Episode 23 Homes Under the Hammer

Hello and welcome to the show.

Now, on a day like today, you can get everything from sunshine,

bit of rain, and even ominous clouds.

Yes, a bit like the property market.

It has its highs, it has its lows,

sometimes you don't know what's going on,

which is why it's really important to know where to buy,

what to pay for, what you're looking for,

and then you could find your home maybe under the hammer.

When it comes to buying at auction,

a lot of people rely on luck

when it comes to nabbing themselves a winner.

Yes, but luck will only go so far.

What really pays is doing your homework.

So, were the buyers on today's show prepared

when they went into the auction rooms? Here's what they bought.

Whoever buys this two-bed London property will be jumping in

-at the deep end.

-Oh...

Ooh! There's something really, really pungent in here.

And do you fancy a water feature?

This Staffordshire house could be just what you're after.

It's not every day I go over a stream to get to a property.

And will this Plymouth Grade II-listed terrace property

prove to be a springboard to property success?

Floorboards are all rattly. Oh, my goodness me.

That's not good.

All these properties have been sold at auction,

and we'll find out who bought them and what they paid

when they went under the hammer.

Yours, sir. Very well done.

Lucy is in Forest Gate in East London.

Rumour has it that Jimi Hendrix composed Purple Haze in the area.

But something perhaps more certain

is the new Crossrail station that will be opening in a few years.

That means central London will be just 18 minutes away by train.

And as you can imagine, it's had a serious impact on property,

with prices rising nearly 38% in the past year.

Sounds like a good place to invest - if you can do it quickly, that is.

Well, I'm here to see a two-bed mid-terrace,

and it had a guide price of £280,000-plus.

So a positive start.

But will it continue?

Oh, no! So that's where the good start stops, right there.

Really dated. I mean, look at this wallpaper!

I haven't seen this in years!

You've got all the external trunking up there.

I mean, this really feels like this property is as it was 50 years ago.

But you've got a really good-sized lounge,

and you have got a few original features,

some nice cornicing up there,

an original wooden window, which is lovely.

And through the back here, goodness,

even the carpet and lino has just disintegrated.

Into the back room, and again, not a bad size.

And over here is a two-bar fire.

Now, this sound...

That really reminds me of my childhood,

because my grandmother used to have a fire exactly the same as that.

So it's clear to say there's no central heating in here.

So over here, you can really see the condition of the house.

I mean, look at the state of it. The wallpaper, the plaster...

It's just falling away.

Is that due to damp?

There's something really, really pungent in here,

and it certainly does smell like damp.

So I think it's time to call the experts in

and that's just for starters.

So right at the back of the property,

we've got some under-stairs storage here, and the back room.

Goodness gracious!

Look!

Yeah, still in the same vein as next door.

I mean, you know, I definitely want somebody to come in

and look at this structurally. But what have we got?

Well, right at the back here, we've got the kitchen,

and also the bathroom, because I think underneath there is a bath,

and a cooker here, the oldest cooker known to man...

ever. And a tiny little window,

but with a fantastic view of a lovely garden out there.

Now, I'm straightaway wanting to rearrange this whole property,

because I think you want to have the kitchen and dining area here

with access straight out there.

But you do need to think about a bathroom

and where you can locate that.

Can you move that little bathroom area and toilet,

and bring it over the back here?

Is there something you could do upstairs possibly?

I don't know. I need to go and investigate.

Upstairs, there are two bedrooms,

and the front one is a really good size.

You could try and fit a bathroom up here by pinching space

from the bedrooms, but the bad news is that squeezing a bathroom in here

is a compromise too far, making both rooms a bit small.

Oh, well. Back to the drawing board.

Now, coming outside into the garden,

it's made me think, I wonder if it's worth a side extension here,

potentially. Maybe you could go up and think about

a double-storey extension.

And the reason why I say that is because there's certainly

enough room to extend.

I mean, look at the size of this garden!

It's fantastic!

It goes right the way back to that wall.

I do love to have lots of outside space in London.

So, with that space, you could think about

relocating the bathroom upstairs, which would be a real bonus.

You could even think about squeezing in a third bedroom, potentially.

But of course, extensions cost money,

so would the extra space be worth the price?

We asked a local estate agent along to get his opinion.

Obviously, you could take the extension across the whole back side

of it and move the kitchen and bathroom into the rear,

more conveniently. Coming upstairs, with the fact that you're changing the roof,

it's prime for putting a loft conversion on,

because while you're doing that, you might as well put it up there.

The hallway works well for transversing the staircase.

So there's definitely potential there for doing that, definitely.

There are lots of decisions to be made for whoever buys this property.

So what could it be worth once renovated,

keeping the house as a two-bed?

You are looking at sale value of about £350,000 to £375,000.

And as a rental valuation,

you're looking at about £1,600 to £1,700 per calendar month.

And if you were able to add a third bedroom,

what would it be worth then?

You're probably going to be looking at a sale price

of around about £400,000.

As a rental price, you're going to be looking around

£1,800 to £1,900 per calendar month.

Well, this house needs so much work, and the layout, well,

it's just not right.

Unless of course you want to make a cup of tea while having a bath.

Still, I am going to remind you of one simple word,

and that's Crossrail.

That to me says there's plenty of potential here.

So who agrees that this up-and-coming area

is a good place to invest?

Let's head to auction and find out.

Two-bedroom mid-terrace house in need of modernisation.

300 anywhere? Don't want to go too much lower than that.

300? What's that, 290?

I'll take that and start there. 290 I've got.

295 anywhere?

After an initial lack of interest, the bidding heats up,

and we rejoined with the auctioneer looking for 310,000.

310. 311. 312.

313. 314. 315. 316.

317. 318. 319. 320.

321. 322.

No? If not, 321 for the first.

321 for the second.

321 for the third and final time.

Sold. 321.

The successful bid of 321,000 went to retired diplomat Tony

and his wife Nillifer.

Lucy caught up with Tony to see what he had in store

for this dilapidated two bed terrace.

# Hey, I put some new shoes on and suddenly everything's right. #

Tony, congratulations.

-Thank you very much.

-Well done.

-Thanks.

-So, I'm going to be nosy now,

I want to know everything about why you wanted to buy

-this particular property.

-Mainly because of the location.

-Yeah.

-We believe Forest Gate is an up-and-coming area.

It's close to Stratford, with Westfield mall,

and Crossrail is coming to Forest Gate, as well,

which is good transport links with the Central line into the city.

So it sounds like you've really done your research.

-Yeah.

-And you've bought this for what reason,

to rent out or to sell on?

To rent out, yeah.

So how much research into this actual house

and the property did you do?

I mean, did you read the legal pack, did you view it?

Oh, yeah, yeah. We read the legal pack very carefully.

We sent it to our solicitor, and got them to read it as well.

We did two viewings.

The second time we came here with the surveyor,

and he gave us his verbal report on the condition of the property,

so we very much have our eyes open.

We know there's a lot needs doing here.

Tony's really done his homework,

which is good because this house has lots of nasty surprises,

like rising and penetrating damp and no central heating.

But Tony is already planning big changes.

Currently the kitchen bathroom is in room four, and that's got to go,

-because it's...

-I've never seen anything like it.

So where would you want your kitchen to be?

Well, we were thinking about

knocking the wall down between rooms one and two.

So, these two rooms here?

Taking this wall out?

-Yeah.

-And having the kitchen/diner in this room?

-Yes.

-I still think to have your kitchen right at the back

of the property where it is now with the bathroom,

that would make a much better kitchen/diner,

because you could then have immediate access

out into your garden.

Yeah. I'm sort of envisaging bifold doors and a deck.

I can see the budget going up now.

From the kitchen into the garden.

That could potentially be really nice.

Bring the outside in, as they say.

Absolutely, yeah.

Lucy certainly has her persuading hat on today,

but I do think she's right.

Extending at this point might not be an option

due to Tony's budget constraints.

We haven't actually got any money to spend.

What?! Can I just stop you there?

That's not what I want to hear.

No, well, we've spent all of our savings,

and we've borrowed a little bit from the bank.

So... But it's not as bad as it sounds, because we do own a house,

and we're selling our house, so when that's sold,

then the small amount of money that we borrowed from the bank,

we'll then pay that load off, so we'll be all right, yeah,

-we'll be all right.

-OK, so roughly how much money

do you think you might have?

We're hoping that we won't need to spend more than 40.

But I have discussed it with one agent,

and he worried me a little bit,

saying that he imagined it would be more like 60-70,000.

I am going to agree.

-Are you?

-You've got a lot of work to do here.

Tony is definitely being very optimistic.

He needs to get the professionals in for the electrics,

central heating and double glazing.

But he'll be doing most of the other works himself,

which sounds like it might take a while.

We'd like to finish it in about three to six months.

-What?!

-Oh, you're shocking me all the way along this interview.

Three to six months, you're going to do all of that work yourself,

and you've got 40 grand?

We need to have a serious chat, I think.

Have you thought about maybe, you know, get a couple of guys with you,

have a team of people so that you can all crack on?

Because three to six months is going to go like that.

The next-door neighbour actually is a bricklayer.

Fantastic. Make him your best friend.

Absolutely, yeah, he already is, yeah!

What are you most worried about with having bought this at auction?

I don't think I'm worried about anything in particular.

I'm looking forward to coming here in my old clothes

and clearing out all the rubbish to thoroughly assess what needs doing.

I can't wait to see what you look like in your old clothes,

because clearly you've got those fabulous shoes on for us today,

so you won't be wearing those, will you?

Definitely not, no.

-No.

-So, what does your wife think about this?

Oh, she's very excited as well, yes.

She'll definitely be here helping out,

doing as much as she can as well,

and I'm sure that the finished thing will be absolutely beautiful.

I'm sure it will be.

Well, I'm really excited to see the outcome of this.

I want to know how much you're going to spend,

I want to know what the configuration's going to be like.

-Tony, congratulations.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

So, Tony has bought in Forest Gate at exactly the right time,

but I'm not convinced that £40,000 is going to stretch to all the work

that needs to be done here.

I am a little nervous about that.

Later on in the programme,

you can find out how he does decide to change the layout.

This is Handsacre in Staffordshire -

a quiet, rural village that sits just 3½ miles north of Lichfield.

It might be small, but it boasts a corner shop, newsagent's,

fish and chip shop, Chinese takeaway and two pubs.

What more could you ask for?

On this plot, there's a four-bedroom detached house.

It had a £100,000 guide price, and in the auction catalogue,

it says it needs extensive work.

And there it is.

Never mind inside, outside there's already a lot of work to be done.

Let's take a look.

MUSIC: Country House by Blur

It's not every day I go over a stream to get to a property.

Before you get your fishing rod out,

there's a couple of things you need to know.

First off, this property sits within throwing distance, literally,

of the railway line.

The rail company actually own the property and the land it sits on,

and have placed several important restrictions

on what can and can't be done here.

So, anyone buying this property will need to go through

the legal pack with a fine-tooth comb so they are on the right...

track.

The other thing to be aware of is this property actually used to be

two cottages, but now it's one large property, so, yes,

this one sounds a little unique and complicated.

I did expect a bit more of a front door there.

I also expected this place to be a bit more of a building site.

And, I've got to say, these stairs have got to come out as well.

These will not pass building regs.

But it's not a bad first reception room to come into.

There's some exposed beams as well.

Fireplace just here.

A little bit dated, but it's not a bad-sized room.

Now, this would have been two properties,

so there would have been a wall here at some stage.

But in here, you have got just a mirror image

of what we've just seen on that side.

There you've got your chimney breast with a fireplace this side,

more exposed beams.

Nice big window, though, I've got to say,

and you've also got a bit of storage space just through there.

OK, follow me in here, because we've got the kitchen.

It's a galley kitchen.

It's all a bit of a mess.

I can see as well there's a pantry just there,

and a door to go out back.

Follow me through the galley kitchen,

which completely needs changing,

through into what I would imagine

would have been a dining area of sorts.

There's exposed beams all through downstairs.

And you've got a downstairs toilet as well, which is always a bonus.

You've got all this space down here,

there's loads of space to do with what you want.

But I think the configuration is completely wrong.

Get it right, you could have yourself a nice downstairs.

# Never stop, we can take it to the top

# Take the time, get it right... #

It doesn't work as it is, and it will take some imagination.

My advice, get a couple of architects in.

They will tell you exactly what can and can't be done.

It's a shell at the moment, but it could be a lovely family home.

OK, upstairs to the bedrooms,

and there's more of what I was expecting.

In here, we've got the family bathroom,

and you can see it's in a bit of a state.

A bedroom here with some signs of damp.

I can see just in the crack of the door there,

there's no floorboards in there, so I'm not venturing in that bedroom.

And huge damp patch on that wall.

But it's not... Well, it's not a bad-sized bedroom at all.

Nice high ceilings.

There's holes in the walls as well.

So it's... This is definitely a start-from-the-beginning

renovation project. Again, this is mirroring just as it would,

or just as it was downstairs, should I say,

so there would have been a wall here and these would have been

separate properties. You have got to try

and get some corridors up here somehow.

And by the way, that is the chimney breast,

so it's not going to be easy.

Well, new bathroom, extra bathroom, corridors, new kitchen,

a total renovation.

Yes, this is a big job.

And we haven't even been outside yet.

So, if you thought the front of this property was big,

we are now out the back.

And look at the size of it. It's even bigger out the back here.

Now, if you follow that wall all the way to the top,

you'll see it hits a green fence.

That green fence actually runs in behind these overgrown trees.

Now, you're probably thinking,

why not just knock it down and build a load of houses?

I'll tell you why, and it's in my right hand.

It's called the legal pack.

There are so many rules, regulations and restrictions in here

that you have to overcome before you do anything to this property.

Little bit of bedtime reading, I think.

Right, let me give you a few highlights.

So, you can't build within three metres of the railway wall.

No spotlights allowed.

No hosepipes. No gas or oil tanks.

But most of all, building anywhere near the house is prohibited.

Wow. And that's just a few restrictions.

I really hope whoever bought this house read the legal pack.

Time to hear what a local estate agent thinks

of this tricky property that was guided at £100,000.

# Baby, don't you know

# It looks like I'm never gonna lose the freight train blues... #

If I was coming into this house,

I would definitely bring a team of specialists in with me

to look at the walls, to look at the flooring,

to have a good look around

and decide what the best plan for this property is going to be

and get the most potential out of it.

I would definitely strongly advise that they look through the legal pack.

Sound advice.

So, if you weren't scared off already, would the numbers help?

As a four-bedroom renovated cottage,

this could actually look to go onto the market for £320,000.

If we were putting the property on the market to let,

I would put the property on at £950 per calendar month.

This is a property not for the faint-hearted.

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

and a load of restrictions to get over before you can start

doing anything. But if you get it right,

and with a bit of imagination,

I think you could be onto something.

Let's see who had that imagination when it went under the hammer.

£100,000 to start,

ladies and gentlemen, for lot 110. 100,000.

80, then.

Thank you, sir. 80 at the back.

80,000. I'll take 90 now.

On the phone if you wish.

At £80,000. 90,000. 100,000.

110, sir.

110, no? 105, sir, thank you.

110 at the back.

110. 15, sir?

OK, sir, I'll come to you, don't worry.

115. 120.

Have another one, sir? 125, 130, sir?

With plenty of interest, the lot flew past its guide price.

We rejoin at 150 grand.

No, 150 there?

152, 154, 156, 158.

Have 157, sir.

£156,000, sir, it's your bid at 156.

Are you coming back in on the phone?

At £156,000?

No, your bid, sir, for the first time.

Second time. Are you all done at 156?

157, sir?

158, sir? 159, sir.

160, sir?

160. 161? You've run a good race, and thank you.

£160,000, then, for the first time.

Going at the back. You're out here, you're out on the back right.

First time, second time, third and the very last time, sir.

One more chance. Your bid, sir.

£160,000.

And your number, please? Well done.

Oh, she's delighted!

Oh, and he gets a big hug.

# Well

# Hold me, baby

# Hold me, baby

# Hold me, baby

# Hold me, baby... #

Those delighted bidders were husband and wife Alison and Kevin.

With Kevin otherwise engaged, Alison has brought along their two sons,

Michael and Philip.

I can't wait to see what Alison's plans are

for her 160-grand purchase.

-Alison, nice to meet you.

-And you.

And congratulations.

-Thank you.

-This is a bit of a monster.

It is. It's a big monster, yeah.

What attracted you to this particular place?

I'd seen it a couple of years ago in auction.

It didn't go through. So I drove past and I'd seen the board,

and I just decided, yes, it's what I want,

I've been wanting it for ages, and that's what I've done,

-went and bought it.

-What was it? Was it the location?

If you've seen it boarded up, it couldn't have been the way it looked!

No, it's not the house, it's the actual land I like.

-OK.

-The brook through it, so, yeah.

And what have you kept your eye on this property for?

I've got...

I want garages. I've no garages at my house.

And I want a garage, a bit more land.

I've got dogs a well, so, yes, a bit more...

So are you looking to keep this as your own?

Yes, I'm keeping it as my own.

Oh, nice. That's why you've kept your eye on it

-and you've been so interested, then?

-Yes.

Is it bigger than what you thought?

Did you view it? Did you read the legal pack?

-Yeah, I read the legal pack.

-Yes, correct.

-Yeah, I did view it.

You could only view it one day, and it was for an hour.

We came round and used our torches.

That's all you could view it, because it's all boarded up.

I still wanted it, no matter what,

but I thought it would be a bit smaller, but obviously not.

So, you know, it's yours.

What are you going to do with this?

Are you going to have to knock it about, change the configuration?

Because it's a little bit... It's like a mirror image, isn't it?

Yes. And it's not... Well, yeah.

Upstairs I am, because there's no landing or anything,

so I need to, like, make a landing. But not quite sure.

I want to keep the chimneys, make it a feature, but otherwise than that,

not quite sure where to start, really.

Alison might not be sure about the configuration,

but she has her heart set on a three-bedroom house

with a wet room on the ground floor.

She has lots of friends who are involved in the building trade

who will help her with this project.

She's hoping to have the work done within 12 months

and for a cost of 70 grand,

but she has wisely set aside an extra £30,000 just in case.

How does she feel about that tricky legal pack?

There's quite a lot in the legal pack I can't do

because of the railway that runs beside it.

I can't go three metres between it.

Then it's 60 metres you can't build,

so it means you could never build on the land,

and you have to ask to build anything I do want, but no.

A lot of people might have been put off by that,

but they would have been turned on

by that little stream you've got down there.

-Yes.

-Which is very pretty with this little bridge going over.

Are you going to do anything? Are you going to make a feature of that?

Yes, I'm going to take away the sleepers

and make an arch feature of a bridge where you don't drive over it,

you just have some nice lights and you just walk on,

you can see it from the road, yes.

So, are your boys going to get involved?

Are they going to get their hands dirty?

Definitely. I'm going to make sure they do.

What are you expecting them to do, then?

Hopefully a bit of the garden,

and one comes to live with us occasionally,

so do his room, but otherwise, just make sure they're doing

a lot of the gardening and a lot of digging.

I can't wait to see how this turns out.

I think it's going to be an amazing adventure for you,

and I hope it turns out to be your perfect family home.

-Thank you.

-Alison, good luck.

-Thank you.

-All the best.

Alison is one ambitious lady.

To take on a project of this size for a first venture

is very, very brave, but I think if she can get

the configuration just right,

she could be onto achieving her perfect forever family home.

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

Still to come, there are hazards aplenty at this Plymouth property.

The roof is asbestos.

That's not going to be cheap to sort out, either.

And in Staffordshire, we find out if Alison managed to clear the jungle.

It was 18 lorry-loads to remove the trees.

Earlier in the show,

Lucy was in the increasingly popular area of Forest Gate in East London

to see a two-bed mid-terraced property that had a raft of issues.

Not least its baffling combination of bathroom and kitchen.

Step forward, Tony.

Having bought the property for 321,000,

he needed to fix the problems that come with time passing.

Rot, damp, a crumbling extension and no central heating.

# I've got 21,000 things

# That I gotta do today... #

A bit of hyperbole there, methinks.

But there certainly was a lot of problems

and little money to fix them.

We haven't actually got any money to spend.

What?! Can I just stop you right there?

That's not what I want to hear!

No, well, we've spent all of our savings

but it's not as bad as it sounds,

because we do own our house and we're selling our house.

We're hoping that we won't need to spend more than 40.

We'd like to finish it in about 3-6 months.

-What?!

-Yes.

-Oh, you are shocking me all the way along this interview.

3-6 months, you're going to do all that work yourself

and you've got 40 grand? We need to have a serious chat, I think!

Time has passed and we are here one year and eight months later.

Has Tony fixed the age-old problems in this property

and helped it move into the modern world?

# 21st century life

# I got swept away... #

A resounding yes!

This house is truly fit for the 21st-century property market,

and it has a very futuristic layout.

Upstairs, there is a bedroom and a glorious bathroom.

Downstairs, there are two bedrooms.

An unusual arrangement, but with a WC and shower room downstairs,

it means the floors are effectively self-contained.

Gone is the old extension and its kitchen-bathroom hybrid

and the new structure has been built under permitted development.

It's bathed in natural light

and with a modern galley kitchen leading out

onto the landscaped garden.

Tony has not left an inch of this property unrenovated.

What has changed since you were last here is pretty much everything.

From top to bottom, inside out, it's been completely redone.

I think we started with the roof

because we wanted the place to be watertight.

I completely levelled the garden.

Inside, we had to have the whole place replastered,

the windows replaced,

rewired, replumbed, central heating,

new boiler, and the big change,

I suppose, structurally, was at the back,

where we demolished the existing extension

and replaced it with a larger extension

which is now the kitchen, dining room and lounge,

and there's also a toilet and shower.

It's such a wonderful space.

With so many skylights, even on a dull day, it's bright in there.

So it's a very uplifting, pleasant space to relax in.

That extension with its living, dining, bathroom and kitchen areas

really is the centrepiece

and it's so good, one family just had to

be this property's new residents.

After buying this house, subsequently,

I sold our house in Surrey,

so we moved into rented accommodation

until this house was completed.

It made sense for us to move in and it just seemed like

the sensible thing to actually stay here.

It's taken one year to complete - double Tony's timescale -

and this quality finish doesn't come cheap.

Tony has spent £112,000.

I originally said the budget was £40,000.

I'm really not sure where that figure came from

because we didn't really have a very firm idea

about what we were going to do to the property.

But hopefully there's still some profit in there.

We shall see.

That's a question two local estate agents can answer.

Let's start with the impressions of the agent

who saw it before this wonderful transformation.

Lovely property. Done a great job of refurbishment from when I saw it

the first time. Love the amount of natural light we've got coming in

from the extension, especially through the skylights, as well.

I think it's a stunning property. They've done a great job.

It's beautiful, absolutely gorgeous.

I haven't seen a house like this for a long, long time.

However, they have configured it quite unusual.

Having one bedroom upstairs with a glorious luxury bathroom,

the bedrooms are downstairs,

which is really unusual for this area.

I can understand why the owners have done it,

to use the dining area as a lounge.

It depends on the buyer at the time,

because of the upside-down style of the house.

Tony and his family plan to live here for another year,

and then decide on selling or renting.

But having spent 432 grand in total, can they make any profit?

The resale value of this particular property

would achieve in the region of £480,000.

And from a rental point of view,

the property should achieve in the region of £1,400 per calendar month.

In terms of valuation for the property, you're looking

at £450-475,000 for the resale value,

and in terms of rental value you're looking at

between £1,600-1,700 per calendar month.

Gosh, that's a shock.

I thought it was going to be quite a bit higher than that.

You're joking. Is it a joke?

Well, Tony, we don't generally make jokes about property prices

although those valuations could mean a £47,000 profit

before fees and taxes, though, and around a 5% yield.

But, since filming, Tony has had valuations

of around the £600,000 mark,

and it's probable that the Crossrail factor

will help things even further.

Some experts have said that property valuations

could go up by as much as 40%.

I think we would buy again at auction

because we had a good experience this time around. Who knows?

We might meet Homes Under The Hammer there, again!

With its commanding position on the English Channel,

the city of Plymouth boasts a long and proud maritime history.

It was from here in 1588 that Francis Drake

launched a mortal attack on the advancing Spanish Armada

earning him the respect and adoration of a grateful nation

and a knighthood from his grateful Queen, Elizabeth I.

And it's said he never let the start of a battle interrupt

a good game of bowls. Well, will today's property bowl me over?

Well, about a mile from the city centre on this fairly busy main road,

but also a very active bus route, is the property I'm here to see.

£100-125,000 was the guide price

for a three-storey four-bedroom mid-terrace.

This is it. Looks a bit ropey from the outside.

Let's have a look inside.

It may be hard to believe,

but this property is actually Grade II listed.

Not something immediately obvious from the outside,

and, to be honest, not from the inside, either.

Right, then, so...

It's not looking that brilliant, I have to say.

The outside is bad. The inside is looking almost worse.

Straightaway, you get that feeling the house is on a bit of a slant.

I mean, it could just be the floorboards.

I hope it's just the floorboards.

But the size is good. I like the high ceilings.

That's the front sitting room, there.

It's a bit of a mess but it's a good size.

Again, lots of original features which you could keep.

I love this staircase, that sort of sweeping staircase that bends round.

That's such a lovely feature. It goes all the way up there.

Wow, like that.

A rear sitting room and then...

if it could get worse, it starts to get worse.

Look at this. Obviously had serious problems

of water ingress at some point.

I don't know how much it's been looked after over the years.

It just sort of just says a house that hasn't had money spent on it

for quite a long time. But I'm liking the size.

I'm liking this area here. It's the kitchen area.

Completely needs gutted.

If you like, the floorboards are all rattly, oh, my goodness me.

Ah, that's not good.

Bathroom here.

So, lots of space.

If you just gut the whole thing, you start to see what you've got.

You've got a big house that needs a lot of money spent on it.

# Spend your money, honey

# You know it's not that bad. #

I know it's difficult,

but forget the mess and feel the size of this place.

Beneath my feet lies a very spacious cellar.

Not terribly appealing right at the moment, I admit,

but throw a bit of cash down there,

let in some natural light, and it could turn into

something quite pleasant.

On the first floor are two large bedrooms and a family bathroom.

On the second floor, there are two further bedrooms.

All this space suggests to me

a potentially lucrative avenue to explore.

So, I'm up on the top floor and I'm thinking about

another possibility for this property.

Plymouth has got loads of students.

It's a really great student town.

So, how about the idea of converting this to a student let?

A house of multiple occupation it would end up being.

There's lots of licensing and things you've got to put in to such houses,

but I think, financially, it would be a very interesting option,

and, certainly, it's in the right location for that kind of stuff.

So it's a house with lots of options but again it's a house

that requires so much money poured into it to sort things out.

Up here, there's one final thing I've noticed -

the roof above one of the lower floors there...

is asbestos. That's not going to be cheap to sort out, either.

From the top floor back down to the cellar and that separate entrance,

well, it's given me one final thought.

Unfortunately, it's hidden underneath all this...

basically garden shrubbery, etc,

but there is a door down there which,

yeah, or at least a window,

so that's the cellar or that's the lower floor.

So suddenly I'm thinking, mm, separate entrance,

what does that throw up the possibility for?

How about flats?

Now, I reckon flats round here, very interesting option.

The only caveat - and it's a big one - is that Grade II listing.

Giving the local conservation officer a bell

before you make any concrete plans would be my top priority.

But what will local property experts think?

It's time to get an estate agent in

to get his opinion on the pros and cons

of this four-bedroom Plymouth house.

# You can ring my bell

# Ring my bell... #

My first impressions of the house,

there's a lot of plastering work,

there's a lot of damp ingress, so that needs to be dealt with.

There's major decoration to be done throughout the property.

Obviously, I think there's a rewire that needs to be done

and I do believe there's some plumbing work to be done, also.

The agent reckons that a refurbished family home could fetch

up to £210,000 on the sales market,

but great minds think alike,

and he feels that converting into four flats

would be a more profitable option.

The demand for family homes and for flats is very high.

I think in this area, the demand for flats would be higher.

I believe the configuration that I would choose

would be two two-bed flats and two one-bed flats.

He reckons that four flats could sell for a total of around 380,000,

or bring in a combined monthly rental of 2,200.

Well, in its heyday,

this really would have been quite a spectacular house.

But obviously, over the years, it has got into the state it's in now.

Don't underestimate the amount of money it's going to cost

to put this right, and your decision is, really, do you go for the flat,

the student lets, or do you reconvert it pretty much as it is?

Decisions, decisions.

Let's find out what the person who bought it decides

when it went under the hammer.

This is the three-storey four-bedroom house.

It's Grade II listed.

It does require modernisation and retains many period features.

Let's start things off, if you like,

at the top of the guide price, £125,000.

125, if you like.

Where do you want to start, then? You tell me, folks. 110?

110.

Yes, thought so. 110, I'll take.

110, then. 112.

112. 114, then.

There was some tentative bidding going on at this auction,

but after a few minutes of thumb twiddling the price started to rise.

We rejoin the bidding at 124,000.

124, yes?

And a half? 124 and a half?

125.

And a half?

A shake of the head. £125,000.

Tenacious bidding, this.

For the first time at 125.

Second.

Third and final time, we're done.

Yours, sir. Very well done.

Making that successful bid of 125,000 was David.

But he's not alone in this venture.

His wife, Theresa, here on the right,

and friend Jackie and her husband Michael

run a property developing business together.

I met up with Jackie and Theresa to find out more.

Theresa, Jackie, nice to meet you both.

-Nice to meet you.

-Congratulations.

Tell me why you wanted to buy this house.

Because our company is always looking for some potential houses

and this one, when we see it,

we saw it's a very good location

and the house is quite big

and we would like to change it into a lovely family house.

Jackie's husband Michael works in property development in China

and this inspired Theresa and David to join them

in setting up a company here.

They've been in business for a year and so far, so good.

What roles do you play in the company and what do you do?

Do you find the properties?

Do you actually get your hands dirty?

She and her husband do all the works, looking for properties.

I pay the money!

Oh, really?

Well, you know. So, is it mostly round this area?

At the moment, yes, in Plymouth.

Why do you like Plymouth as a place to invest?

I was studying here for about six years, in university.

So, been living here for six years, so, yeah, this town, I love it.

So far, the quartet plan to restore this building

back to being a family home,

but with Jackie being a former student at the university,

did the option of turning this into lettings accommodation

not cross their minds?

Was that something you thought about?

We thought about it, actually,

because what we are doing with some of the houses we buy,

we let out for students.

-Right.

-In a good location.

-Yeah.

But, first choice, we want to sell it. Yeah.

It's a lot of property for the money.

I think you'll do quite well.

Why do you think the price was relatively low?

Hmm, I think it's the work.

-Right, yes.

-You can see, it's lots of damp and leaks

and it needs lots of work to be...

But that doesn't bother you?

-It's a challenge.

-Challenge, Yeah!

We are thinking it's a challenge.

So tell me, Jackie, what are you going to do to it?

I think we will take all the...

Everything, really.

Walls, ceiling.

New kitchen, new bathroom, the toilet.

Pretty much everything.

And also the basement,

because there's a basement they're supposed to enter in

from outside to inside. Because over the time, not looked after,

you even can't see the entrance, where it is.

So, downstairs, we're probably thinking to change to be, like,

an office or it could be a children's play area.

And the kitchen, we're thinking to change a little bit,

maybe move the kitchen further back

and make a bigger dining area in the kitchen.

And also, the roof.

We've got some bad material.

The asbestos?

Yeah. Yes, yes.

That's the one. And I know that is really bad for your body.

-Yes, yeah.

-So we're going to change that.

Also, if we put the skylight windows on,

we'll brighten up the house a lot better.

So what's the budget for the work you've got planned?

The budget is about £50,000.

50. And what's the timescale?

-15?

-15, 18?

15-18 weeks.

And have you got builders lined up?

Yes, we've got our own team of builders, yeah.

Listen, congratulations, good luck with it.

-Thank you very much.

-Looking forward to seeing how you get on.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

Well, Theresa and Jackie have certainly got their work cut out

to sort this place out.

50 grand? That's not a lot of money

for what is basically a total gut-and-start-again job.

And have they made the right decision keeping it

as one family house, rather than converting it to flats?

Hmm, dunno.

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

Earlier, we saw what happened to the first property.

But what about the other two?

Yes, have there been major transformations

or just a few minor tweaks?

Let's go back and find out.

Earlier in the show I visited this intriguing property

in the Staffordshire village of Handsacre.

In fact, you could say that it was RAILLY interesting!

Running alongside the house was a section of the West Coast rail link

between London and Birmingham.

# I am a passenger... #

The overgrown land the house stood on was owned by the rail company.

And, to protect the railway,

the property came with the biggest legal pack I've ever seen.

There are so many rules, regulations and restrictions on here

that you have to overcome before you can do anything to this property.

The building itself was actually two railway cottages

knocked into one, and had the potential

to be a really good family home.

This is definitely a start-from- the-beginning renovation project.

Alison and Kevin were clearly overjoyed when their 160-grand bid

came out on top at auction.

It's been on Alison's radar for quite some time now.

I'd seen it a couple of years ago in the auction.

It didn't go through. So I drove past and I'd seen the board

and I decided, yes, it's what I want, I've been wanting it for ages,

so that's what I've done.

# It's only a matter of time... #

Setting aside a year and a budget of 70 grand,

they plan to turn this place into their dream home.

Exactly 365 days later,

we are back to see how they've got on and, I've got to say,

I don't think you'll believe what they've done.

# Only a matter of time. #

# I want the whole world to celebrate

# I want to come home

# To the only place I know

# Where the trees I planted grow

# I wanna come home... #

I bet you weren't expecting this.

Alison, Kevin and a whole host of friends

have pulled this place apart and put it back together again.

At the front of the house are the living room and dining room

featuring a new multiburner stove.

At the back, the galley kitchen has been extended

to almost the entire length of the house.

I didn't like the plain ones so I had it handmade as sage coloured,

went and picked it, and the Belfast sink,

I wanted to keep it just as it was.

And I've made it neutral, really.

I wanted it more like the old cottage one.

So I've had dark wood in the living room

and oak rest of it round the house, just the old cottage style,

because I didn't want to make it modern,

because it's not really a modern house from outside,

so I wanted to keep the features.

Upstairs, there has been a radical change to the layout.

A bedroom has been lost to allow for a linking hallway

and to add an en suite to the large master bedroom.

And removing the second staircase has freed up even more space.

We did two or three different ideas upstairs

of how to make it three bedrooms, or four, or a landing,

but I think we did the right one.

We sat down and we thought, that looks the best.

A wet room has been installed downstairs

which is handy for washing Alison's dogs,

and that's not the only alteration the pets have caused.

We kept the original windows,

apart from I've had to put child locks on them

because the dog fell out the bedroom window, looking at the ducks.

Thankfully, Alison's pooch has made a full recovery.

Outside, there has been a fantastic landscaping effort

and Alison was able to get permission from Network Rail

to build a block of garages.

I think it was 18 lorry-loads

to remove the trees and all the rubbish.

We had a dumper drop and a digger

every weekend for at least three months,

just to remove the wood.

They have kept to their one-year timescale

but what about that 70-grand budget?

I've spent 70,000 with the garages,

so I'm really pleased with that.

It's perfect. It's what I wanted.

Great land, got my garages,

it's private and it's the best thing I've ever bought.

# It's got to be

# Perfect. #

It's clear that Alison and Kevin won't be moving from here

for a very long time, but just what has the work on this place

done to its value?

Time to hand over now to two local property experts

who can give us their opinion on that very subject.

I originally saw the property some time ago.

I'm not quite sure what I was expecting until I sort of

came in through the drive and in through the gates.

It has a lot of wow factor.

They really have gone to town with it.

Brought it into the 21st century,

but still kept its old-fashioned looks.

It has fantastic kerb appeal.

It looks very pretty.

You cross over the brook to get here, which is always good.

It's a good-sized plot and it sits very centrally within it.

Lots of off-road parking.

Possibly potential for development at the front, but obviously,

the railway line is very close to the building.

If Alison's house was placed on the resale market,

how much could it achieve?

In my opinion, I think we would be looking to achieve

between 300 and £320,000.

You would probably achieve somewhere between 300 and £350,000.

A bit of a wide gap,

but I think a lot of it is going to depend on whether people

will like the railway or not.

If it's got everything else you want

and you don't mind the railway, they would pay the £350,000.

Well, Alison and Kevin certainly aren't bothered by the proximity

of the railway. With a total spend of 230 grand,

that top figure of £350,000 could give them a massive profit

of 120 grand before taxes and fees.

Oh, wow!

That's good.

It's nice to know that their investment has been worth it.

But, for now, this is home sweet home.

Has the experience tempted Alison to turn her hand to more property?

I've enjoyed it, but, no, I wouldn't do it again.

It's very stressful.

But it was for myself, so it didn't matter, but, no,

I wouldn't make a living out of it.

It's time to pop back to Plymouth where, earlier,

I took a look around this four-bed, three-storey terraced house,

with an appealing guide price of £125,000.

But believe me, the guide price

was one of the few appealing things about it.

Look at this.

Obviously had serious problems of water ingress at some point.

The floorboards are all rattly.

Oh, my goodness, me.

That's not good.

# You ain't seen nothing yet... #

And things didn't get any better the higher up I went.

The roof above one of the lower floors, there...

is asbestos. That's not going to be cheap to sort out, either.

# You know, you know, you know, you just ain't seen nothing yet... #

The cellar wasn't for the faint-hearted, either.

Dark, damp and dusty, it had been left in really poor condition.

But, for all its faults,

this Grade II-listed building

offered lots and lots of space, and space equals potential.

So that's the cellar, or that's the lower floor.

So, suddenly, I'm thinking... separate entrance?

What does that throw up the possibilities for?

How about flats?

When the property came to auction, the successful bid of 125 grand

was made by David, one quarter of a business group

which includes his wife Theresa,

friend Jackie and her husband, Michael.

The amount of work required here didn't put them off.

When we see it,

we saw it's a very good location

and the house is quite big and we would like to change it

into a lovely family house.

They estimated it would take £50,000

and no longer than 18 weeks to turn this place around.

How did they do?

Well, eight months later we've come back to find out.

There has been quite a transformation here.

The interior has been completely gutted and reinstated

and from the spectacular new kitchen to the opened-out living room,

the ground floor has all the hallmarks of a bright,

spacious and modern family home.

The first floor layout has been remodelled.

One bedroom stays as it was

but what used to be the other bedroom is now

the family bathroom, and the bathroom is now a bedroom.

With plenty of room to play with on the second floor,

bedrooms three and four have been joined by a second bathroom.

Down in the cellar, things are looking much brighter now,

although there is still a bit of work to be done.

But the biggest structural change has taken place

at the back of the property.

David and Theresa are here to tell us more.

The key change was knocking down the shower room

and the toilet on the back,

and we put two parking spaces on the back of the building,

because here, the parking is a nightmare.

Creating the two parking spaces is a great idea

and they are still waiting to finalise planning consent.

Really big challenge, doing this project.

We changed the kitchen window after the council come here,

so we knew they used timber for the single-glazing window,

so we changed the kitchen one first.

You need to know a lot of details.

-We learned a lot.

-We learned a lot, as well.

Complying with listed building restrictions

and having to get a specialist company to remove

the asbestos roof in the extension mean their original budget of 50,000

wasn't sufficient to complete the job.

Actually, we spent roughly around between 75-80,000,

because we change a lot.

Despite being around £30,000 over budget,

their team of builders managed to complete the job

within their 18-week deadline, but it's been a tough journey.

It's the worst one we picked.

Yes, this is the worst one so far we have.

When I first time come into this house, it was just, "Oh, my God,

"how are we going to finish it?"

But after all complete, I come in and look, I love it.

It's a nice home, now.

Yeah. It will be a lovely home.

It's been quite a transformation

but has the budget overspend dented the team's potential profits

on this project?

Let's get the opinions of two local property experts.

So, the property overall's been finished to a very good standard.

The layout of the property is very good.

It's situated over three floors.

There's also a cellar, and it works very well.

It's a really nicely finished property.

He hasn't cut any corners or spared any expenses.

He's been very thorough in everything that he's done

and I think it's very saleable.

Positive feedback from both agents, then.

But with the purchase price of 125,000

added to the refurbishment costs of around 75,000,

their total spend comes to approximately 200,000.

Will the agents' valuations be good news or bad?

The resell value, I'd estimate the property to be between

£225-235,000.

I think in the current market would be looking to put this to the market

at an asking price of £250,000.

Hmm, that could mean a potential profit of anything between

25 and £55,000.

Some agent said it was between 240-270.

Their reactions suggest those valuations

are a bit on the low side for their liking.

What about rental figures?

I'd estimate the property to be between

£1,100-1,200 per calendar month.

The rental value of this property per calendar month would be £1,200.

That's a bit high, actually.

-That's quite good.

-That's more than what we thought.

-Yes.

A rental at £1,200 per month would mean an annual return

on their £200,000 investment of 7.2%.

So has that made them think twice about selling?

The plan B will be to rent it out.

Yeah, yeah.

We will see how we get on.

I think, first option, we still want to sell.

Well, that's all we've got time for,

but please join us again as we follow the ups and downs

-of property development.

-Yeah, hopefully not too many downs.

Join us next time for more Homes Under The Hammer.

-Bye-bye.

-Goodbye.