Episode 67 Homes Under the Hammer


Episode 67

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Transcript


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Hello and welcome to the show. Now, in this day and age,

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it's getting harder and harder to bag yourself a bargain

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in the property market.

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Yes, it certainly is.

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However, there's still one place,

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provided you've done your research and all your homework,

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you can grab yourself a bargain.

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Yes, the auction still provides opportunities if you've got the money and the nerve.

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So, would you head down to your local property auction and buy your next home under the hammer?

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Just like the lots, the bidders in the auction room are a varied bunch.

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Yes, everything from seasoned property developers to first-time buyers giving it a go.

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As well as people looking to buy their dream home,

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it's a really mixed bag.

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Let's find out what today's buyers went for.

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I'm in London, looking at this two-bed flat with a rare quality.

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Outside space. Not this, that.

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Speaking of outside space,

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these maisonettes in Liverpool practically have Goodison Park in their back garden.

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It's Everton football ground, look at that.

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And the stairs at this mid-terraced house in County Durham will have me

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keepy-up ready in no time.

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Told you they were steep!

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On the plus side, good for the thighs.

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

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

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It's sold to you.

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Situated about eight miles from the centre of London,

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East Ham is a district on the up.

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Lots of city workers have been living here over the past few years

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due to the comparatively affordable housing market.

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It's not the first time the district has been a magnet for new residents.

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After the East Ham train station opened in 1852,

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the population grew from under 2,000 to over 130,000 in less than 60 years.

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I'm guessing both the rental market and sales market were pretty buoyant

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back then too.

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We are just two miles away from East Ham Tube in the heart of East London.

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And on this street, we find our property.

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Here it is. It's a two-bed,

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ground-floor flat with a guide price of 175 grand plus.

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Let's waste no more time and get in there.

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Right.

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OK, the two bedrooms are right in front of you as soon as you come in.

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This would have been the front room back in the day,

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it's now the front bedroom.

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Fireplace here, there is a little bit of damp down there as well.

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You've got a nice big window, nice high ceilings,

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and it does feel pretty solid.

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But it's bedroom number one at the moment.

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Back into the hallway,

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and then out of the hallway into bedroom number two.

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Fireplace again, this does take up a bit of space.

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Central heating, again, high ceilings.

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This is bedroom number two.

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Let's see what else it's got to offer.

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Down the long corridor, into...

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Well, firstly, down to another level and here's your bathroom.

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It's new.

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You can tell, this is all fresh plaster.

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It's all been built in.

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Not a bad sized bathroom at all for a two-bed flat, and then you're into your dining area here.

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The windows feel pretty sturdy and relatively new.

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You've got a boiler on the wall.

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You know, it's quite spacious in here.

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I'll tell you why it's quite spacious, now I'm into the kitchen area.

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This part would have been the bathroom back in the day and the door would

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have been here. I can see over here, this would have been the toilet.

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But they've knocked the walls down and opened up the space.

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They've made better use of it.

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It's more modern now.

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It's more sellable, it's more rentable.

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Well done.

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# More, more, more

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# How do you like it, how do you like it? #

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There's definitely more, more, more pros than cons here.

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A lot of the hard work has already been done.

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And more than that, there's, well, more.

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So we've got a ground-floor flat,

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two beds, in the centre of East London.

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And we've got some outside space.

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Not this, that.

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Always a bonus.

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OK, so it's not exactly Hyde Park.

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But having outside space in London can be pretty rare.

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Although, something not so rare about this flat is,

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like 95% of flats sold in London in 2016, it's leasehold.

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So when you're buying a flat,

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what I suggest you do is double check the length of the lease.

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Now, the lease on this particular flat is 70 years.

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Now, anything under 80 years can be really expensive to extend.

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All I'm saying is do a bit of research.

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It might save you a few quid.

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How much of a problem could that lease be if you are trying to get a mortgage?

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We invited along a local estate agent to tell us more.

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A short lease on the property, 70 years, is not a massive disaster.

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It is still mortgagable, most mortgage companies will look

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for 25 years plus term of the mortgage,

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so 50 years upwards,

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but I think it's always an off-putting thing for purchasers anyway.

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So I think at the moment, the way the marketplace is,

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it needs to be renewed.

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So what could extending a lease here cost?

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Anywhere from around about £20,000-£25,000.

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If they offered it cheaper,

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my advice would be to bite the freeholder's arm off.

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So, invaluable local knowledge, there.

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But what does he make of the flat, guided at £175,000 plus?

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First impressions, nice property.

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A bit of on the small side, but I think it's, yeah, a good little investment.

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So if the house was refurbished, how much could it be worth?

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Selling the property as it is, as a two-bedroom,

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without renewing the 70 year lease,

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I think it's going to be somewhere in the region of

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£200,000-£210,000.

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And if you did spend about 20-25 grand renewing the lease,

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could you see a return?

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If you were to renew the lease and sell it as a two-bedroom flat,

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I think realistically at the moment, you're going to get somewhere around

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about £240,000-£250,000.

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So it's not in great condition.

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It needs a bit of time, effort and money spent on it.

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Talking of money, I think it would be worth spending a bit getting that lease extended.

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Let's find out who had the right budget when it went under the hammer.

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So, ground floor flat, a bit of garden, I understand,

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so who would like to start this?

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200 anywhere?

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If not, you tell me.

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I think it's worth two.

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OK, start the other way, 160.

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Go upwards from there, 160?

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160, got your hand, 160?

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165?

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165?

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162?

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164?

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166?

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166, 168?

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170, 172?

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172, 174?

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New spot, first bid.

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172, first time.

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174?

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176?

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178?

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Thank you. 180?

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182, madam?

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180, first time.

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Second time.

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Third and last time.

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Sold, 180.

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The successful bid of 180 grand came from Andre.

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He bought the flat with his partner, Rachel.

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I caught up with them back at the flat to find out more.

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-Rachel, nice to meet you.

-Nice to meet you.

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Andre, nice to meet you too. Well done, guys, congratulations.

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-Thank you.

-Firstly, why this area?

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I've always been based in East London -

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Barking, East Ham - so, it's easier to kind of have property

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close to where you live instead of travelling miles.

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So, we kind of... This was the perfect location.

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-And this one came up.

-Tell me, why this property, then?

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-Were you looking for a flat?

-Ideally a flat, yes.

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I know houses are a lot more work.

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I've literally been working on my house and it's a nightmare, so...

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-So it's a nightmare working on your house?

-Yeah. And I'm very, very

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picky about everything and I knew it would just be a nightmare

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doing another house. So I thought, flat definitely,

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you kind of have to stick to the inside and a little bit of the garden.

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-And were you happy with what you paid?

-Absolutely. We were expecting it to go a lot higher,

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so it was a good price.

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Oh, well done. Was it way under your budget, then?

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About 15k under the budget, so it was quite good.

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It sounds like the property gods were smiling down on them

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for their first development project together.

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And so far, they've done everything right.

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Reading the legal pack and viewing the property.

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But will they get it right when it comes to the refurbishment?

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I've always been after kind of high-end sort of finish,

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but still keeping the cost low.

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So, the kind of dark laminate wood flooring, just premier feel to it.

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-Modernise it.

-Yeah, modernise it.

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What about the two rooms, you've got the two bedrooms,

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are we going neutral colours, or are we going colours?

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-No, neutral.

-Neutral, neutral all the way.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

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Are you going to make the kitchen any bigger, or are you going to keep it as it is?

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We're going to extend it to sort of an L-shape.

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-OK.

-And with kind of, like, a breakfast bar/eating area.

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-Just coming out here? OK, and the kitchen will go somewhere...

-Yeah, we'll just extend that way.

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-OK.

-And hopefully that should be enough to allow space for the rest of the room.

-All right.

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And what are you looking to do with it when it's finished?

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Are you moving in, are you selling, or renting?

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-Selling it.

-You're just going to get rid of it straightaway?

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-Yeah.

-No question there.

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No, no question. I've tried tenants,

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and I think I'll give it a break for a few years.

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And who's going to do the work?

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It's going to be outsourced,

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but we've got a lot of links to the family so they can literally just...

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I think they're waiting outside, actually!

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The 15 grand budget will need to go far to get that high-end finish.

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But with the family mucking in, I reckon it's achievable.

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Rachel will be at the helm as project manager,

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making sure the work is complete within their two-month timescale.

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And Andre has been looking into that lease.

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We are going to look into trying to extend it.

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There's already been a section 42 notice on the previous,

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from the previous owners to the landlord.

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-OK.

-So hopefully extend it, because I know it adds

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a bit of value more than you actually pay for it.

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-OK.

-But if the timescales don't allow for it,

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then we might just sell it with application open.

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OK. Do you know how much extra that's going to cost you?

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From what I see in the proposed,

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from the previous owners, it was about £15,000.

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-Yeah.

-As a section 42 notice has been served,

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the seller can assign the benefits of the notice to Andre and Rachel.

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So they don't have to own the property for two years to qualify

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under the law allowing lease extensions.

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A 15 grand figure, if they can agree on that, makes this a pretty good buy.

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Of course, any landlord is entitled to make a counter offer in this process.

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So, no counting any chickens.

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So away from going to auctions, then, and buying properties, what do you do,

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-what's your day job?

-I'm a primary school teacher.

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OK, so looking after builders and looking after primary school kids...

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-About the same.

-Pretty much the same, isn't it?

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-Andre what do you do?

-I'm in the media industry,

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so we do music videos and direct music videos and stuff like that.

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-Do you really?

-Yeah.

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-So...

-Tell me more about that, I'm interested about that.

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It's not too bad, it's giving me the skills to kind of,

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I guess, boss people around, is the best way to say.

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But no, it's just the kind of leadership skills,

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so hopefully we should all, in terms of the builders,

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kind of give them direct instructions.

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-Both of us.

-Hopefully.

-She's a teacher, I'm a director, it's perfect.

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-It's all in place.

-Exactly, that's what we need.

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-Do as you're told, lads.

-Yeah, basically.

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Rachel, I hope it works out, it's your first venture.

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I think you chose right to go small.

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Hope you make a massive profit.

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-Thank you.

-Good luck to you.

-Thanks so much.

-Andre, good luck.

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So, the primary school teacher and the music video director

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have ventured into the property developing world.

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It's their first project, and they've chosen small.

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And they're right to.

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Will they achieve that high-end finish they're after?

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Stay tuned and you'll find out how they get on.

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MARTIN: Liverpool's renowned as a football-mad city.

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And the property I'm here to see fits the bill perfectly in that regard.

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It's situated near Liverpool FC's Anfield Stadium,

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and it's nestled in the shadows of Everton's Goodison Park.

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Now, although the stadiums can't claim to be the closest derby grounds in England -

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that honour goes to Nottingham's clubs -

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the two centre circles are separated by just 966 metres.

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Something tells me our property might appeal to those familiar

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with the offside rule.

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Well, up for auction, in this rather pleasant street,

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was a double fronted terrace which has been converted into two

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three-bedroom maisonettes. Guide priced at £75,000-£80,000,

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sounds like it's a fair price for that.

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Let's take a look inside.

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Two for the price of one, and the maisonettes promise a good size.

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So let's hope it lives up to expectations.

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So, through the front door and into a fairly large entrance lobby, which

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you might expect. Some very grand stained glass which is adorning

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the place, which is good. And then, two flats.

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That one.

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Well, both of the flats are pretty much the same,

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so it doesn't really make a difference which one I came into.

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Maisonettes, as in you've got another floor up there, so you've got three bedrooms.

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It's almost like a house, isn't it?

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Large living room towards the front.

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Downstairs loo and bathroom there.

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And then through into the kitchen.

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I have been in houses that are definitely smaller than this.

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Look at this for instance, the size of the kitchen, absolutely lovely.

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Enough space for your kitchen units and a dining area here.

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And that's just one.

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So I guess the advantages with this, straightaway are, well,

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almost two for the price of one, but when it comes to materials and tradespeople,

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the fact that they're right next to each other, you're buying two kitchens,

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you might be able to get a deal on that, two sets of bathrooms and stuff,

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it does actually work quite well. So yeah, I'm liking what I'm seeing.

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You might save on a bulk buy of paint and wallpaper too.

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There's loads of room, and this is just the downstairs part of the maisonette,

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which, by the way, is French and means "little house".

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And it usually means an apartment across two floors, so up we go.

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So loads of space upstairs, nice high ceilings.

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A few corridors, which I think you can play with.

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Another thing is you haven't got a bathroom up here.

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You've got that one downstairs, obviously,

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and it's crying out for either an en suite or maybe a family bathroom

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that you could probably put in here. It's a good size, again, this is a flat.

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This is amazing. But the thing that's really going to float somebody's boat

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is the view out of this window. No, it's not open fields.

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No, it's not herds of wildebeests sweeping across the prairie.

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It's Everton football ground, look at that.

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If you're a football fan, or more particularly an Everton fan,

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that's a sight for sore eyes.

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You'll almost certainly hear the roar of the crowd from here,

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and that buzz and excitement that match day brings.

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And if this property was a football score,

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we'd have to say it was 2-1 up.

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Perhaps there's even an opportunity to get more.

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It seems that the ceiling in this bit, low as it is, isn't the original.

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Because if you look up there, it would have been much higher at one point.

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So I wonder if you could do a bit of playing around

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and maybe even extend upwards.

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Not necessarily that you need much more space,

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if you're going to leave it just as two flats.

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Because you've got loads.

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It's... Yeah.

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And for that guide price, yeah, it's a good one.

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But this is just half-time, if you like.

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There's a whole other half in the back of the building,

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with a ground-floor kitchen, shower room and a big lounge.

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And again, three bedrooms upstairs.

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And if you take the building as a whole,

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it lends itself to a number of formations.

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Two maisonettes,

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or divided into one to two bedroom flats,

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or possibly a house of multiple occupancy.

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Definitely, there is a range of options here.

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But what does an agent from the auction house who sold it

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think she would do if she was managing this property?

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The work on both maisonettes,

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I would put in new kitchen, new bathrooms,

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decor right through, new carpeting,

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and maybe get the electrics checked out.

0:18:020:18:05

So undoubtedly, there is a fair amount of work to do here.

0:18:060:18:08

But guided at £75,000-£80,000 for the whole building,

0:18:080:18:12

would it be worth it?

0:18:120:18:14

For a three-bed maisonette in this location,

0:18:150:18:17

if it was done to a very high standard,

0:18:170:18:19

I would market the property with an asking price

0:18:190:18:22

of offers between £60,000-£65,000.

0:18:220:18:25

So on the rental market,

0:18:250:18:26

I would estimate a rental value of somewhere between £500 and £550

0:18:260:18:31

per calendar month.

0:18:310:18:33

And what about another option, letting it out as an HMO?

0:18:330:18:37

If it were rented out as a HMO, you could put three tenants and,

0:18:380:18:42

£85 per week per person, which would include bills.

0:18:420:18:45

But that would net you about £15,000 per annum.

0:18:450:18:48

Well, a fantastic property for football fans, obviously.

0:18:520:18:56

I think in general, a really good one to go for.

0:18:560:19:00

Loads of space, loads of potential, loads of options, we like that.

0:19:000:19:03

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

0:19:030:19:07

We are offering you a double fronted mid-terrace property,

0:19:110:19:13

that has been converted to provide two three-bedroom maisonettes.

0:19:130:19:17

Can I say 75?

0:19:170:19:20

Thank you, 75 is bid.

0:19:200:19:21

77. I'll take next.

0:19:210:19:22

We'll do this in twos. Thank you, 77.

0:19:220:19:24

Now back to you, 79?

0:19:240:19:26

81? I see there's 83.

0:19:260:19:29

I'll take you at 83, yeah?

0:19:290:19:31

Can I say 84?

0:19:310:19:32

85? Am I just down to two of you now?

0:19:320:19:35

Are we breaking this into half? Shall I say 85 and a half?

0:19:350:19:38

OK, that brings you in.

0:19:380:19:40

86, now, can I say?

0:19:400:19:41

Thank you very much, 86 and a half?

0:19:410:19:43

87? 87 is bid, 87 and a half?

0:19:430:19:47

88?

0:19:470:19:48

And a half? 89?

0:19:500:19:51

89 and a half?

0:19:540:19:56

89 and a half I have, may I say 90, sir?

0:19:560:19:58

90 and a half?

0:19:590:20:01

No? Anybody else at 90 and a half?

0:20:010:20:04

Then with you, sir. £90,000 once. 90,000 twice.

0:20:040:20:09

Let me know if another 500 is coming, if not, it's going to go then,

0:20:090:20:12

at 90,000 for the third and final time, are we all done?

0:20:120:20:16

Looks like we are. It's sold to you,

0:20:160:20:18

well done, and a little victory salute as well!

0:20:180:20:21

And the successful bidders, with a little help from son Oliver,

0:20:210:20:25

were Polish couple Dan and Jo.

0:20:250:20:27

Dan is a builder while wife Jo is an accountant and this is their third

0:20:360:20:41

property purchase in this area of Liverpool.

0:20:410:20:43

I met them back at the house to find out the score.

0:20:430:20:46

Dan, Jo, great to meet you both.

0:20:510:20:52

-Hi.

-Congratulations.

0:20:520:20:54

-Thank you.

-Tell me why you wanted to buy them?

0:20:540:20:57

Well, basically, we wanted to buy a bigger house,

0:20:570:21:01

which could ideally be converted to flats.

0:21:010:21:05

And we wanted to look in this area, because we have

0:21:050:21:09

our houses here, just on the doorstep from this house.

0:21:090:21:15

And then when we started searching,

0:21:150:21:17

we found this property and we thought it's great,

0:21:170:21:20

because it's already converted into two flats.

0:21:200:21:22

-Yeah, yeah.

-So that was, that was a great potential for us.

0:21:220:21:25

So what are you going to do to it to sort it out?

0:21:250:21:28

We've got two plans. A and B.

0:21:280:21:30

The one from now is probably going to be just make another two flats.

0:21:300:21:35

Just one for a long tenancy agreement

0:21:350:21:38

and the second one for a short tenancy agreement.

0:21:380:21:42

So we can host football fans in our place.

0:21:420:21:44

So they can have a holiday let in,

0:21:440:21:47

or a kind of room per weekend, or per match.

0:21:470:21:51

Specifically for holiday, for football fans?

0:21:510:21:53

Specifically for them.

0:21:530:21:55

We want to try, we've got two properties. So we can try.

0:21:550:21:58

If that doesn't work, we change for a long-term tenancy.

0:21:580:22:02

And then in the next year,

0:22:020:22:03

we can probably change that including the loft as well.

0:22:030:22:07

We've already got permission and documents for six flats.

0:22:070:22:11

-For what, six beds?

-For six flats individual.

0:22:110:22:14

One bedroom, and one is going to be a double bedroom.

0:22:140:22:17

On that side, so that's going to be something, something else.

0:22:170:22:20

Dan and Jo have an interesting plan for this property.

0:22:220:22:26

They've been London-based for ten years and have come to Liverpool having done

0:22:260:22:29

their homework and realised the returns in the area could be very good.

0:22:290:22:35

So, what is the budget for what you're planning then,

0:22:360:22:39

for phase A and B then?

0:22:390:22:40

Yeah, we are looking at from simple figures, for a first stage 1,

0:22:400:22:45

is around, I guess, 15,000,

0:22:450:22:47

just to make it nice with the furniture

0:22:470:22:50

and just get them in, the fans.

0:22:500:22:52

And Plan B is going to be around 100,000, I guess.

0:22:520:22:55

They're two interesting plans with two different timescales.

0:22:560:23:01

Plan A, the upgrading of the maisonette,

0:23:010:23:03

that they hope to complete in 2-3 months,

0:23:030:23:06

whereas the more complex Plan B would be potentially up to a year.

0:23:060:23:10

I'm fascinated that you decided specifically to rent out to football fans.

0:23:120:23:15

Where does that plan come from then?

0:23:150:23:17

Well, it's maybe a bit too much to say that...

0:23:170:23:20

We want football fans because we are in the middle of this area,

0:23:200:23:24

where we are two minutes from Everton Stadium

0:23:240:23:27

and then ten minutes from Anfield Stadium.

0:23:270:23:30

So I think it's a very good location for them,

0:23:300:23:32

but we want to make them family-friendly as well.

0:23:320:23:35

So that families with kids could also come and have a holiday

0:23:350:23:40

or weekend away in Liverpool, where so many things are going on.

0:23:400:23:44

-Terrific.

-So, yeah.

0:23:440:23:46

Wow! So, are you going to paint one flat red and one flat blue?

0:23:460:23:50

One for the Liverpool supporters and one for the Everton supporters?

0:23:500:23:53

We've been thinking about that.

0:23:530:23:55

-It might be.

-Yeah, it might be an idea.

0:23:550:23:57

-Why not?

-Good luck with it.

0:23:570:23:59

-Yeah, we'll need that.

-I look forward to see how you get on.

-Thank you very much.

0:23:590:24:04

Well, Dan and Jo seem to have all the options covered with this place,

0:24:040:24:09

don't they? And I think they got a good buy.

0:24:090:24:11

But of course, we're just at kick-off.

0:24:110:24:13

What will it be like at full-time?

0:24:130:24:16

You can find out later in the show.

0:24:160:24:18

Still to come, I think there's a gap in the market for this mid-terraced house in County Durham.

0:24:190:24:25

I can tell the boiler has been here, it's been ripped out.

0:24:250:24:29

And back in Liverpool, we'll find out if Dan and Jo

0:24:310:24:34

stuck to their original timescale, or did they go into extra time?

0:24:340:24:39

Time to head back to the district of East Ham,

0:24:420:24:45

just eight miles outside the City of London.

0:24:450:24:48

It was here I saw a two-bed, ground-floor flat guided at £175,000 plus.

0:24:480:24:55

Inside, the bedrooms were both a bit tired.

0:24:550:24:58

But work had already begun on the bathroom and large kitchen-diner at the rear of the property.

0:24:580:25:03

This part would have been the bathroom back in the day,

0:25:030:25:07

the door would have been here.

0:25:070:25:08

I can see over here as well, this would have been the toilet.

0:25:080:25:12

But they've knocked the walls down and opened up the space.

0:25:120:25:15

It's more modern now.

0:25:150:25:17

It's more sellable, it's more rentable.

0:25:170:25:20

Something else sure to get the bidders interested

0:25:200:25:23

was the added bonus of a small garden.

0:25:230:25:25

But I hoped whoever bought this place had done their homework.

0:25:250:25:29

Now, the lease on this particular flat is 70 years.

0:25:290:25:33

Now, anything under 80 years can be really expensive to extend.

0:25:330:25:38

All I'm saying is do a bit of research.

0:25:380:25:41

Sold, 180.

0:25:430:25:46

Despite being first-timers at auction,

0:25:460:25:49

couple Andre and Rachel bought the property for 180 grand and it was

0:25:490:25:53

no surprise that doing homework came as second nature.

0:25:530:25:56

I'm a primary school teacher.

0:25:580:26:00

OK, so looking after builders and looking after primary school kids...

0:26:000:26:03

-About the same.

-Pretty much the same.

0:26:030:26:06

-Andre what do you do?

-I'm in the media industry,

0:26:060:26:08

so we do music videos and I direct music videos and stuff.

0:26:080:26:11

-Do you really?

-Yeah.

0:26:110:26:12

It's given me the skills to kind of,

0:26:120:26:15

I guess, boss people around, is the best way to say it.

0:26:150:26:18

It didn't sound like these two would have any trouble showing the builders who was in charge.

0:26:180:26:22

But could project manager and teacher Rachel get top marks and keep the 15 grand budget

0:26:220:26:28

and two-month timescale under control?

0:26:280:26:31

Or would it be a case of detention after school?

0:26:310:26:34

We are back two and a half months later, to find out.

0:26:350:26:38

The new kitchen is a class act,

0:26:500:26:52

and the second-hand units means that Andre got his high-end finish

0:26:520:26:56

at a fraction of the cost.

0:26:560:26:58

A-Plus to Rachel and Andre, who used part of the existing bathroom suite,

0:27:060:27:10

while giving the walls and floor a stylish overhaul.

0:27:100:27:14

Here is a lesson in creating space.

0:27:170:27:20

The bulky chimney breast in the front room is gone.

0:27:200:27:22

So is the one in the second bedroom.

0:27:220:27:25

And the stylish minimal decor is too cool for school.

0:27:250:27:28

This authoritative couple have shown this former grubby flat who's the boss.

0:27:300:27:36

But it was Rachel's first-time project managing a build.

0:27:360:27:39

So, did the teacher become the student?

0:27:390:27:42

So originally, the plan was that I would be the project manager.

0:27:420:27:46

It started OK.

0:27:460:27:47

I started doing a lot of the work.

0:27:470:27:49

But due to unforeseen circumstances, like jury service popping up,

0:27:490:27:53

Andre did have to take over and complete the project.

0:27:530:27:57

It wasn't anything major.

0:27:570:27:59

The builders were doing most of the work anyway.

0:27:590:28:02

For me, it was just a few extra days of work.

0:28:020:28:04

It wasn't too bad.

0:28:040:28:06

We got through it together and we both took on the responsibility.

0:28:060:28:08

It's very different, telling grown men and builders what to do,

0:28:090:28:13

compared to small children. But I'm learning.

0:28:130:28:16

Armed with prior experience of renovating his own home,

0:28:180:28:21

Andre has kept them on track with the timescale, with a two-week overrun,

0:28:210:28:26

just down to locating a good builder to start on the project.

0:28:260:28:29

But that's not to say the flat didn't come with its own challenges.

0:28:290:28:33

In this room, the flooring was in really bad condition

0:28:330:28:35

and initially we wanted to just remove it all and concrete it over.

0:28:350:28:39

But there was problems with...

0:28:390:28:41

You had to kind of ventilate the underneath of the house.

0:28:410:28:44

So we've replaced it with new wood and we kept the concrete area here.

0:28:440:28:49

We just dug down a little bit and re-levelled it and it ended up working fine. It was the majority...

0:28:490:28:53

The big problem was the levelling of it, but we ended up fixing it.

0:28:530:28:59

Re-levelling the floor and replacing the boards was an unexpected cost.

0:28:590:29:03

But what about one cost in particular that was expected - the lease?

0:29:030:29:07

We have a slight issue with the landlord,

0:29:070:29:10

where they're not really replying to us.

0:29:100:29:11

So, we have to follow procedure and just take it to the courts.

0:29:110:29:15

We imagine the price of it is going to remain the same, at £15,000.

0:29:150:29:19

We've planned to align it so it finishes with the sale of the property.

0:29:190:29:23

So when the new buyer purchases it,

0:29:230:29:26

hopefully the lease issue would have been sorted out as well.

0:29:260:29:29

So there's still at least 15 grand to pay.

0:29:290:29:32

But what has been spent so far?

0:29:320:29:34

Our original budget was 15,000,

0:29:340:29:37

but due to unforeseen extra costs,

0:29:370:29:40

we decided to take out the chimneys.

0:29:400:29:42

We decided to finish it to a higher standard that we would be happy with.

0:29:420:29:45

So it did come in at 20,000.

0:29:450:29:49

£20,000 plus the additional 15 grand for the lease extension

0:29:490:29:54

will take their total investment to £215,000.

0:29:540:29:59

But what do two local estate agents

0:29:590:30:01

make of this first foray into development?

0:30:010:30:04

What a great transformation.

0:30:040:30:06

From when I saw it before to now, they've done a great job.

0:30:060:30:08

Great, clean line finish, lovely white walls.

0:30:080:30:11

Wooden floors, very attractive as well.

0:30:110:30:13

I love the adjustment to the kitchen, looks really good.

0:30:130:30:15

Nice finish out there as well. Very modern.

0:30:150:30:17

And the garden looks great. It's a really sellable property.

0:30:170:30:20

I think the property is wonderful.

0:30:200:30:21

There's not much more that I actually want to change with that.

0:30:210:30:26

They've put a very good kitchen in, and a bathroom, which is the most,

0:30:260:30:29

I think the most important part of a property.

0:30:290:30:32

So it's definitely something that they've really spent a lot of time

0:30:320:30:36

and attention on it and really can see it in the final result.

0:30:360:30:39

I think your biggest selling point of the property is going to be the fact that it is newly refurbished.

0:30:390:30:43

To my knowledge, I believe there's going to be a new lease

0:30:430:30:46

for the property as well, which I think will be

0:30:460:30:47

a very big selling point. Sole use of the garden is also excellent.

0:30:470:30:50

And the fact that if you're looking for an investment property,

0:30:500:30:53

it's a two-bed flat, so it's going to give good yield on rent at the moment.

0:30:530:30:57

This flat is a definite crowd pleaser.

0:30:570:30:59

So, assuming they get the lease all sorted in time for their sale,

0:30:590:31:03

what could it sell for?

0:31:030:31:05

Total price, taking into account the lease has been extended,

0:31:060:31:09

we're going to be looking at around £250,000-£260,000.

0:31:090:31:12

If I was to take this property on the market,

0:31:120:31:15

I'll be looking to advertise between £275,000-£285,000.

0:31:150:31:20

£275,000-285,000, I'm surprised with that, more than I expected.

0:31:200:31:26

-Yeah.

-Very happy with it.

0:31:260:31:28

The agents' valuations could give the couple a profit

0:31:280:31:31

of between £35,000 and £70,000, minus taxes and fees.

0:31:310:31:37

That result is the cat's whiskers.

0:31:370:31:39

Does that mean there will be more to come?

0:31:390:31:42

We haven't run into too many issues.

0:31:420:31:44

So, I think in the future,

0:31:440:31:46

we would like to do two or three perhaps in a year.

0:31:460:31:49

Definitely more than just this one.

0:31:490:31:52

So, more development in this couple's future.

0:31:520:31:55

But what else do they see on their horizon?

0:31:550:31:58

-Well, you're going to propose at Christmas...

-I want to buy a Lamborghini.

0:31:580:32:01

A wedding or sports car?

0:32:010:32:03

I think I'll stick to predicting the future for property.

0:32:030:32:07

Good luck!

0:32:070:32:09

MARTEL: Just a few miles to the east of Bishop Auckland in County Durham is the village of Coundon.

0:32:140:32:20

Interestingly enough, it was originally called Cunadun,

0:32:200:32:24

which means "the hill of cows".

0:32:240:32:27

And "dairy" me, if this isn't a great opportunity

0:32:270:32:30

to make as many cow puns as possible, then what is?

0:32:300:32:33

I think it's best if we moo-ve onto the property.

0:32:330:32:37

Do you know what's nice?

0:32:370:32:39

It's nice to walk to a front entrance of a house and you're not on a road.

0:32:390:32:43

So, in front of these houses, you have allotments,

0:32:430:32:46

so it's nice and tranquil.

0:32:460:32:47

However, you do have good access to the road networks.

0:32:470:32:50

But if you're a train spotter, the news isn't so good,

0:32:500:32:53

because the nearest train station is in Bishop Auckland.

0:32:530:32:56

Now, this is the property I'm here to see.

0:32:560:32:59

It's got two bedrooms and a guide price in excess of £12,000.

0:32:590:33:03

Let's go look.

0:33:030:33:05

OK, well, what we have to start with - an awful lot of letters.

0:33:060:33:10

A sure sign it's not been lived in for a long time,

0:33:100:33:13

which you can tell just by the smell and look of the place.

0:33:130:33:16

I mean, it's a solid structure you've got, big chimney breast.

0:33:160:33:21

But I don't like the look of this low-level damp,

0:33:210:33:24

and actually even looking around the place, I see a lot of patches of it

0:33:240:33:29

coming through. So, yeah, you've got your reception room first to follow,

0:33:290:33:33

really steep staircase, which I'll tackle later,

0:33:330:33:36

and then a good-sized kitchen.

0:33:360:33:39

Everything must go. This needs completely updated.

0:33:390:33:42

It's not just the tired old kitchen that has to go.

0:33:490:33:52

There's a lot more damp here, which, like in the front room,

0:33:520:33:55

will need to be sorted out before you can really tackle things like

0:33:550:33:59

the kitchen. And then you have your bathroom downstairs.

0:33:590:34:02

Not everyone's cup of tea, not ideal walking through your kitchen to get

0:34:020:34:05

to the bathroom. But, in this area, it's a layout people expect and accept.

0:34:050:34:11

And that very reasonable guide price of 12 grand has to be borne in mind.

0:34:110:34:15

This one is really calling for a simple, straightforward refurbishment.

0:34:150:34:20

One thing that definitely needs sorted is those stairs,

0:34:310:34:35

which don't look like they meet current building regulations,

0:34:350:34:38

as they're far too steep.

0:34:380:34:40

I told you they were steep!

0:34:400:34:42

On the plus side, good for the thighs.

0:34:420:34:45

To one side of the stairs, you have a really good size master bedroom,

0:34:450:34:51

and then the other side you have this smaller bedroom.

0:34:510:34:55

Oddly, there's a newish door there.

0:34:550:34:58

I can tell the boiler's been here.

0:34:580:35:00

It's been ripped out.

0:35:000:35:01

This place needs a lot of work.

0:35:010:35:04

So, we can add a new heating system to the growing list of work required,

0:35:040:35:08

and it is now pretty clear why the guide price was set so low.

0:35:080:35:12

We've asked along a local estate agent

0:35:130:35:15

for her thoughts on the property, and also the local area.

0:35:150:35:19

Is it the right place to be investing in the property market?

0:35:190:35:23

There's a regeneration programme that's happening in Bishop Auckland

0:35:230:35:26

at the moment. They're putting a lot into the castle and they're doing an

0:35:260:35:30

awful lot of work in the marketplace of Bishop Auckland too,

0:35:300:35:33

which is really spreading out into the smaller, outer little villages.

0:35:330:35:38

That's good news for the area.

0:35:390:35:40

But this house could certainly do with some regeneration too,

0:35:400:35:44

which would require an injection of cash.

0:35:440:35:47

And, luckily, you could get some help with that.

0:35:470:35:50

If the property's been empty longer than six months,

0:35:500:35:53

then there is a grant available

0:35:530:35:55

to have some work done to the property,

0:35:550:35:58

particularly for bathrooms and kitchens.

0:35:580:36:01

Durham Council offer a five grand grant

0:36:010:36:04

to properties in lower council tax bands,

0:36:040:36:06

as long as the owner will be occupying the property

0:36:060:36:09

for a minimum of five years.

0:36:090:36:12

Private landlords can also get help

0:36:120:36:15

in the form of an interest-free loan,

0:36:150:36:17

as long as the house is tenanted within three months.

0:36:170:36:21

Other schemes are out there and they vary from council to council,

0:36:210:36:25

but it's good to know there is help out there to get empty homes

0:36:250:36:28

turned around so people can live in them again.

0:36:280:36:31

Once this property, guided at 12 grand,

0:36:310:36:33

is renovated, how much could it sell for?

0:36:330:36:36

On completion, with all the works done,

0:36:360:36:39

the property would sell in the region of £30,000-£35,000.

0:36:390:36:45

With all the work needed here,

0:36:450:36:47

maybe there isn't a lot of money to be made if selling on.

0:36:470:36:50

So, what about the rental market?

0:36:500:36:52

The property would rent for £300-£350 per calendar month.

0:36:520:36:58

It's got a lot of damp, steep stairs, and layout issues.

0:36:580:37:02

But with that 12 grand plus guide price, I'm sure even those problems

0:37:020:37:07

won't have put everyone off this house.

0:37:070:37:09

Let's find out who wanted to take it on when it went under the hammer.

0:37:100:37:14

This next lot is a two-bedroom, freehold, mid-terrace house.

0:37:140:37:18

Where shall we start? 20?

0:37:180:37:21

18? 16?

0:37:210:37:23

15? 14?

0:37:230:37:25

Where shall we start, folks?

0:37:250:37:26

12. Thank you, sir.

0:37:270:37:29

It's as good a place as any, if I may say so.

0:37:290:37:32

At 12,000 I'm bid, and thank you.

0:37:320:37:34

Do I have 13 anywhere?

0:37:340:37:37

I do. 13.

0:37:370:37:38

14. 15?

0:37:380:37:41

It was towards the end of the day, but two interested parties took

0:37:410:37:45

the bidding on this lot up to £20,500.

0:37:450:37:49

Make no mistake, 20,500.

0:37:490:37:52

At 21?

0:37:520:37:54

No? At 20,500, it's being sold, make no mistake.

0:37:540:37:59

Are we all done? There's 21.

0:37:590:38:00

21.5?

0:38:000:38:02

He's looking away from me.

0:38:050:38:07

No?

0:38:070:38:08

All done? 21 and a half.

0:38:090:38:11

22? No?

0:38:110:38:13

Both hands saying no this time.

0:38:150:38:16

£21,500.

0:38:160:38:19

All done? One, two, three.

0:38:190:38:22

Good contest. Bidder 601, that property is now yours,

0:38:220:38:26

congratulations and I wish you the very best of luck.

0:38:260:38:29

The successful bid of £21,500 for this property was made by Richard.

0:38:290:38:34

Richard, a builder, and pal and business partner Harriet,

0:38:380:38:41

or Harry as she's known,

0:38:410:38:42

are working together to create a rental portfolio,

0:38:420:38:46

with six under their belt.

0:38:460:38:47

However, they're not local

0:38:470:38:49

and both live many miles away in Lincolnshire,

0:38:490:38:52

and you know what they say...

0:38:520:38:54

# Everything looks fine from a distance... #

0:38:540:39:00

Congratulations on your purchase. Why this area?

0:39:010:39:04

Because the property prices

0:39:040:39:06

are a lot cheaper up here than they are back home.

0:39:060:39:08

So, how long is the commute between here and there?

0:39:080:39:12

Two and a half hours on a good day.

0:39:120:39:14

How do you work that? Are you doing a lot of the graft here yourselves?

0:39:140:39:18

-Yeah.

-He's doing it. He's doing pretty much everything.

0:39:180:39:20

He's kind of up here for two weeks at a time

0:39:200:39:23

and I'm up kind of sporadically.

0:39:230:39:26

A two-and-a-half-hour commute might sound a lot, but when you can buy

0:39:260:39:30

a property for 21 and a half grand, it may well pay dividends.

0:39:300:39:34

So, what's the game plan for this property?

0:39:360:39:38

What do you want to do with it when it's finished?

0:39:380:39:40

-This will be another rental one.

-Mm-hm.

-Yeah, just, you know...

0:39:400:39:44

So, is the plan to build up a bit of a portfolio?

0:39:440:39:47

Yeah. We're kind of developing them.

0:39:470:39:49

There's a lot of kind of urban regeneration going on in this area.

0:39:490:39:52

-Yeah.

-There's a lot of empty houses and they're trying to kind of get

0:39:520:39:55

people living in them.

0:39:550:39:57

What work are you going to do here?

0:39:570:39:58

So, the staircase is coming out down here.

0:39:580:40:01

We're going to build a wall in front of where the stairs are now.

0:40:010:40:03

We're keeping the stairs in the same place, but we need to replace them

0:40:030:40:07

to make less of a gradient,

0:40:070:40:09

because they don't meet building regs at the minute.

0:40:090:40:12

And then, the door's going to go underneath the stairs

0:40:120:40:14

and you're going to access the stairs from the kitchen.

0:40:140:40:17

We thought, we can't fit a whole bathroom upstairs,

0:40:170:40:19

but we're going to put a toilet just between the two bedrooms.

0:40:190:40:23

OK, so a toilet, not a shower room?

0:40:230:40:24

No, I think just a toilet.

0:40:240:40:27

I think, just from talking to people and things,

0:40:270:40:29

it's really beneficial, especially if you've got kids,

0:40:290:40:31

to have an extra toilet upstairs

0:40:310:40:33

so you're not coming downstairs in the middle of the night.

0:40:330:40:35

Absolutely. And, yeah, so you really are maximising your space.

0:40:350:40:39

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-So, who devised this change of layout?

0:40:390:40:41

That was me, because you can't fit a sofa in here if you've got stairs

0:40:410:40:45

coming into it, can you? I'm all for my sofa and the TV.

0:40:450:40:48

It's certainly so far, so good for Richard and Harry's property portfolio.

0:40:480:40:53

Although the layout changes and sorting the damp in this house

0:40:530:40:56

will cost more than the change you'd find down the back of a sofa,

0:40:560:41:00

they have a healthy budget of 15 grand for the work.

0:41:000:41:03

And as Richard is a builder and plasterer by trade,

0:41:030:41:07

he'll be doing most of it himself,

0:41:070:41:09

although Harry will be lending a hand when she can,

0:41:090:41:12

as well as looking after the logistics.

0:41:120:41:14

How long do you think it will take to turn the place round?

0:41:140:41:17

This is probably the best one we've bought, actually.

0:41:170:41:20

And the others we're doing, three or four weeks.

0:41:200:41:22

Wow, so you've done this.

0:41:220:41:24

-Yeah.

-You've done it in three or four weeks.

0:41:240:41:27

-That's brilliant.

-We've had houses with no floor upstairs

0:41:270:41:30

and we've turned it round in kind of three or four weeks.

0:41:300:41:33

Amazing. But then I shouldn't be surprised,

0:41:330:41:35

you're a builder and plasterer, you bring so much to the job.

0:41:350:41:38

-Yeah.

-Yeah, and you can focus on it full-time,

0:41:380:41:41

-and, Harry, you'll be coming...?

-As and when I'm needed.

0:41:410:41:44

I'm a graphic designer, so I kind of work whenever, wherever.

0:41:440:41:48

I can take floorboards out, I can plaster.

0:41:480:41:53

-Can you?

-Ish. Not as fast as he can.

0:41:530:41:55

-Have you just learned on the job?

-Yeah.

-And how did you two meet?

0:41:550:41:59

How did this partnership come about?

0:41:590:42:01

-She was a barmaid...

-When I finished university, I worked at a pub

0:42:010:42:05

and Richard spent 90% of his time in the pub.

0:42:050:42:07

So, we've been friends for quite a long time, like, six or seven years.

0:42:070:42:10

-Yeah.

-You got together and just thought, do you know what,

0:42:100:42:13

we'd like to start off a portfolio.

0:42:130:42:15

I'm guessing you were maybe working for someone else and thought

0:42:150:42:18

you'd like to do your own thing?

0:42:180:42:19

Oh, no, I'm unemployable... I mean, self-employed!

0:42:190:42:22

It's working out well for you, though.

0:42:230:42:25

Yeah, it's not doing too bad, is it? Mm.

0:42:250:42:27

So, a matter of weeks, 15 grand, can't wait to see the results.

0:42:270:42:30

-Thank you very much.

-Thanks.

-Thank you very much.

-Thanks.

0:42:300:42:33

Well, that was interesting.

0:42:330:42:35

Harry and Richard's property partnership seems to be going

0:42:350:42:39

really well and it's great to see that they're taking advantage

0:42:390:42:42

of this regeneration area.

0:42:420:42:44

I'm intrigued to find out what happens

0:42:440:42:46

with those grand layout plans.

0:42:460:42:48

You can find out what did happen later in the show.

0:42:480:42:51

So, earlier, we found out how one of our properties ended up.

0:42:550:42:58

I can't wait to see the other two.

0:42:580:43:00

Let's waste no more time and find out.

0:43:000:43:03

MARTIN: Let's head back to the football-loving city of Liverpool now,

0:43:050:43:08

where I was having a ball looking around this double-fronted terrace

0:43:080:43:11

guided at between 75,000-80,000.

0:43:110:43:14

And just like the beautiful game, this was a house of two halves,

0:43:150:43:20

because it was split into two three-bed maisonettes.

0:43:200:43:23

Well, both of the flats are pretty much the same,

0:43:250:43:27

so it doesn't really make a difference which one I came into.

0:43:270:43:29

Large living room towards the front,

0:43:290:43:32

downstairs loo and bathroom there,

0:43:320:43:35

and then through into the kitchen.

0:43:350:43:37

I mean, I have been in houses which are definitely smaller than this.

0:43:370:43:40

The overall feeling of space continued upstairs with nice

0:43:400:43:43

high ceilings and three bedrooms.

0:43:430:43:46

No upstairs loo was a red card,

0:43:460:43:48

but any football fan could forgive it for the view.

0:43:480:43:51

No, it's not open fields.

0:43:510:43:54

No, it's not herds of wildebeests sweeping across the prairie.

0:43:540:43:59

It's Everton football ground.

0:43:590:44:01

As investments went, this looked like a Goodison,

0:44:040:44:08

not least because there was another maisonette with a similar

0:44:080:44:12

three-bed layout as part of the deal.

0:44:120:44:14

So, when entrepreneurial Dan and Jo snapped them up for £90,000,

0:44:140:44:19

they did it with football on the brain.

0:44:190:44:22

We've got two plans - A and B. The one for now, it's going to be

0:44:220:44:25

probably just to make now the two flats,

0:44:250:44:28

just one for a long tenancy agreement

0:44:280:44:30

and then the second one for a short tenancy agreement.

0:44:300:44:34

So we can host football fans in our place.

0:44:340:44:36

And then in the next year, we are going to probably change that,

0:44:360:44:40

go in the loft as well.

0:44:400:44:41

We've got already permission and documents for six flats.

0:44:410:44:45

Dan and Jo were nothing short of ambitious.

0:44:450:44:47

And their respective jobs as a builder and accountant

0:44:470:44:51

will certainly help them along the way.

0:44:510:44:53

But would they stick to their Plan A budget of 15,000

0:44:530:44:56

and do it in two to three months,

0:44:560:44:58

or would it be Plan B for £100,000 in a year's time?

0:44:580:45:03

Well, we're back seven and a half months later

0:45:030:45:06

to see what stage they're at.

0:45:060:45:07

Well, it looks like Plan A is in full effect,

0:45:200:45:23

as the two maisonettes remain.

0:45:230:45:25

And I'm loving this contemporary industrial decor

0:45:250:45:29

Dan and Jo have opted for.

0:45:290:45:30

Both downstairs bathrooms have had a trendy makeover.

0:45:350:45:39

And the reception rooms are both ready

0:45:400:45:42

for some post-match relaxation.

0:45:420:45:44

Rather than let one maisonette out long-term,

0:45:480:45:50

Dan and Jo have opted to keep both as short-term holiday lets.

0:45:500:45:54

And these cool mezzanine beds upstairs make space for luggage

0:45:560:45:59

and other touristy bits and pieces.

0:45:590:46:02

So, with Plan A complete, do they have their sights set on Plan B?

0:46:020:46:07

When we first bought this property, we had an option A and an option B.

0:46:080:46:12

But we've actually talked to estate agents and they just give us

0:46:120:46:17

a rough value of the new property when we finished.

0:46:170:46:19

We decided with these figures, then that might be not really clear

0:46:190:46:23

for us with our financing. So, we've actually thought then,

0:46:230:46:26

it may be safer and better for us will be just to prepare

0:46:260:46:28

all the property for the future,

0:46:280:46:31

for an extension, and then leave it as it is.

0:46:310:46:34

By adding bathrooms upstairs in both properties, the whole building will

0:46:340:46:40

be more easily split if they change their minds in the future.

0:46:400:46:44

But as Everton's stadium will be redeveloped in the Docklands area

0:46:440:46:48

over the coming years, they decided Plan B wasn't worth it.

0:46:480:46:51

But they still think that Liverpool and the surrounding area will bring

0:46:510:46:55

enough tourist trade to make it a viable business model.

0:46:550:46:58

So, lots has changed, but I'm more interested in the changes

0:46:580:47:01

in the building and some of the more unique design features.

0:47:010:47:05

We upcycled the balustrade in the corridor for a coat rack.

0:47:060:47:12

These benches have been created from the old joists,

0:47:120:47:16

they are structural joists,

0:47:160:47:18

so we just coat them and we just made them nice.

0:47:180:47:20

And they look a bit stylish.

0:47:200:47:21

Upcycling and recycling are all the rage,

0:47:210:47:25

but do remember to keep safety in mind

0:47:250:47:28

when it comes to the materials you use.

0:47:280:47:30

Local builder Jaryk here has been on board, along with Alajek.

0:47:320:47:36

They helped Dan out when he was busy at home in London.

0:47:360:47:39

The work itself only took two months but they didn't start straightaway

0:47:390:47:44

while they were looking at their options.

0:47:440:47:46

How did they fare with a £15,000 budget?

0:47:460:47:49

The total spend of this property,

0:47:500:47:53

with value of £35,000 during the whole project.

0:47:530:47:58

That takes Dan and Jo's spend to £125,000 for the two properties.

0:47:590:48:04

But what will two local estate agents make of their investment?

0:48:040:48:08

Well, my first impressions of this property is

0:48:090:48:11

you're sort of blown away from it,

0:48:110:48:13

from the amount of work that's gone into it.

0:48:130:48:16

And it is a really quirky property and I really like this.

0:48:160:48:19

It's been very well decorated throughout.

0:48:190:48:23

I think you'll find it's probably quite unique for the area,

0:48:230:48:27

which is a good sale point.

0:48:270:48:30

Because he is looking for short-term holiday lets, I think it's great

0:48:300:48:34

that it's got two bathrooms, two shower rooms,

0:48:340:48:36

so that will make it quite easy for busy times.

0:48:360:48:40

And I like the flow of the kitchen,

0:48:400:48:42

with the glass window that overlooks the yard.

0:48:420:48:45

So it makes it really family friendly as well.

0:48:450:48:48

I think the stylishness of the fittings

0:48:480:48:50

and the general finish throughout, certainly within the kitchen areas,

0:48:500:48:54

will serve the landlord well,

0:48:540:48:57

as he's looking to go down the short-term holiday let route.

0:48:570:49:02

Top marks, but will the relocation of Goodison Park affect the appeal

0:49:020:49:07

as a short-term football fan holiday let?

0:49:070:49:10

I think Liverpool in general is a great tourist city,

0:49:100:49:13

so during the summer months, you'll be able to diversify the type of

0:49:130:49:17

clientele that will come and rent these style of properties.

0:49:170:49:21

So, I don't think there'll be that much risk involved for the landlord.

0:49:210:49:25

That's a relief, but always do your homework

0:49:250:49:27

if you're planning a similar venture,

0:49:270:49:29

as this could have been a significant issue for Dan and Jo.

0:49:290:49:33

The current rates for each flat are £150-£180 per night,

0:49:340:49:39

but their annual income will of course depend

0:49:390:49:41

on how often they're booked.

0:49:410:49:43

The couple are satisfied with their set-up for now,

0:49:460:49:49

but if they decided to sell,

0:49:490:49:50

how much could the properties be worth?

0:49:500:49:52

I think on the open market, this would currently achieve 90,000,

0:49:530:49:58

which I believe is at the top end, but the finish will assist it.

0:49:580:50:02

I think a three-bed maisonette of this standard would achieve

0:50:020:50:07

somewhere in the region of £100,000.

0:50:070:50:10

I've been expecting around 85, maybe.

0:50:100:50:12

But if that's going to be the margin,

0:50:120:50:15

I'll be well above where I expected,

0:50:150:50:19

so I'm happy.

0:50:190:50:21

No wonder. If the couple manage to achieve £100,000 per maisonette,

0:50:210:50:25

they'd take home a profit of £75,000 minus taxes and fees.

0:50:250:50:30

But they're still set on this as a long-term investment,

0:50:300:50:33

which will keep the money coming in to fund their latest project.

0:50:330:50:38

We definitely have to hold on now, because we've got a baby, another,

0:50:380:50:42

so that's going to be a bit...just resting.

0:50:420:50:45

But we will see another year,

0:50:450:50:47

and then we will see what will come up then.

0:50:470:50:50

MARTEL: Earlier in the show, I was in Coundon in County Durham, where I saw this two-bed terrace.

0:50:550:51:01

The guide price of 12 grand was moo-sic to my ears,

0:51:010:51:04

and there were bags of kerb appeal,

0:51:040:51:07

with the property situated in front of allotments.

0:51:070:51:10

But inside, it wasn't such a pretty picture.

0:51:100:51:13

I don't like the look of this low-level damp,

0:51:130:51:16

and actually, looking around the place,

0:51:160:51:18

I see a lot of patches of it coming through.

0:51:180:51:21

The fusty trend continued to the kitchen,

0:51:210:51:24

which, albeit a good size, was long past its sell-by date.

0:51:240:51:28

A downstairs loo meant a perilous night-time trip to the bathroom

0:51:280:51:32

via the steep staircase.

0:51:320:51:34

And the two bedrooms upstairs had a "hole" host of problems.

0:51:340:51:38

I can tell the boiler's been here, it's been ripped out.

0:51:380:51:42

This place needs a lot of work.

0:51:420:51:44

Despite the low guide price, there was so much work to do,

0:51:500:51:53

I could see the profit margin disappearing before my eyes.

0:51:530:51:57

So, pals and business partners Richard and Harry would have to be

0:51:570:52:01

stringent with their 15 grand budget

0:52:010:52:03

after paying £21,500 for it at auction.

0:52:030:52:08

Fortunately, Richard was a builder and plasterer

0:52:080:52:11

who would be doing most of the work himself.

0:52:110:52:13

We're keeping the stairs in the same place,

0:52:130:52:15

but we need to replace them to make less of a gradient,

0:52:150:52:19

because they don't meet building regs at the minute.

0:52:190:52:22

And then the door's going to go underneath the stairs,

0:52:220:52:24

accessing the stairs from the kitchen.

0:52:240:52:27

OK, so who devised this change of layout?

0:52:270:52:29

-That was me.

-Yeah.

0:52:290:52:32

Because you can't fit a sofa in here

0:52:320:52:34

if you've got stairs coming into it, can you?

0:52:340:52:36

"Sofa", so good.

0:52:360:52:38

And I like the plans to add a small toilet between the rooms upstairs.

0:52:380:52:42

They plan to do the work in just three to four weeks,

0:52:440:52:47

which seemed a tall order, given they hail from Lincolnshire.

0:52:470:52:52

So, would they manage it?

0:52:520:52:53

We're back four and a half months later to find out.

0:52:530:52:57

Friends Richard and Harry have made good on their plans to move that

0:53:070:53:11

staircase, which really optimises the space in the front room.

0:53:110:53:17

The entrance to the stairs is now in the kitchen,

0:53:170:53:20

which is also looking pretty smart.

0:53:200:53:22

The bathroom has been made a little smaller

0:53:280:53:31

to accommodate a utility area.

0:53:310:53:33

The pals have managed to squeeze in an upstairs toilet using space

0:53:430:53:48

from the second bedroom, and there's a new boiler.

0:53:480:53:51

The two bedrooms have been replastered and redecorated.

0:53:520:53:56

They've really turned this house round.

0:53:560:53:58

But how did they deal with that mammoth commute?

0:53:580:54:01

When Richard comes up with his colleague,

0:54:020:54:05

they come up for usually a week to ten days.

0:54:050:54:07

So, it's not so bad.

0:54:070:54:09

But when they're up here, they're literally working, like,

0:54:090:54:12

-16, 17-hour days sometimes.

-Yeah.

0:54:120:54:14

And camping, like, on air beds in a derelict house.

0:54:140:54:18

-Oh, it's brilliant.

-Great.

-It's lovely!

0:54:180:54:20

Do I detect a hint of sarcasm there, Richard?

0:54:200:54:24

At least he had colleague Alan to help him out with the renovation,

0:54:240:54:28

which included adding a damp course, replastering,

0:54:280:54:31

as well as all the layout changes.

0:54:310:54:34

They also got the house rewired by a professional,

0:54:340:54:37

and Harry's family mucked in too.

0:54:370:54:39

Quite a few weekends, my sister came up, Rowena,

0:54:390:54:43

she was doing bits and pieces of painting,

0:54:430:54:45

and I've been up sporadically to clear the site, to rip out walls,

0:54:450:54:50

to make sure that they work. Er, yeah.

0:54:500:54:54

While the cat's away, the mice will play, and in this case. cat Harry

0:54:550:54:59

was back home in Lincolnshire during the week, coming up at the weekend.

0:54:590:55:03

So, is that why the timescales ran over?

0:55:030:55:05

It's taken us 25 days to do the renovation in total.

0:55:070:55:10

But because we took on a couple of other projects further south

0:55:100:55:14

in the interim, we've been very back and forth,

0:55:140:55:16

so it's probably about three or four months since we bought it.

0:55:160:55:19

But in total, yeah, 25 days.

0:55:190:55:22

25 very long days.

0:55:220:55:24

I wanted it done in 22.

0:55:240:55:27

But I couldn't do it.

0:55:270:55:29

Well, there's always the next one, Richard.

0:55:290:55:31

But for now, did they keep to their 15 grand budget?

0:55:310:55:36

Our original budget was 15,000,

0:55:360:55:38

and including Alan's labour, we spent about eight and a half,

0:55:380:55:44

between eight and a half and nine.

0:55:440:55:45

I've just done one round the corner and I've just spent about the same

0:55:450:55:49

on that, so I've managed to tweak everything and get the prices down.

0:55:490:55:53

That bodes well for future investments.

0:55:530:55:56

But how will their current one

0:55:560:55:58

of £30,500 fare under the scrutinous eyes

0:55:580:56:02

of two local estate agents, starting with the agent who saw it last time?

0:56:020:56:06

Since coming back to the property, it has been transformed,

0:56:060:56:11

with all the walls plastered,

0:56:110:56:13

a full redecor programme, kitchen, bathroom,

0:56:130:56:17

it's really made a nice job of it.

0:56:170:56:19

I can see that there's been quite a programme of refurbishment done,

0:56:190:56:22

because everything's freshly painted

0:56:220:56:25

and you can see it's a new bathroom, kitchen.

0:56:250:56:27

There's been a toilet added to the property upstairs,

0:56:270:56:30

which is really useful

0:56:300:56:32

when a property has a ground-floor bathroom,

0:56:320:56:34

because both owner-occupiers and tenants do prefer

0:56:340:56:37

to have an upstairs bathroom.

0:56:370:56:39

That upstairs toilet was a wise decision.

0:56:390:56:42

But will this project make them a profit?

0:56:420:56:45

They've spent £30,500 on this property, so what could it sell for?

0:56:450:56:51

I would expect this property to achieve

0:56:510:56:54

a sales figure of £35,000 on the sales market.

0:56:540:56:58

I would put this property on the market for an asking price of 49,950

0:56:580:57:01

expecting it to achieve between 40,000 and 45,000.

0:57:010:57:05

Quite a range there.

0:57:050:57:06

But the higher value could see a profit of £14,500,

0:57:060:57:10

minus taxes and fees.

0:57:100:57:12

That's almost half their total investment.

0:57:120:57:15

Impressive stuff!

0:57:150:57:16

But this was always going to be a rental property.

0:57:160:57:19

For the rental market, I think this property would achieve

0:57:190:57:22

£300 per calendar month.

0:57:220:57:25

If I was putting the property up for rent, I would recommend

0:57:250:57:28

asking £395 per calendar month.

0:57:280:57:31

We'd be happy with that. That's a good yield.

0:57:310:57:33

-12%.

-Yeah.

0:57:330:57:35

Good maths there, as the lower end would mean a yield of around 12%,

0:57:350:57:40

with the higher value taking it to a mighty 15.5%.

0:57:400:57:45

This pally partnership certainly has its financial benefits.

0:57:450:57:49

Does that mean it's bound to continue?

0:57:490:57:52

We have some exciting projects in the pipeline, I think.

0:57:520:57:55

We're just going to keep seeing what comes along and keep

0:57:550:57:58

-property developing, I guess.

-I'll do some more bigger stuff.

0:57:580:58:01

Yeah, that's next on the agenda, when I can borrow some more money.

0:58:010:58:05

Well, another day and another three properties in the bag.

0:58:080:58:11

Yes, and, as ever, a very different three stories.

0:58:110:58:14

And you know what?

0:58:140:58:16

We'll have three more for you next time,

0:58:160:58:18

-here on Homes Under The Hammer.

-Bye-bye.

-Bye-bye.

-Goodbye.

0:58:180:58:22

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