, pretty much the same.

Where the toilet and bathroom is,

those will be knocked into one and actually made a little bit bigger

by going into the back bedroom, but of course, this is all subject to

whether we get the planning permission to go out,

which would then give us an additional bedroom... Of course.

..larger bathroom and then two en-suites.

What about down here? Give us a little bit more detail on down here.

What are you going to change, if anything?

The layout down here, the main rooms, like the front room there,

that'll probably end up being a study, office type area.

In here will be the main sitting room, but the extension, subject to,

yeah, will be quite a big kitchen with central island, probably.

And then going into a garden room, because, you know,

it's a big garden.

And I want to be able to enjoy it and also, I can afford to pinch

some of the space of it, to put the extension up,

because the garden's still big enough.

How much will it cost you?

Taking into account, we know we went to the top end...

Yeah. ..of this property.

So, we're going to try and do it for ?70,000.

For what Kevin has planned, 70 grand does feel a little bit tight,

but he's in the property development industry

and plans to call in some favours and keep the costs down.

He'll also use his own workforce to get the job done,

but they'll be doing it in between jobs

he's got planned for them elsewhere.

Whilst he thinks the work should take around two to three months,

he's given himself six months to get the job done.

Tell us about that huge back garden.

Erm... Hmm. HE LAUGHS

Gardens aren't really my forte, you know. OK!

I'm sure you've got somebody. I have. You know.

My partner, as in my girlfriend, she's very, very good at landscaping

and that sort of thing, so she's going to be taking that on

as a bit of a project. You've got yourself a really nice...

I'm really looking forward to it. ..potential family home.

Good luck. Yeah. Wish you all the best, Kevin.

Nice talking to you. Thank you.

So, Kevin, just by chance,

has found his new family home, and what a find it is!

There's a lot of work that needs to be done here,

especially if he wants to give it that modern feel.

Now, I'm not sure it matters too much if he gets that planning,

because I think, potentially, he's got an amazing family home.

You can find out how he gets on later in the programme.

MARTEL: This is Wembley in north-west London.

The stadium may be the prime landmark here,

but the 1923 version was demolished in 2003,

being replaced by this newly-built one in 2007.

And talking of building,

Wembley is currently undergoing a massive regeneration.

It sounds like a good time and place to invest in property here.

This street is in north Wembley and it's just a three-minute walk

from the tube station, so it's really convenient.

The property I'm here to see, it's in this block here.

It's a ground floor, one-bedroom flat,

with a guide price of ?200,000,

so let's find out what you get for your money.

Firstly, I can tell you, for that price,

you do get an allocated parking space.

# Football's coming home, it's coming... #

That's 1-0 so far!

Into the communal area, it's dry, it's warm.

It's a wee bit dated.

I happen to know that the service charge per annum here

is around ?800.

You always want to check what that service charge is,

particularly in London,

where you usually are charged something for communal flats.

So, you might want to see if this is going to be updated

for the money you're paying. I like the notice board.

London's great, it's lively,

but many people come here alone, starting afresh.

You know, it's a good way to make friends.

Ask if anyone plays tennis or wants to come around for a glass of wine.

And through to the door.

All looks in order.

In I come and...OK,

the first thing that often hits me is the smell of a place.

On the plus side, this smells great. There is no obvious smell of damp.

You have a bedroom here which is a good size.

You might not think that everywhere,

but in London, you accept that bit smaller room.

And through an archway.

Everything seems pretty solid.

Good nick, I'd say.

Bathroom, a bit dirty, a bit murky.

Needs a lot of love. Needs sprucing up.

You might want to take the bathroom out.

Especially if you're thinking of selling.

It's a bit of an expense, but London buyers do want a high-end finish.

And into your living area. I like it.

Really, really well proportioned,

which I expected in a block like this.

And look at this! OK, as I said, we're in London,

so this could almost count as a second bedroom!

# Your glass half empty, glass half full

# I'd say you've got some catching up to do... #

I'm definitely a glass half-full kind of person,

but the glass here is only single glazed,

which isn't very energy efficient.

However, changing it may require the permission of the freeholder.

The lease has 125 years left, by the way, which is good news.

You've got kind of semi-open plan living,

where you could be cooking your tea.

Pop out, say hello.

The kitchen could do with updating.

That said, these units are completely serviceable.

It really depends if you're planning on renting or selling.

If you're selling, it may be worthwhile

just spending a bit of money,

getting the wow factor, a brand-new kitchen.

Or, I guess, you could just replace the worktops.

Hmm.

Lots that could be done to really create that wow factor.

But the place is in pretty good condition.

The only other concerns for me are these electric storage heaters,

which look like they could do with an upgrade.

There isn't a gas supply to these flats,

but there are electrical alternatives out there.

Speaking of which, where is the boiler?

I wonder what's...

Ah! Hello. So, in here, we've got a boiler and a water tank,

pretty unnecessary.

Could be replaced with a combi boiler.

It takes up a lot less room, and when you're in a small flat

with limited storage, that really is key.

Actually, you could even move that combi boiler to the kitchen,

freeing up an entire cupboard.

I like it!

It's a great wee flat, but will the experts agree?

Let's see what a local estate agent

made of this ground floor flat, guided at ?200,000.

The building itself was built in the 1980s, approximately.

It's pretty dated.

However, over the next few years,

we do expect that they'll be putting in new double glazing

in the building to improve the area.

New windows should add a bit of value,

but of course, it means that any buyer should factor in

the possibility they'll also have to find money

to pay for the window replacement.

So, assuming that for the moment,

if you replace the kitchen and bathroom,

could the flat be a top-drawer investment,

bearing in mind that 200 grand guide price?

I would expect the property to sell

for something in the region of ?270,000.

And for rental, we'd expect something in the region of

?1,100 per calendar month.

This is a great flat that doesn't need too much work done to it.

And the area it's in,

well, there's plenty of demand both in the rental and the buying market.

If you can get it anywhere near that guide price,

it could be really good value for money.

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

This ground-floor flat...

It was late in the day when this lot came up.

Who wants to get me started on this?

200 anywhere?

If not, you tell me, looking for 200.

190, I'll try and help.

Thank you, 190 I've got.

192 anywhere?

Thank you, 192 I've got.

194?

Yeah, 194. 196?

Yes, 196. 198...

200,000.

202, 204.

No? Have a think.

It's with you, sir, standing up, on my left.

Anybody else? 2-0-how much?

OK, 204.

206, yeah? 206.

208.

208.

210, yeah? 210. 212.

OK, it's with you, sir.

Anybody else? If not, 210 for the first.

210 for the second.

210 for the third and final time.

All done?

Sold, 210, well done.

The final bid of ?210,000 came from

professional property developer Scott.

I caught up with him on a rather foggy day

to hear all about his plans for the flat.

Hi, Scott. Hello, there.

Congratulations. Thank you very much. Why this one?

The location. The location was great.

It's only five minutes away from Wembley.

Two minutes away from a train station.

The value of the area is still actually going up and up.

And the price was right, more importantly.

I think it's a cracking buy, and it doesn't need much doing.

No. But it does need some things doing.

Yes. What's your plan?

Erm, because I'm looking to sell it to a couple or young first buyers,

sort of things, and I want it to be quite trendy.

So, a nice grade flooring.

Nice, I can picture it.

Yeah. Yeah. And the bathroom needs some work.

It's got no soul to it, it literally needs a bit of oomph.

And the kitchen... The kitchen is great, but it's missing some parts,

so I'm looking to put some integrated appliances in there.

Not a brand-new kitchen, you want to keep the wooden units,

which I suppose will look new enough,

but, what, put in a new surface?

Yeah, I'm going to put some worktops on, change the worktops, erm,

change, probably, the colour of the tiles in there as well.

Well, you know it's a buy that doesn't need too much done...

I know. ..when your main focus is

what colour am I going to change the tiles to?

You could be talking about damp and mould and all sorts,

but you don't have that here. No.

It has a nice feeling of well-proportioned rooms, too.

Everything is this kind of magnolia colour, are you going to keep it?

No.

I'm going to change the walls,

probably because I'm going to put a grey floor down,

I think I'm going to change the walls to a white.

And maybe change the skirting boards and the dado rail to a different,

probably a lighter grey or something.

Scott has his ideas worked out and has a budget of five grand.

Although this is a small flat, he needs to replace the boiler,

sort the bathroom, and install a new heating system.

He's hoping it'll be done in just four weeks.

So, will he be rolling up his sleeves?

I will delegate most of the work.

I will look for my next property,

I will choose all what needs to be done, but I have some builders

that can come in and actually do a lot better job than I can.

So, you've got people you know and trust. Correct.

Property is a bit of a gear change for Scott.

I used to be in the car industry for 20 years,

gave that up about a year ago to go full-time into this.

Great, so, what did you do in the car industry?

I worked for main dealers as a general sales manager.

And in the process of that, I was dabbling in properties.

So, I decided to... Because this is a passion of mine,

so this is something I decided to do full-time,

and this is what I've been doing for the last year.

And have you been profitable... Yes. ..in your ventures?

Yes. From the off?

Very first property I bought, many, many, many years ago, I lost.

But after that, I've actually made money on each one of them.

I bet you learnt an awful lot from losing that time.

Yes, yes. For this one, did you do your research?

Is that part of the learning process?

You wouldn't buy something at auction

unless you knew exactly what you were getting.

I knew 100% about this property.

There were three properties I was actually interested in,

I went and viewed all three of them.

I read through the legal packs and everything else.

And I didn't mind which one of the three I bought,

because each one of them was very, very good.

Yeah. And luckily enough, I got this one.

As long as you set yourself a target of how much you want to go,

and you stick by that, then you're absolutely fine.

Now, tell me, do you ever wake up and regret

giving up your job as a car salesman?

No. No. No, no.

I mean, I missed the cars, because I love cars as well.

But, erm, this takes up so much of my time,

you don't get much time to think about it.

So many people would like to do what you've done - give up a job that,

you know, they might like but don't love,

and just work for themselves developing property.

It's something that I feel that if you can do it,

if you've got the will to do it, you can do it.

It's just actually having a structured plan.

How long ago did you buy your first property?

Oh, when I was 18. Many, many years ago.

So, it's been a slow burner, but now you're doing it. Yeah.

Great, well, I can't wait to see what you do with the place.

Good luck. Thank you very much.

Thanks, Scott. You take care.

Car salesman Scott has changed gears

and is now a full-time property developer.

It seems a pretty straightforward job,

but will he automatically stick to that timescale and budget,

or will he be clutch-ing at straws?

You can find out later in the show.

MARTIN: Coming up, at a house in Stoke,

I'm sure the postie must have got lost when delivering my fan mail.

That is a pile of post and a half!

Holy schmolie!

MARTEL: And in Wembley, has Scott got the results he wanted

for trendy first-time buyers?

They can just move in with their

toothbrush and their clothes and that's it.

DION: We are heading back to Kidderminster,

where I saw a very handsome 1930s four-bed detached property.

Inside, it looked like it hadn't been touched

since it had been built.

# Fadeout 1930 era, I never really tried you out... #

It may have been old-fashioned, but it was huge,

and outside, there was plenty more space to play with.

And with a garden this size,

there's always potential to extend on the back of the house,

and this is no exception.

It could be a single or a double extension,

and still have yourself loads of space out the back

for your trampoline,

your swimming pool, and your golf course.

Slightly over the top, but you know what I mean - the potential's huge.

That potential was just one of the reasons Kevin paid 275 grand

for this house at auction.

He runs a local kitchen design company,

and although he has lots of experience in property developing,

he wasn't planning on selling this house for a profit.

It was to be a home for him and his 15-year-old son, Aaron.

Kevin was going to put his design skills to work

to give this old house a modern look.

Even though it is quite big, erm,

I think the restrictions are really where the kitchen is, and so on.

So, there are plans for an extension,

because obviously, I've got the...

Because you can! Yeah, I can!

And I've got the opportunity to hopefully do

quite a nice kitchen for myself.

It's something that I've dreamed of for quite some time,

and it's what I'm planning to do here.

Kevin had set himself a budget of 70 grand,

and just six months to get the work done.

So, we're back a year and nine months later.

Is it safe to assume, after all this time,

Kevin finally got his new kitchen?

It's certainly impressive, and leads off to a huge extension in the back.

But it's not the only addition to the house.

# Now I'm speechless

# I can't believe that you're next to me

# I cannot fall in line

# Everyone's starin' but I'm not sharin'

# No, sir, no way! #

A double-storey side and rear extension, plus a loft conversion,

have made this house much bigger.

Although the layout in the rest of the ground floor remains the same,

not much else has.

There's no parquet floor left.

But thankfully, some of the original features have been kept.

And you won't spot any radiators down here, because

the whole of the downstairs has underfloor heating.

The new extension means that upstairs

the layout has completely changed.

For starters, there's now space for a family bathroom.

# Looks like perfection wants your attention

# So, I say hey! #

Although three of the five bedrooms have en-suites,

I don't think there's going to be any family squabbles

about who's hogging the bathroom.

The master ensuite bedroom,

with dressing room area and new rear extension is very smart.

The cherry up top is the addition of that fifth bedroom

and the loft conversion.

I bet Kevin can't wait to move in.

Quite a lot has changed in the last 16 months,

and I've moved a couple of times since purchasing here.

So, it suited me to live elsewhere,

and we're obviously going to get the money from this

and move on to another project.

# But it's not the end of my world

# Just a slight change of plans... #

With Kevin having to wait seven months for the plans to be passed,

his team started on work elsewhere.

That didn't stop Kevin and his family

getting stuck into this house.

It just gave myself and my family the opportunity

to get all the back of the garden sorted out,

and they helped get everything stripped back in the house,

which they thought was fantastic,

while they were on break from uni and so on.

It was giving them something to do for the summer.

So, everybody's enjoyed it, so that's where I was more hands-on.

But then, when it got to the actual building side of it

and then working on the inside, I won't take the credit for it.

But the guys, the carpenters, the builders, the kitchen fitters,

the electrician, they've done a fantastic job for us.

As you can see, it's all been done to an incredibly high standard.

That high standard must have made an impact on that 70 grand budget.

We got most of the construction work done for about 30,000.

But the insides,

and even with the help of all the suppliers and manufacturers,

who've been very, very generous in helping us with this project,

we still went over considerably.

To the point where we went to ?123,000. So, it's...

But the thing is, I think the property lends itself to it.

And it's certainly reflected in the valuation now.

Yes, valuations, you heard right.

Not only has he had valuations, he's actually sold it,

meaning the new owner could choose

to personalise the inside how they see fit.

But was it the right decision to go for a private sale,

rather than the open market?

Time to get the feedback from two local estate agents

to see what they think of the finished house.

Layout's really good, bedrooms are all good sizes.

Got two nice-sized reception rooms downstairs.

Having the en-suites to the bedrooms makes for a really good family home.

Wow! It's been finished off to an extremely high standard.

And most of the rooms are of a decent, usable size.

A lot of the modern four or five-bedroom properties,

when you get down to the last two bedrooms,

you're lucky if you could swing the cat in 'em.

His house might be the cat's whiskers,

but it has taken a lot out of the kitty.

398 grand, to be precise.

What do the agents think it could fetch

if he put it on the open market?

I would feel that you'd get

in the region of ?450-475,000.

So, the resale value of the property would be ?475,000.

The ?475,000 price is a little above

what we would normally see in this area.

But I think with the overall fit and finish,

it would achieve that kind of money.

That top valuation would mean a 77 grand pre-tax profit,

but Kevin has sold it for 450 grand.

That's still a 52 grand profit, minus taxes and fees.

We're pleased with, obviously, the decision that we've made.

We made it a few months ago, that we were going to sell it.

So, I'm just very glad now that the person who's purchased it

will be over the moon, that it's valued at that.

So, it's worked out good for us all.

It's been challenging, with certain things.

But the outcome has been exactly what we wanted.

So, really pleased.

MARTIN: Burslem is known as the mother town of the six

that make up the city of Stoke in Staffordshire,

due to the fact it was the early centre

of pottery manufacturing in the area.

The local football team, Port Vale,

might not be riding as high in the Football League

as their larger rivals, Stoke City,

but they boast celebrity fans like darts legend Phil Taylor

and pop star Robbie Williams.

Port Vale fan Robbie might hope for a victory

every time he watches them, but even he knows...

# You win some, you lose some... #

Let's see if today's property,

which is just a short walk from the stadium, is a winner.

So, what property was tantalising the buyers at the auction?

Well, it does actually sound like a really appealing one.

?50,000-plus was the guide price for a semi-detached,

four-bedroom Victorian house.

And pretty impressive it looks from the outside, too.

# I'm impressed, I'm impressed... #

Wow! Ha! Ha!

That is a pile of post and a half!

Holy schmolie! Wow!

You don't need to be Sherlock Holmes to figure this one out.

The house has obviously not been occupied for a while.

And that does bring in a few issues.

What am I going to be looking for? Signs of damp, signs of disrepair.

But what have we got?

Quite a nice entrance, if you get over that.

Obviously, quite a grand house in its day.

Large living room there, stairs up to your bedrooms there.

And then through into a rear sitting room.

And a few signs of damp...

Oh, my word!

Yes, a few signs of...

..floor joists needing a bit of repair.

And here you go, exactly what I thought.

Damp here, on this wall,

probably due to leaking guttering or something like that.

It's a house... It's going to need a bit of work!

As you stroll round,

it's certainly got a feeling of space, this property.

And some nice touches. Wood panelling in the hallway there.

As I said, I think it would have been a very grand house in its day.

The cellar down there, which looks a bit dim and dingy,

but definitely worth investigating. That could be useful extra space.

And then this is the kitchen.

Well, clearly not being made the most of at the moment.

Units want to be replaced, something much nicer could be in here.

And this would definitely become the focal point of the house.

Little utility area at the back in a sort of little extension, but again,

the high ceilings, lots of light coming in through the windows,

even though they are boarded up in places, it's...

It's a good house and for that guide price, wow!

And if this sizeable chunk of house wasn't enough for you,

there is room outside to add more wow factor.

But a big family house should have some decent outside space to match.

So, you have to strike a balance.

Besides, there's still plenty more space inside.

So, upstairs and four bedrooms, a really substantial property.

Back there, one of the bedrooms. You've got the bathroom there.

It's small for the size of house,

I think you'd want to try and play around with that to see

how you could get a bigger bathroom in there.

But two more bedrooms towards the front.

This nice, large landing area.

And then, through into one of the bedrooms, for example.

This is the size. And they're good,

they've got some nice features, like these old fireplaces.

Lovely. And the floorboards,

although some of them have obviously been taken up to access the pipes,

they don't look to be in bad condition.

It's one of those houses, it's Victorian,

it would just work so well to have all these stripped back

to natural wood, absolutely beautiful.

So, all in all...

..great house!

Before I get too carried away, though,

there are some significant issues to deal with.

Damp, mould and the need of a complete refurbishment.

It's going to take quite the effort to whip this property into shape.

# Crack that whip! #

We've asked along a local estate agent to see if he thinks

this property is a whip smart investment.

# When a problem comes along # You must whip it... #

I think the fact that it having four bedrooms

is going to be the biggest selling point.

Traditionally we're an area of two beds,

so three beds are unusual and a four-bed's virtually unheard of.

So, I think that's going to be the key selling point for it.

The other option is that the property can be split

into two self-contained flats with an upstairs and downstairs,

and they could have their own entrances, quite easy.

Dividing it into flats might seem like a good idea,

but we all know how long you can spend in a planning wrangle.

Plus, two flats would mean two sets of kitchens and bathrooms.

And if the house has an intrinsic value as a four-bed,

would it be worth the bother?

As a four-bed, with it being fully renovated,

we'd recommend an asking price of ?95,000.

If the property was converted into flats,

I would recommend for a two-bedroomed flat,

I would probably say you were looking at around ?40-45,000.

I think for resale, I would stick to the simplest route, one house.

For long-term rental investment,

the numbers do stack up in favour of flats,

with a house renting out at ?500 per month, while two two-bed flats

would bring you ?850 a month in total.

Well, a bit of work required to get this one into a habitable state

but boy, oh, boy, is it worth it?

A lovely house with loads of potential and so many options.

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

It's a large semi, four bedrooms, first-floor bathroom,

there are two reception rooms as well.

40, can I say, to start?

40 bid, there. ?40,000.

At 40,000. 42, can I see now?

42. 44.

46. 47, can I say?

Bid's at ?46,000.

?47,000.

48. 49.

50. 51.

52. 53.

54. 55.

56. 57.

58. 59. 60.

No? 60,000, standing middle.

At ?60,000. 61, anywhere else?

If not, at ?60,000.

Yours, sir. Well done.

The successful bid of 60,000 was made by Jeremy.

He used to own a print company

but sold it off recently and retired early.

Rather than just relax, though,

he ended up being bitten by the property bug...

..and has teamed up with regular builder Dave

to take on this new project.

I met them to find out what they had planned.

Jeremy, Dave, great to meet you both. Hi, you, too.

Tell me why you wanted to buy this house?

I thought it would be ideal for development and I like the area,

I like the period features,

and this is now the first property I've bought at auction.

Oh, right. Brilliant. So, tell me about your relationship with Dave,

what's the deal here?

Well, I'm Jeremy's builder. We met on a building website.

He contacted me, I did a few jobs round his hall.

He phoned me a few...

Couple of months ago to do renovations on a property

he's recently bought.

Yes, you heard right. Jeremy has an 18th-century hall,

which he restored. Very nice.

But back to this four-bed in Burslem.

Who's doing what?

I rely upon Dave for information and knowledge and experience.

I suppose I provide the brains, he provides the...

I nearly said the brawn, but the beauty!

I always say that a good builder, if you can get them on board,

they can be a real fantastic asset, though.

He will see a property and see the flaws where I might miss them,

and will look for good points that, again, I might kind of gloss over.

So, it works both ways.

OK, so why this particular house, then?

Our first initial ideas were to buy it

and it looked as though it could be converted into rental flats.

So, in order to convert it into flats, then, Dave,

just talk me through the process, taking that option,

what would you have to do?

Well, obviously separate front and back door for each property,

we'd have to make some sort of vestibule area,

so we could get in through to the living room.

You'd have to build another kitchen upstairs, obviously? Yeah.

We've identified one of the rooms upstairs that we could convert

into a kitchen relatively easily,

and we'd need to create a bathroom for down here.

There is a small extension at the back there,

which is being knocked down at some stage.

There's a hard standing for that, so we could extend back onto that.

And there's a possibility to extend into the loft space,

and as an ideal landing space upstairs.

So, they've looked seriously at the two-flat option, but of course,

as we know, there are several factors to weigh up,

and they're still doing that.

We've also had some other input into that discussion which makes us think

that maybe, because it's really...

In this area, it's difficult to sell

flats that have been converted like that,

we thought about also keeping it as its existing structure -

four-bedroom, doing it up, making some changes,

maybe adding an en suite to one of the larger bedrooms upstairs

and extending this back room behind us here

into maybe a nice dining room off the kitchen.

It's got loads of options, this house, hasn't it?

It has. It really has! Yeah, it has. No, it has.

It has. And that's why there's this indecision at the moment

as to which way will we go.

Will we keep it as a four-bedroom

and just spend the minimum amount to do it up...?

Because there's a good resale value on it, in't there? Yes. Yeah.

What sort of resale value?

Well, intimated it's going to be 100-plus. Oh, wow!

So, for a minimum spend, we bought it at auction for 60,000,

a minimum spend of maybe 10, 15,000,

we could keep it as it is and sell on and take the return,

but no income stream in the future,

or we could spend a little bit more, maybe 5, maybe 10,000 more,

convert it into two flats

and have a very good income return on capital invested.

So, it's, you know, which way do we go?

That's the indecision.

It'll be a decision we'll have to make quickly, though.

So, what is the timescale for the whole thing?

Just doing up as it is, we would like to think

that we could probably do that in three to four months, it's done,

because it tails on the back of the project we're working on currently.

If it's going to be a conversion to flats,

we'd looking at six months for that.

So it's going to be one or the other.

Well, listen, congratulations. Thank you. And good luck with it.

And we really do look forward to seeing what you decide to do.

Exactly! Thank you.

Well, so, lots of decisions still to be made.

Will Jeremy convert this into flats

or leave it as one big impressive house?

Well, with the help of builder Dave, hopefully whatever he decides,

it will be successful. But you never know.

You can find out what happens later in the show.

Well, earlier, we saw how one of today's properties turned out,

but what about the other two?

Did the renovation go smoothly or did it skid onto some rough patches?

Let's find out.

# Can I kick it? # Then do so, at once... #

MARTEL: It's time to kick off the second half

of a property renovation in Wembley,

when I saw a one-bed ground floor flat

that had decent living space for London.

Yes, it was tired, single glazed and only had storage heaters...

..but I'd taken a wee shine to it and could imagine living there.

You've got kind of semi-open plan living

where you could be cooking your tea, pop out, say hello.

The kitchen could do with updating.

That said, these units are completely serviceable.

It really depends on if you're planning on renting or selling.

If you're selling, it may be worthwhile

just spending a bit of money, getting the wow factor,

a brand-new kitchen.

Well, the person who paid ?210,000 for it at auction was Scott.

As an experienced property developer, he planned on doing

a bit of both in the kitchen

by keeping cabinets but adding a new work surface

and integrated appliances.

But he didn't want it to be a bland, magnolia flat any more,

that's for sure.

I want it to be quite trendy.

So, a nice grey floor in...

Nice, I can picture it. Yeah. And the bathroom needs some work.

It's got no soul to it, it literally needs a bit of oomph.

Former car salesman Scott wanted to get this property turbo-charged

for five grand, and on the fast lane for completion in four weeks.

So, six weeks later,

we've pulled up to see if the flat has been given some va va voom!

We're certainly on the right track in the bathroom,

which has been cleaned, painted and refitted with new fixtures.

# If you're looking for the main attraction

# Just hold on tight and let me do my dance

# If you want it, I'm gonna be Va-va voom voom

# If you got it, you got it You got that boom, boom

# If you want it, I'm gonna be Va-va voom voom

# If you got it, you got it You got that boom, boom. #

The kitchen has remained mainly the same but with some key additions.

There are new integrated appliances and extra cabinets have been added.

It makes a big difference.

And the new grey laminate flooring is the same

throughout the rest of the flat.

# I'm a runaway-eh, I'm a runaway-eh-eh

# I-I-I wanna give you one last option

# I-I-I wanna give you one last chance

# Just hold on tight and let me do my dance

# If you want it, I'm gonna be Va-va voom voom

# If you got it, you got it You got that boom, boom

# If you want it, I'm gonna be Va-va voom voom

# If you got it, you got it You got that boom, boom... #

It's a simple yet very effective turnaround

that Scott should be proud of.

I'd like to say I've done all the work, but I didn't.

I organised the work.

I have a team of builders that can come out to a property

and do the bits I actually want to do.

I ordered everything,

I controlled what was coming in and everything else.

The thing I'm most pleased about is the bathroom paint finish,

because it's hand-painted.

And in my mind, it's come out fantastic.

He put a lot of effort into that, the person who'd actually done that,

and when I look back at it every time I go past it,

it gives you that different view. It's absolutely great.

All the work itself was done in about four weeks,

which was bang on timescale,

but the delivery and furniture has meant it's taken

another couple of weeks to fully furnish the property.

Scott had a ?5,000 budget to renovate

but he's dressed the property, too, so what has that added to the spend?

On the redecoration, spent just under four and a half.

And then, another ?1,500 on the furnitures.

I showcased the place to make it easier for people to walk in.

They could get an idea of how it looked.

And also because they're first-time buyers, my target market,

I thought that they could actually come in and it's something

that they could have with the flat,

and therefore it takes the stress of having to find furniture,

and they can just move in with their toothbrush and their clothes

and that's it.

Well, we've asked along two local estate agents

to see if they like the changes Scott has implemented here.

I doubt they've brought their toothbrush,

but I'm sure they're fully brushed up

on their local property knowledge.

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

I have to say, the best part of the works has got to be the flooring,

it looks lovely. The bathroom looks very nice as well, and the bedroom,

the carpet looks stunning.

I think the property really flows nicely.

It's really nicely done.

It's modern. It's fresh and bright.

I think it would be an ideal first-time purchase.

Scott has spent a total of ?216,000 here on the work and the property.

But he's also spent an additional 13 grand on auctions, solicitors,

stamp duty, council tax and service charges.

So, it just goes to show that those figures can add up to a hefty amount

and why you should always read over the paperwork.

Scott is experienced and did so,

so he's happy with his total ?229,000 spend.

Will the work amount to a decent profit?

If the property was to go on the market,

I'd value the property for something in the region of ?270,000.

We would think the value of this property for resale today

would be very close to ?300,000.

300 I think is slightly optimistic.

Fantastic if I could.

But the 270 seems about right.

270, maybe 275, but if I can get three, fantastic.

That 275 figure would give Scott a pre-tax profit of 46 grand,

and if the agent's right, it has the potential to climb to ?71,000,

which really is good going and must vindicate Scott's decision

to leave his old career in car sales in the rear-view mirror.

I feel that it was about time I went into property development

because it was something I had a good understanding about

and I am so glad I did.

My next plan is, obviously, to get rid of this one,

to sell this one as soon as possible,

put it on the market ASAP and start another one ASAP again.

But I'm going to try to do two or three at a go.

Two or three at a time, Scott? Do you ever take a break?!

Every time I sell a property, I tend to go away for a week or so.

It's one of the things that I treat myself to,

so if I sell two properties or three properties or four properties

in a year, that's how many holidays I will have.

Ah, so that's why Scott wants two or three at a time -

he'll get three weeks off in a row, right?

Well, best of luck and you never know,

we might see him again down the road.

Earlier in the programme,

I was in the town of Burslem in Stoke-on-Trent.

I visited this handsome Victorian semi

that had a seemingly low guide price of 50 grand plus.

Inside, however, was nothing to write home about.

And with evidence of neglect,

it seemed to have been empty for some time.

A few signs of damp. Oh, my word!

Yes, a few signs of...

..floor joists needing a bit of repair and here you go,

exactly what I thought.

Damp here, on this wall,

probably due to leaking guttering or something like that.

It's a house that's going to need a bit of work.

Well, that may have been an understatement.

But at least the kitchen came with its own porcelain.

Add to that a cellar, utility room,

four beds and a bath with possible scope for extension, well,

it sure was a lot of space for the guide price.

And former print company director Jeremy Shaw wanted it,

paying ?60,000 on auction day.

He was also sure he wanted his trusty builder, Dave,

to work alongside him.

He just wasn't sure what to do with it.

Our first initial ideas were to buy it and it looked as though

it could be converted into rental flats.

We've also had some other input into that discussion which makes us think

that maybe because it's...

This area, it's difficult to sell flats

that have been converted like that.

We've thought about also keeping it

as its existing structure, four-bedroom.

It was all hinging on that final decision,

and with budgets ranging from 10-25 grand

and timescales between three and six months,

everything was a bit of a question mark.

So, when we returned two years and eight months later,

what did Jeremy decide?

# Guessing games

# I don't wanna play those

# Guessing games # Don't wanna

# Please don't make me play'em, no! #

Yes, it's a house with a fantastic, modern fitted kitchen, at that.

And that dingy old space at the back is now a handy utility room and WC.

The front room has been spruced up

and that pesky damp is a distant memory.

The same thing can be said for the dining room,

which is looking very smart indeed.

Moving upstairs, there's been some rejigging going on.

The master bedroom at the front has been expanded

to make room for a light and bright ensuite bathroom.

By nabbing a bit of space from the middle bedroom,

the ensuite even has a window, which I must say is a nice touch.

The family bathroom has also been given a new lease of life,

despite being a little smaller, to make more space in the back bedroom.

Unquestionably, it's a vast improvement,

but stop us guessing, Jeremy, why a house over flats?

We applied for planning permission, and after several months

and toing and froing with architects and the local planners,

we realised that the restrictions that were being placed upon us,

in order to do that, would not make it a viable build.

So, we decided that we were going to do it into a straight renovation

of a four-bedroom house.

We thought this was going to be a very simple project.

But unfortunately, as with all things,

when you start to peel away the exterior, you find further problems.

He's not kidding.

The damp had wreaked havoc in the two reception rooms,

rotting the floorboards and joists, so they all needed to be replaced.

As did the window frames.

There were also extensive repairs to the exterior walls of the house

and Jeremy and Dave had to replace all the rainwater goods and cladding

and repoint the gable end.

It's an exhaustive list.

A lot of people go to auction

and they see these programmes and they think,

"This is a really easy thing to do."

You have to ask yourself the question,

"Why's it gone to auction in the first place?"

This one looked a nice, simple project.

It wasn't.

And three years later, with a lot of heartache, a lot of hard work,

a lot of tears, we have a beautiful house.

The work has cost Jeremy 25,000 more than he planned,

which means the total spend here has amounted to 40,000.

And while he and Dave worked on the project for two years,

Jeremy ended up finishing everything himself,

with the exception of plumbing, electrics and plastering.

I retired when I was 47.

I'm now 58 and I think I work harder now

than I did when I was in full-time employment.

This is a full-time job for me, and whilst my daughter, bless her,

thinks I sit at home and bake cakes all day

and sell them at farmers markets, darling, no, I don't.

This is Daddy's full-time job.

And boy, is it hard work.

Well, there speaks a hard-working property developer.

So, let's find out if it's paid off.

What do two local estate agents think of his ?100,000 investment?

First, the agent who saw it before.

First impressions are, wow,

it's like walking into a new build compared to what it was before.

There's been some major changes to the property.

He, you know, definitely enhanced the property,

made it 100 times better.

My first impressions are really positive.

The ensuite bathroom is most definitely a good addition

to the property and fabulous kitchen, good size for a family.

It's agreed, then, Jeremy has done a great job

on his first auction property.

But will he see a return on that ?100,000 investment?

As a resale, we would be looking at an asking price of ?120,000.

And if it was going on the rental market,

we would be looking at an asking price of ?580 per calendar month.

In the resale market,

I would expect the property to reach somewhere in the region of ?125,000.

And for the rental market,

we would be looking at an income of ?585 per calendar month.

The top sales value would mean a pre-tax profit of 25 grand.

What does Jeremy think of that?

They are higher than I had originally anticipated,

but I ready have a tenant

who is going to be taking the property shortly.

So, I'm happy to let the property at the figure I've got, 650,

and as far as the resale values are concerned, that's nice to know.

That yield is 8% on the rental, then.

This has been a long and tricky road,

but it's worked out in the end.

So, does Jeremy have any pearls of wisdom

for anyone thinking of buying at auction?

Get advice from a good builder and expect the worst.

It could be a minefield, but it could also be a pot of gold.

Well, it's not unusual in the world of property to stumble across

the odd nasty surprise.

Yes, but the industry can prove very fruitful, if you get it right.

Join us next time for more auction stories on Homes Under The Hammer.

Bye-bye. Bye-bye.