Episode 75 Homes Under the Hammer

Hello and welcome to the show.

Now, the property market can be turbulent,

and sometimes it's difficult to know when to make your move.

Yes, it's definitely best not to rush in headfirst,

and instead take your time, consider your options,

and one of those options might be to see what's on offer

under the hammer.

Well, buying at auction is not an option that everyone considers,

and yet, it's not as daunting as you might think.

You can get a great variety and even better value if you do go,

so let's find out what caught the eye of our three buyers today.

Coming up, this two-bed flat in Sandgate, Kent

is all sun, sea and skirting boards.

I've never seen such a big skirting board!

It might be another flat,

but there's quite the climb at this two-bed apartment in Bolton.

HE PANTS Well, that'll keep you fit!

And there might not be a building at this plot in Enfield,

but Lucy's already decorating.

You've got this lovely log placed right here!

All these properties have been sold at auction,

and we'll find out who bought them,

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

Yours at 88.

We're at the Kent seaside in the village of Sandgate.

Birthplace of comedy actress Hattie Jacques,

who was famous for her roles in the Carry On films.

So, let's have a bit of a Carry On By The Sea in Sandgate.

Ironically, you don't have any sands.

What you do have is this gorgeous pebbly beach,

and just over there you've got some pretty little boutiques.

It's quintessentially English, so lovely.

Over there, you've got Folkestone. That way, you've got Hythe,

and in that direction, France!

So, the only question begging is, where's my cocktail?

Ah-ha!

OK, you guys, you can clear off.

I need a bit of "me time".

Sadly, I can't just stay here and relax.

There's a property to see, so I guess I better get a move on.

The property I'm here to see is on this busy road, which is not ideal,

but the village of Sandgate isn't served by a train station

so you do want good transport links close by.

This is good news. I've spotted that it's actually elevated,

so that should dilute some of this noise.

So, here's our property.

It has a guide price of £100,000 to £105,000 and two bedrooms.

Let's go look!

Access is certainly limited.

I don't fancy coming up here laden with bags of shopping.

But luckily, this flat is on the first floor.

Now, originally, this would've been one big house

and it's been carved into lots of flats,

but my first impressions... It doesn't feel claustrophobic,

like it has been carved up badly.

The ceilings are high, there's great feeling of space,

the first bedroom has a terrific size.

And also, you've got good storage space, which is always a plus.

Into the reception room,

and this actually has the feeling of a grand house.

The proportions are just fantastic.

I love the features, too, so this might not be original,

but it's in keeping with some of the other features in the room.

Somebody's really thought about this.

And look at this!

That's what I call a skirting board.

I've never seen such a big skirting board.

Fantastic! Over here, well, you do have double glazing,

which is good, but I can also feel a bit of air coming through the windows.

Not great, especially when you live on a main road like this,

so you definitely want to get those seen to.

I really, really like here.

It has a great feeling and a feeling is something that money can't buy.

# It's more than a feeling

# More than a feeling

# When I hear that old song they used to play

# More than a feeling

# And I begin dreaming

# More than a feeling

# Till I see Marianne walk away... #

Down the hall, bathroom in really good condition.

So often I say, that has to come out - actually, you could keep it as is.

It's pretty pristine.

Now, the kitchen.

OK, the first thing that strikes me is an immediate drop in the roof.

I don't know why.

I mean, it's fine for me, I'm five foot three and a half,

but the cameraman might struggle a bit.

So I do wonder if that's hiding something?

It doesn't seem to flow very well at all.

The kitchen's in pretty decent order, and I'm going through to...

That's nice to see, you have a little outdoor area,

you have your own back door, small patio.

And then...

Hmm! An incredibly small second bedroom.

This doesn't live up to my expectations of the first half of the house,

you had the space, the height, and now you've got a second

very small bedroom and a really low ceiling.

It feels a wee bit caravan-y.

I'd say this is definitely a flat of two halves.

# Saw me on the television

# Saw me on a television

# But that's just the half of it... #

It's more than half the story of this flat, too,

because along with the sale, you get not half, but a quarter share

of the freehold.

This means that you and the other co-freeholder owners would need to work

together and agree on fixes to the fabric of the building.

But it also means that you can share the cost of this work,

or to extend the lease, which only has 71 years left on it.

So, we've seen the flat, but it's time to ask a local estate agent along

for his thoughts on the property, guided at £100,000 to £105,000.

The flat itself needs quite a lot of internal work.

Basically, refurbishments throughout.

There are some damp areas, those will need attention.

Some of the window frames need looking at, could be a little bit of rot in some of the frames.

Kitchen and bathroom, they've been modified recently,

but the other rooms will certainly need quite a bit of attention.

Once it's been given the attention it deserves,

what could this flat, guided at £100,000 to £105,000, sell and rent for?

With all the money spent on this flat,

it could sell in the region of £160,000.

It would rent for somewhere in the region of £675 per calendar month.

I like this flat. I mean, I really like it.

The location, the feel, the layout.

The only thing is, the further you get back the more cave-like and enclosed it feels.

But both the sales and rental market in this area are buoyant.

So, if you can get it close to that guide price,

you could be on to a winner.

Let's find out who agreed when it went to auction.

Good-looking flat there, good location,

lots of little pubs and restaurants there.

Where are you going to start me on that one? Can I see £100,000 to start me?

Hands should be shooting up everywhere. £100,000, can I see £100,000?

When I say shooting up, one hand's gone up fairly slowly.

£100,000 I've got.

102, 104.

106? 106.

This lot was attracting a number of bidders.

So, we rejoin at £120,000.

20 I've got, 122 I'm looking for.

122 bid, I've got.

125 now, if you like.

125 if you like, 125.

At 125, then, for the first time.

125, sitting down, for the second time.

125 for the third and final time.

Are we all done?

Yours at 125.

The successful £125,000 bid was made by Paul,

and he brought his family along to see his first auction purchase.

Wife Amy leads the way with daughter Sophie, and behind Paul is his dad John,

and youngest of the family, Chloe.

While they checked out the flat,

I had a chinwag with Paul about his plans.

-Hello, Paul.

-Hello.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Pleased to meet you, too.

-So, talk me through why this property.

I loved it when I came in. Did you love it? Was it love at first sight?

Yeah, it was this room, mainly.

It's high, it's bright, massive windows.

-Just caught us straightaway.

-Yeah.

And what's your background, is this something you do a lot?

No, it's our first adventure into this.

I used to be an accountant.

And is that still your day job and you're doing this a bit on the side?

Yes. Yeah, but hopefully, maybe more into this if we get successful at it.

-So you've got the day job as an accountant.

-Yes.

-I saw you had two adorable wee girls...

-Yes.

-How old are they?

Sophie's seven, and Chloe will be three in a couple of weeks.

OK, so you're outnumbered.

-Indeed.

-Along with your wife,

that's quite a lot of balancing.

How are you going to fit this in?

I'm going to be self-employed at accountancy now,

so I'm going to take a little bit more time away from that to put in more work here.

Yeah. So, why now, Paul?

It seemed the right time. Me dad's looking to do something.

He's got a bit of savings he's hoping to put into something a bit more substantial

than the bank interest, really, so he's hoping to make some money out of this.

So, this is a father-and-son team?

-It is.

-Nice!

-It's been fun so far.

-Great!

And I suppose it is a bit of a bonding experience.

When young kids come along,

sometimes you don't have that much time to spend with your dad.

Yeah, true. Yeah, true.

I'm quite lucky, I spend quite a bit of time with Dad,

but it needs to be a bit more.

So, you're going into this together, and how will that work?

Who's doing what? Have you carved up?

We're going to be hands-on with all of it, really.

There's not too much that we can't do in this one.

There's a few other bits and bobs, we've got some friends, family that can help us out.

And talk me through your plans for the place.

Well, we're going to do a new kitchen, new bathroom, new windows.

-Yeah.

-And then just spruce up the rest to what's required.

There's a few other things we've got to look into, like why the roof's so low, perhaps.

That's pretty much all we're going to do to it, really.

OK, you could have a new bathroom, but it's not in bad nick.

Why are you...? Why do you want to actually do the whole lot,

new kitchen, new bathroom?

Well, the plan is just make it more modern, more fresh,

more appealing to sell it on.

It's in good nick, as you say, but it's a little dated, we feel.

Well, I see what Paul is saying, but the first rule of developing

is usually not to spend money you don't need to,

and he's clocked the low ceiling -

he might just need money for that instead.

However, he and dad John are aiming for a two-month timescale.

-And your budget?

-We anticipate 10,000 will be enough.

10,000 for...?

New kitchen, new bathroom, new windows...?

-Yeah.

-Tell me what else, again?

The carpets, paint it, spruce it up.

Yes, that is my doubtful face,

because that's a fair list of work to be done for that money.

Still, one bit of this project that has been moving at pace

is the lease situation.

It has 71 years left, which is getting into territory

where it's hard to get a mortgage.

The lady above actually is extending the lease.

She asked if we'd be happy to do it with her,

cos we own 25% of the freehold as well.

-So, combine the thing with everybody.

-Well, that's good news.

The bedroom at the back, pretty small.

-Tiny, yeah, very small.

-HE LAUGHS

Yeah, a single bed goes in there quite comfortably,

but we're hoping people that would buy this, you know,

it's a spare room for them, rather than... I mean, it's a two-bedroom,

but it's good for a young family, perhaps.

Paul, I can't wait to see what you and your dad John do with this place.

-Congratulations, again. Good luck!

-Thank you very much.

This is a real family affair for Paul,

and he's got himself a lovely flat.

It's a bit of a switch from accountancy to property developing,

but hopefully he can make the figures stack up.

You can find out if he did later in the show.

Around 12 miles north of Manchester, the town of Bolton

has had a fair bit of regeneration over the last few years.

However, things haven't stopped there.

Recently, it was announced that the council plans to spend £1 billion on the town centre.

The plans include building 1,800 new homes,

as well as creating 7,500 permanent new jobs.

Now, that's what I'm talking about!

# Talkin' 'bout my generation

# I said my generation... #

One of the great things about auctions is the variety of property

that's on offer.

From flats, to houses, to semidetached to whatever...

And also the age,

from really old stuff to things like I'm seeing today.

Built around ten years ago in this block is a two-bedroom flat.

Guide price of £55,000, it's on the top floor.

Let's have a look.

# It's a long, lonely highway when you're travelling all alone

# And it's a mean old world when you got no-one to call your own

# And you pass through towns too small to even have a name

# Oh, yes

# But you got to keep on going, on that road to nowhere

# Got to keep on going... #

Finally!

HE PANTS Well, that'll keep you fit!

Yes, and no lift, which is definitely something to note.

So, anyone who has difficulty with stairs,

that would definitely be an issue.

In fact, pretty much rule this flat out.

But what have we got?

Well, it seems to be, as we walk through the door, in pretty nice condition.

Nice carpet. Bathroom there.

It's a reasonable size, it doesn't seem to have a shower.

A reasonable size bath but you'd want to maybe convert that

into a bath/shower, perhaps.

The bedroom's down there, another bedroom here, which is not a bad size.

I mean, lots of light coming in from the windows, which is quite good.

It's all pretty spanking new,

so you've got sort of the latest double-glazed windows and stuff.

And in fact, ah-ha! That's why there isn't a shower there,

there's a shower in this bedroom,

so it's like an en suite.

But, oh, dear. That's not ideal, is it?

It's interesting, isn't it? Even in a new build,

or relatively new-build property like this,

a few things weren't necessarily thought through.

Ventilation problems.

Condensation on there has caused the paperwork to come off

on that ceiling - obviously you'd need to look at the ventilation in there,

improve whatever there is.

As you can see, lots of mould going on,

you want to catch that before it gets any worse.

So, a bit of remedial work.

Apart from that, well, let's have a look.

I'd say it does make a difference,

coming to something like this with no smells, no damp, no nothing,

well, apart from that bit there.

A bit of a storage cupboard there, with your electric water heater.

Second bedroom there. And talking about electric,

I know there's no gas in the whole building,

so electricity is what you're going to have to have for your cooking and your heating.

But it's all pretty pleasant, I like this room here,

really nice living room/kitchen.

It's even got white goods! I mean...

It's just there, it's ready to rent out.

I mean, in terms of location, this whole little development,

just on the outskirts of Bolton here.

Open that up and you've got these big, sort of door-window type things that are really good.

Now, you are overlooking the car park of what is obviously

some slightly out-of-town complex.

You've got a cinema, you've got restaurants and things.

That's very convenient, certainly I'd be over at the cinema all the time.

One thing you might want to consider though,

on a Friday and Saturday night, in fact, I guess most evenings,

that might be quite busy, and therefore quite noisy.

So, if you are after peace and quiet, this isn't going to work.

But it's a balance, isn't it?

It's a very well-located flat, it needs virtually nothing done to it.

And if this is just a "buy it and forget it"

or "move in" kind of property,

if that's what you're looking for at auction,

this is definitely your baby.

# No alarms and no surprises

# No alarms and no surprises, please... #

I don't see any nasty surprises popping up here,

but let's get a second opinion anyway.

What did a local estate agent think of the flat, guided at 55,000?

The property's a fantastic size,

to have two good-size bedrooms is a real plus in this apartment block.

So, there's not much that needs doing at this property.

Just a bit of a spruce up, a lick of paint,

and maybe some ventilation in the en suite bathroom.

Just as I expected,

but is there anything I'd missed in the two-bedroom flat?

It is a leasehold property,

it's not unusual for these apartments to be leasehold,

they are all leasehold in this block.

There's roughly around 110 years remaining on the lease.

So, no nasty surprises there,

but I'd always recommend, when buying a property with communal

facilities like stairwells and gardens,

to check out what, if any, management charges there are.

Sometimes they can catch you out.

The sales and rental market are brilliant in this area at the moment

and they are moving really, really quickly.

For myself, I would say that the sales market for this particular property

would be the better option.

In the sales market, I would expect the property to achieve £80,000 to £85,000.

If the property was to go on the rental market,

I would expect it to achieve £475 per calendar month.

Well, if the estate agent's valuation is to be believed,

and you can get this flat for anything like the guide price,

then there really is easy money to be made on this one

and not too much work at all to do, to sort it out.

Could be a nice little property for somebody,

or perhaps an investment opportunity.

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

Modern build, two-bedroom, top floor flat.

55 is the guide, again.

Start me at 55.

50?

Anybody here, 50? 45?

45 bid.

46, 47.

47, madam?

47, 48.

48 bid, 49 bid at the bar.

50, anyone?

50 here. 51, sir.

52 bid, 53.

54, 54 bid.

55, 56.

57, 57 at the bar?

Here at 56. At £56,000, then.

You're back in at 57.

58?

57 and a half, 58?

£57,500, then.

With you, first time.

Second time at £57,500.

At £57,500, I'm here to sell.

It's your lucky day, all out.

First, second time, third time, are you sure?

-Well done, madam.

-The bidder with an eye for a bargain was Sarah,

who picked up this almost pristine flat for £57,500.

So, I caught up with her to have a chat about...

Oh, I don't know, the weather?

Sarah, very nice to meet you.

-You too.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

-Not much to do on this one, then.

-HE LAUGHS

-No, no.

Tell me why you wanted to buy this flat.

Basically, it was a bit of a spur-of-the-moment decision.

I had done a bit of research, I was looking for a project.

I was a little bit, like, hadn't done one for a while,

and I saw that there were five of these flats all coming to auction on

the same day. And I just thought, law of supply and demand,

that means that potentially there's a bargain to be had.

You mean that because there was five at the auction...

-Yeah.

-..that's going to drag the price down a little bit?

-That was my thinking.

-OK.

-I live in Hull,

I do know Bolton a little bit cos I've got a friend in Bolton,

so I know this area, I know this complex.

And on the morning of the auction I was at the gym in Hull,

on the treadmill chatting to a mate of mine, and I said,

"Oh, I just don't know, should I do this auction?"

I talked it through and he said, "It sounds like it's worth the trip."

A day at the auction's always fun.

So I came over, had an upper limit in mind and thought, if one of them,

if it's possible to get one for under that limit then I'll

go for it.

# I just ran

# I ran all night and day

# I couldn't get away. #

Well, she might've been just off the treadmill,

but Sarah needn't have sweated.

She got the flat for £2,500 under budget of 60,000.

So she's got some spare cash left over to do work on the flat -

not like she'll need to spend much money to get it ready for the rental market.

But she did say earlier that she did want a project.

Not much of a project, though, is it? There's nothing to do.

No, and I know at some point I'm going to have to fess up to you that,

no, I didn't view the inside before the auction.

And I watch the show regularly, and I know that's a big faux pas.

So the day that I did get to come and view it afterwards,

I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that it literally is just

-pretty much good to go.

-In terms of what you are going to do to it,

I can only see one thing that you might even contemplate.

Well, the thing that strikes me is just tackling the bathroom.

-Yeah.

-The en suite bathroom.

-Yeah.

-It's clearly got a condensation problem, so I'm looking to get

additional extraction, or get the extractor fan moved so it's directly

above the shower cubicle.

Obviously, get all of that black mould removed and all the silicon

replaced, repainted, and other than that, it really is just pretty much good to go.

So who will do the work in the bathroom?

I've managed to find a few local contacts,

so I'm going to get a professional, obviously, to do the electric work,

the plumbing work.

If I do decide to give it a lick of paint, that will be me.

So the budget then, 50 quid, probably, no?

-Slightly more than that, actually.

-A little more than that but, you know,

a few hundred tops.

-So what's the timescale?

-I'm hoping to have the bathroom completely done

in the next week or so...

-Right.

-And it marketed with agents...

-So two or three weeks or so?

-Two or three, yeah, absolutely.

Well, there's no reason that it shouldn't be sorted in two to three weeks.

This one is easy peasy.

A lick of paint, then Sarah can get back to her day job.

I'm self-employed, I do consultancy work,

mainly with the NHS and local authorities.

So, basically, it's a completely different kind of work.

Well, yeah. But you enjoy the property stuff?

-I do, I do, yeah.

-Have you bought and sold before?

I have, yeah. I've got a small portfolio in Hull, where I live,

so I've got eight properties.

This is completely different, though, because all the other

properties I've got are all Victorian properties.

-Right.

-They're all within about a mile and a half of where I live.

-Right.

-I manage them all.

-That's easier.

-Which is a lot easier.

So, you know, this is a bit of a different venture.

Great. Well, listen, congratulations, good luck with it,

and I'm looking forward to seeing how you get on.

OK, thanks very much!

Well, if you need it, this property definitely proof that

there are bargains to be had at the auction.

Sarah breaking a few rules, of course,

by not seeing it beforehand, but it seems she's done really well.

I don't think there's any jeopardy on this one, is there?

Will she get the bathroom fixed?

Will she find a plumber who can do it?

Gosh, I bet you can't wait until later in the show to find out!

I'm only kidding - please don't go away!

In the property business, always expect the unexpected.

Still to come, Lucy is off the rails at this plot in Enfield.

Ah, yes, something I did forget to mention.

Right at the end of this plot is a train track.

And we'll find out if Sarah was one tradesman short of a renovation back

in Bolton.

I didn't know anybody in Bolton.

Time to sail away back to the Kent coast and the village of Sandgate,

where I saw this two-bed flat in a handsome building that went to

auction with a guide price of £100,000-£105,000.

Access up the front steps could be a problem, but it was the spacious

master bedroom and the grand lounge that won me over.

The proportions are just fantastic.

I love the features, too.

This might not be original,

but it's in keeping with some of the other features in the room.

Somebody has really thought about this.

And look at this.

That's what I call a skirting board.

Now, I'm not one to skirt around the downsides,

and this flat had a couple of those too.

The second bedroom was pokey,

and there was only 71 years left on the lease.

But the kitchen and bathroom were in good nick,

and a little bit of outside space made it the perfect property for a

first-time developer.

125...

Cue accountant Paul,

who snapped it up on auction day for 125 grand and was hoping this would

be the first of many renovation projects.

But I wondered if he'd be as good at managing his time as he was managing numbers.

I saw you had two adorable wee girls.

-Yes.

-That's quite a lot of balancing.

How are you going to fit this in?

Well, I'm going to be self-employed at accountancy now,

so I'm going to take a little bit more time away from that

-to do more work here.

-Yeah, so why now, Paul?

It seemed the right time. My dad's looking to do something,

he's got a bit of savings, and he's hoping to put into something a bit

more substantial than the bank interest, really,

so he's hoping to make some money out of this.

So this is a father-and-son team?

It is.

With dad John at his side, they thought they could get this

flat in tiptop condition in two months and for a budget of ten grand.

I thought that was a little tight, but then again,

I wasn't the accountant.

So when we came back in six months,

how did Paul fare on his new career path?

# Here I come, straight out of my mind or worse

# Another chance to get burned

# And start all over

# I'm gonna start all over... #

Paul and dad John have certainly started over on this property,

replacing the kitchen and bathroom that were in decent nick.

But I must admit, it does look fab.

# It's so easy

# I'm gonna start all over. #

They started over when it came to the woodwork, too,

stripping back years of paint and starting afresh.

There's also new carpet and new windows throughout.

The place looks spotless.

From the looks of it,

this father-son partnership has been a roaring success.

So, how did they split the work?

-Joint, wasn't it, really?

-Yeah, the work was split,

probably 50-50 is a fair assessment, but I had to learn quite a lot,

cos through my life so far, I hadn't done too much of this,

so it was great fun learning how to move and do stuff.

It was just really good.

A touch more physical labour than fiscal for Paul,

but what about dad John?

Did he have any experience starting out?

Only, like, DIY and that sort of thing, and being retired,

I've got all the time now, and it's been fun working,

doing it with my son.

Paul and his dad have been here almost full time,

doing most of the work themselves.

Honourable mention to pal Darren, who has been helping out, too.

So accountancy has definitely been put on the back burner,

but Paul has been stacking up the numbers when it comes to that lease.

When we purchased the property, it had 71 years remaining on the lease,

but after speaking to the mortgage companies et cetera,

they said 70 years would be fine going forward.

Nothing's developed from that, and we do own 25% of the lease,

which the mortgage company was quite pleased to hear.

So owning 25% of the freehold means

Paul isn't in any hurry to tackle it,

and the kitchen ceiling remained the same height as the vent that housed

the stairs to the flat above, so two possible savings right there.

But how did the budget stack up?

Our original budget was 10,000, but we've come in under that at 8,500,

mainly because we thought we was going to have to have a new boiler,

which we didn't have to, and we didn't involve a lot of tradespeople

because we done it ourselves.

# I'm gonna start all over. #

Paul and John got the certified trades where needed,

but other than that, they've kept the costs right down by their DIY approach.

But is that why they've gone over their two-month timescale?

The main reason for that is just probably being overcautious with it,

really, isn't it? Just careful, it's our first one.

We'd like to think the next one won't be as long,

on the same scale of things.

But, you know, we've learned a lot of stuff in this as well,

so that's taken time to learn that and get it right.

I think they've done a cracking job on their first adventure,

and they've come in under budget, spending £133,500 in total.

But what will two local estate agents think,

starting with the agent who saw it last time?

The flat was in fairly poor condition.

Obviously, they've done a lot of work in here and made it very fresh

and new, contemporary colours, modern features, modern fitting,

good-quality carpets.

Nice all-round, in fact. Very impressed with what they've done.

Oh, the standard is amazing, it's really, really well done.

It's nice how they've incorporated the original features as well and

just make them pop out, a bit like the fireplace.

Yeah, very good.

Plenty of selling points, but will their decision not to extend the

lease have an effect on the values?

Let's see what the flat could be worth on the sales market.

I would suggest that this property is currently worth in the region of £155,000.

If they extended the lease,

then I believe that it would go up to £175,000.

If the current owners put this on the market,

I would expect it to achieve in the region of £165,000.

My assumption is, is that the value with the extended

lease isn't going to really be any greater.

It just increases your market in terms of potential buyers.

Different opinions there, but with the potential of 20 grand on offer,

it's worth looking into.

But how do John and Paul feel about the values with the current lease?

Well, I was expecting it to be 160,000,

so it's literally round about where I was thinking,

so I'm quite pleased with that.

-Yeah, yeah.

-Shows my research was correct!

Numbers man, Paul, right on the money again,

and the value of £155,000 could give them a profit of £31,500,

minus taxes and fees - plenty of capital for another venture.

Yeah, I'd definitely do this again, especially with Dad.

We've really enjoyed it, and we'd like to get another one

-and do it again, wouldn't we?

-Yes, definitely.

-Yeah.

This is Enfield, an area ten miles north of London,

and along with the normal shops and amenities,

it's a water-lover's paradise - whether it's cruising on the

River Lee or kayaking on the Olympic course in the Lee Valley Park.

But will the lot Lucy's here to see be worth splashing the cash on?

Close to Lee Valley Park and about a five-minute walk to Enfield Lock

railway station is the lot I'm here to see.

And, well, it's this, a freehold site of just under 243 square metres.

Essentially a little space between two sets of houses.

The guide price - £180,000.

Well, this is quite an unusual plot/garden, this.

But what we do know is that it comes with planning permission to build a

detached two-storey block with two times two-bed self-contained flats.

Now that permission was granted fairly recently,

so if you were to take this lot on,

you'd know that you could definitely develop here,

which really is great news for any potential buyer.

# Baby, I'm ready to go

# I'm back and ready to go

# From the rooftops, shout it out

# Shout it out. #

That planning permission is why this small garden plot had a £180,000

price tag attached.

But it's not the only thing you get with this site.

Ah, yes, something I did forget to mention.

Right at the end of this plot is a train track, so you do get noisy,

busy trains whizzing past.

But it does still feel a little bit like a garden.

You've got this lovely log placed right here!

It's almost as though I want to get my picnic rug out and put some

cheese-and-pickle sandwiches down and take a rest from my weary feet.

But, oh, no, this is a prime development site just outside of London.

I need to get my developer's head on. Time for work.

# I got work to do

# Got so much work, yeah, yeah. #

Now, there are certain specifications that you need to

adhere to if you go ahead with the permitted flats that come with the planning.

Number one, slate roof tiles.

Number two, you've got to have brickwork to match next door.

Number three, white UPVC doors and windows.

Number four, you've got to have black railings.

Number five, you've got to have white render at the rear bottom.

The list just goes on and on,

and it is definitely worth checking this list before you start building.

And just remember - rules are made not to be broken.

# Follow the rules of life

# And do the right thing

# Do the right thing

# But you've got to follow the rules of life... #

Quite right, Lucy.

If you do step away from the rule book, it's likely to cost time and,

initially, money. But don't rule it out,

cos it might be worth looking at alternatives.

So you've decided you're going to build from scratch - hurrah!

And this is where you want to do it.

Well, there are three options when doing a new-build.

Those are a self-build one-off home.

That is where you manage the design and the construction process and do

a fair proportion of the actual building work yourselves.

A contractor-built one-off home, where you manage the design process,

select a contractor, and then they take care of the construction work.

Or you could purchase a kit home - you select you preferred kit or type

of house you like, but you might have to organise all

the foundations and the kit-home company.

But then they put the house up for you.

So it's certainly worth doing your sums to work out the most

cost-effective route for you.

# Do the right thing Do the right thing. #

With those trains whizzing by and the narrowness of the plot,

this doesn't scream out dream site for any would-be builder.

But it does scream out development potential.

But will two two-bedroom flats make the most of this plot?

What does a local estate agent think?

I would try and maximise the profit as much as I can,

so, personally, I would put flats here.

Four flats - three studios and a one-bedroom flat.

Interesting, so let's weigh up the difference in values between the

approved two two-bed flats or the agent's suggestion of four smaller flats.

So once the proposed two-bedroom flats have been made here,

they would be on the market at £260,000-£270,000.

On the studios, you would be looking at a price range between

£150,000-£155,000.

On the one-bedroom flat, again, I would be looking to achieve around

the £200,000 mark to the £210,000 mark.

Taking the lower valuations, the two flats would potentially be

worth £130,000 less than the four-flat option.

And with the rental income jumping from £2,400 per calendar month

to £3,400 per calendar month, getting more,

smaller flats does seem to have bigger financial benefits.

Of course, there might be added build cost in terms of kitchens and

bathrooms, not to mention the time spent changing the plans and getting approval.

So here it is, this long plot of land, and it comes with planning

permission to build two two-bedroom flats, which is fantastic.

And I actually think that makes it worth the £180,000 guide price.

But the question is, could you do more with it and ensure an even

better return for your money?

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

Freehold site approximately 0.024 hectares.

Planning permission for a detached two-storey block to provide two

two-bedroom self-contained flats.

Start me at 170.

Back left. 170.

172,500.

75. 77,500. And 80.

82,500. 85.

87,500. And 90.

Though one of the later lots in the auction,

there was quite a battle for the Enfield land.

We rejoin the bidding at £220,000.

220. 221. 22. 23.

24. 25. 26. 27.

OK. 226, with you there.

Been there from start to finish.

First time. Second time.

Third and final time at 226,000.

Sold to you at 226.

Well fought, sir. Thank you.

And the hammer fell at £226,000, with the successful bid by one-time

financial adviser and long-term property developer Bobby.

And Bobby, along with his architect, Leila,

joined Lucy back at the Enfield plot.

Bobby and Leila, congratulations.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

-Cheers.

-Now, Bobby, you actually bought this at auction.

-I did, yes.

-It comes with planning permission for two flats.

-Yes.

-With two bedrooms.

-Yes, that's right.

-Is that what you're going to build here?

-No, it's not.

-What?!

Why are you not going to build that?

We've done some research and basically,

what I want to do is maximise the number of units I can build here.

So, essentially, I want to build three studios

and one one-bedroom flat.

If I can get this and change it, great.

If I can't, keep it as it is and it gives me the experience to actually

build something from the ground up.

-OK.

-So, Leila, talk me through how it's going to look like and which

-way they'll face.

-It will be a hybrid between the house, you know,

and the flats on the left.

So the entrance will be from the front elevation.

And entrance to the studio on the ground floor at the back.

There will be two studios on the ground floor.

One will be from the front elevation,

the other will be from the side elevation.

You have two on the ground floor, studio flats,

one one-bed flat on the first floor. And one studio in the loft.

So, that's four units.

-That's right, yeah.

-You're trying to get four units out of this plot.

Are you feeling quite confident that this will go through and you will

-get permission?

-We are. We're very confident.

We did some research, we had a look, we had a chat with the officers,

and you know, it's doable.

Come on, then. Let's talk about the budget.

How much money have you got to spend?

I think we'll probably end up spending about 130,000.

All in. Yeah.

Plus the cost of the land and the fees.

So, a spend of around 360 grand plus fees.

And Bobby believes, once built,

the four flats will be worth around £600,000.

And so he hopes in about a year's time, if all goes to plan,

of course, there will be a nice tidy profit

here which should mean smiles all round.

Now, Bobby, I have heard about you.

-Yeah.

-I know you like to create happiness all around you.

-I do.

-You like a team.

-I do, yes.

-You like to have fun while you're doing it.

-I sure do.

-Tell me more about yourself.

Well, basically, it comes down to this.

Every time I have something that's successful,

I like to share it and while I'm getting to that success,

I like to share it with the people that helped me get there as well.

I'm really laughing because nobody has ever done this before.

-OK.

-Brought the whole team to the shoot.

-That's true. That's true.

-Now, I know you love to spread the love,

-but they're all here today.

-They are.

-Who's come along today?

I brought my builders, my parents...

-Three builders.

-Three builders.

-Mum and Dad.

-Mum and Dad.

My three architects.

And my very good friend and also my solicitor.

-So, they've all just come along today.

-Yes.

-Hello, everybody.

That's very funny.

I know. I know. But as I say, it is all about spreading the love.

# Even though the darkest clouds are in the sky

# When things go wrong you mustn't sigh

# Spread a little happiness as you go by... #

All smiles from Bobby 's team and family but this is going to be his

first ground-up property build and he will need all the help and

goodwill he can get from friends, family and - importantly -

the neighbours and the local planning department.

Who is going to be project managing this?

-That'll be me.

-So you will be here on site every day?

-More or less, yes.

-Why are you laughing?

-Come on, Leila.

-No, no. He is very assertive,

very determined and is a very good project manager.

He has been managing his previous projects as well and is doing a very

great job. With the builders, of course.

So this will be a step up but it'll be great.

-Yeah.

-Anything you're worried about with this?

-No. Nothing at all.

-Are you confident?

-Very much.

-Leila?

We are. Very confident.

Can you guys stop having so much fun along the way, please?

-You look far too happy.

-We try but it won't happen.

-Yeah.

-I hope you're still smiling when we come back

in nine months to a year.

It's been smashing meeting you today and good luck with this project.

-Thank you.

-Leila, thank you. Lovely to meet you.

-You too.

Well, Bobby recognises the value of teamwork when it comes to a project

like this. He likes to share the work,

share the love and share the success with his trusty gang and he still

likes to have a laugh along the way.

The question is,

will he get that planning permission for those four flats and still be

laughing at the end?

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

Earlier, we found out how one of the properties on today's show ended up,

but what about the other two?

Yes, did they hit the jackpot or not?

Time to go back and find out.

Time to head back to Bolton,

where I saw this modern two bed flat guided at 55 grand.

Situated on the top floor in a block with no lift,

buyers with mobility issues would be off-limits.

But this pristine condition flat would certainly be appealing to others.

This spacious kitchen living room area had front row seats to

the neighbouring entertainment complex and cinematic views across the town.

But I couldn't give this flat a five-star rating yet due to issues

in the en suite.

Oh, dear. That's not ideal, is it?

Ventilation problems,

condensation on there has caused the paintwork to come off

on that ceiling.

Obviously, you need to look at the ventilation in there,

improve whatever there is.

As you can see, lots of mould going on.

You want to catch that before it gets any worse.

Despite the minor mould issue, this flat was pretty much good to go.

Fortunately, for freelance consultant, Sarah,

who bought the flat for £57,500 without viewing it.

But she had flexed her property developing muscles on other

properties in her hometown of Hull, so would this one work too?

On the morning of the auction, I was at the gym in Hull,

was on the treadmill, chatting to a mate of mine, and I said,

"I just don't know, shall I go to this auction?"

Talked it through and he said, "Well, it sounds like it's worth a trip."

So I came over and I had an upper limit in mind and thought,

if one of them is...

If it's possible to get one for under that limit, then I'll go for it.

And that, as they say, was history.

Sarah was going to fix the bathroom for a couple of hundred pounds and

get it back onto the rental market in a matter of weeks.

So, when we returned just 14 days later, had she managed it?

# Whoa, don't change it

# Whoa, don't change it

# Whoa, don't change it, don't change for me

# Don't change it, baby

# Don't change it

# Oh, no, don't change it... #

Unsurprisingly, not much has changed,

yet the flat is looking exceptional.

# Whoa, don't change it

# Whoa, don't change it

# Whoa, don't change it, don't change for me

# Don't change it, baby. #

Though I'm glad to see one thing has changed.

The en suite now looks as good as the rest of the flat and all that

unsightly mould has gone.

So, what exactly has Sarah been up to?

It seemed as though there was a serious lack of ventilation,

so I had a new, more powerful extractor fan put in on a delay timer.

And then just cleaned up all the black mould, you know,

redid all the silicon around the shower.

A bit of new flooring and now it looks, well...

You know, clean and tidy and hopefully will prevent the problem coming back.

The ventilation problem was fairly straightforward and Sarah got in an

electrician to install the extractor fan,

which just needed some finishing touches.

Sarah got someone in to fix the silicon sealant and she project

managed and touched up the paintwork where needed.

So, were there any challenges at all?

The thing that I thought was going to be difficult was the fact that I

live in Hull, the flat is in Bolton.

And whereas in Hull, I've got, you know,

a team of people that I regularly call on to do works for me,

I didn't know anybody in Bolton.

But I discovered that you know, via social media,

there are apps where people will recommend other people to you

in a local area.

And to be honest, before I even got the keys to the flat,

I had the names and telephone numbers of electricians, plumbers,

decorators, you know, almost anything that I might need.

Labour and materials cost Sarah...

Wait for it, £225.

So, she was well on target with her budget.

And the work itself only took a week,

but she did take time to add some home comforts.

I did decide to bring some furniture into the property.

I just decided that in terms of sort of showing the property off at its

best, I would just kind of make it look a little bit homely.

That's also partly because I think there are quite a number of

properties very similar to this locally on the rental market

and I kind of wanted mine to stand out a little bit from the rest.

Well, has she managed it?

Let's see what two local estate agents thought of Sarah's £57,725 investment.

Starting with the agent that saw it last time.

The property is really nice.

It's been finished to a good standard.

It definitely needed a freshen up, so it's fantastic now.

My first impressions of the property are that it's very clean,

it's presented well with neutral colours, which is very good.

And attractive. It's very marketable.

And we've sold properties like this in the same apartment block and they

sold fairly rapidly for good price.

So I'm confident that it will sell well.

Sarah intends adding this to her Hull portfolio and renting it out.

But if she did decide to sell, the agents thought it would fetch 83 grand.

And bearing in mind that one of the agents said flats are selling well

here, that could mean a quick profit of around 25 grand.

So, could that change her plans?

Probably not. I think I will rent and hold on to the property for a few

years and you know, keep an eye on the market, see how things go.

See how much hassle it is to rent a property out

when I live on the other side of the country.

That will be a bit of an acid test.

But it's nice to know that I've got, you know,

some reasonable equity in this if I do decide to sell.

So, what about those all-important rental values then?

If I was to put the property on the market for rent,

I would expect it to achieve £475 per calendar month.

If we were to rent this property,

we would look to market it at £500 per calendar month.

That's spot on with what my expectation was,

so I'm very happy with that.

It would seem that snap decision at the gym has really paid off.

I think Sarah's persuasive work-out buddy deserves a drink.

I definitely owe him a drink, so got to book in, get him down to the pub.

Earlier in the show, Lucy was ten miles north of London in the area of

Enfield at a freehold plot guided at 190,000.

Sandwiched between two existing properties and measuring just

243 square metres, the plot seemed more like a garden than

a profitable investment opportunity.

But there was more here than met the eye.

What we do know is that it comes with planning permission to build a

detached two-storey block with two times two bed self-contained flats.

# Catch a train to my place

# Call me when you get into town... #

The railway link could put some potential buyers off but more importantly,

there were some planning stipulations that could

derail a buyer's plans.

Number one, slate roof tiles.

Number two, you've got to have brickwork to match next door.

Number three, white UVPC doors and windows.

Number four, you've got to have black railings.

Number five, you've got to have white render at the rear bottom.

The list just goes on and on.

And property developer, Bobby, didn't make things easy for himself.

He engaged a team of architects, including Leila,

to change the approved plans for the site he bought for £226,000.

Essentially I want to build three studios and one one-bedroom flat.

And are you feeling quite confident that this will go through and you

-will get permission?

-We are.

With confident architect, Leila, on board,

happy-go-lucky Bobby was ready to go and had the full support of his

family and friends.

-I've brought my builders...

-Mum and dad.

-Mum and dad.

My three architects.

And my very good friend and also my solicitor.

Hello, everybody.

So, Bobby was spreading the love but could that 130 grand budget spread

far enough to get the four properties built within a year?

Well, we're back almost two and a half years later to find out.

-# Where is the love

-The love

-# Where is the love

-The love

-# Where is the love

-The love

# Where is the love, the love, the love. #

I'm definitely feeling the love for this transformation.

On the ground floor is a spacious two-bedroom flat with an en-suite

and a master bedroom.

Upstairs is flat number two.

Also a two bed with the impressive master suite in the loft.

Soundproofing and double glazing ensures there's no noise from the

train line out back. But last time Lucy spoke to Bobby,

he had grand plans for four flats.

So, what gives?

Leila tried her best to actually get four flats within the property.

But the council weren't budging.

Then we reverted to a plan where, how about we do three flats?

But the council weren't keen on that either.

So we decided to actually scrap that idea.

Basically, there was too many people going to be in the property.

And they wanted to make sure that they had enough amenities to look

after those people within the community.

So that was one of the reasons they actually refused.

After multiple attempts to get planning, Leila and her company left

the project with planning for the two flats

finally being granted in January 2016.

After engaging a replacement company and getting going again,

Bobby came across another potential stumbling block.

The discovery that a massive rainwater pipe ran across the property.

I thought, OK, this is not going to be a good thing.

So I contacted Thames Water and yes, there was a big pipe.

But for miraculous reasons, I actually never touched it.

After a retrospective inspection to ensure there was no damage,

Bobby agreed a deed of grant of easement with Thames Water which

means they'll have some rights over the land,

even though it's owned by Bobby.

By this time, Bobby had engaged a third architect and a building

consultant who saw the project through to the end.

But all those delays didn't come cheap.

I had a very ludicrous budget of 130,000 that I wanted to spend.

Unfortunately, it went beyond that.

My budget rocketed like anything to probably double that.

Bobby is not exaggerating.

Originally he was aiming at a total of something around the £360,000

mark, plus fees.

Now, he's spent something in the region of £575,000

and it's not been an easy ride.

So, is Bobby still feeling the love for building from scratch?

The challenges that I faced with this one only reconfirms

that I like to do more.

And I've learned from my mistakes on this one.

So if I can actually apply that to the next one and the one after that,

that's great. And at the end of the day,

you kind of like learn to make better quality properties.

Bobby's first attempt at building may have had its fair share of challenges.

But he now has two fantastic flats ready to rent.

So, what was the professional opinion?

Let's see what two local estate agents thought.

My first impressions walking into the property is it oozes quality.

I think downstairs,

they utilise the space with having the open-plan kitchen lounge.

And then you've got your two bedrooms

which benefits one being en suite, which is a major plus.

Layout is very good.

They have used every bit of space possible that they could have.

And the finish has been done to a very high spec throughout and it

will appeal to buy to let investors,

but will also be for families and first-time buyers.

The flat could prove popular with both the sales and rental markets.

But as Bobby is going to rent them,

what kind of income could he be looking at?

I think as these properties are two-bedroom, which is sought after,

I see no reason why these properties cannot achieve £1,350 per calendar

month each.

The average two-bedroom flat goes round £1,350 per month.

Given their location and the way the property has been done,

you could push for the slightly higher price and go for £1,400

per calendar month.

Brilliant. I'm happy with that. That's way above my expectations,

so, yeah, I mean, brilliant.

Bring it on. Yeah.

The higher value could give Bobby a potential yield of almost 6% and

the agents agree the ground floor flat could sell for 320 grand with a

top floor flat valued at 330,000, which could mean a potential profit,

minus taxes and fees, of 75 grand.

But he's not tempted to sell just now.

Because true to form, Bobby is doing this for his nearest and dearest.

His kids, Ryan and Keane.

It's an investment for my kids so that they have a happy future.

I'm not going to give it to them that easily.

But it's also providing something back to people who deserve good

quality accommodation. That's what I want to provide.

As you've just seen, there are a lot of factors at play when you invest

in property and hopefully, we've been able to offer up some words of wisdom.

Yes, we wandered lonely as property developers but did we inspire you to

become one?

Join us next time for more Homes Under The Hammer.

-Bye-bye.

-Goodbye.