In the suburb of Rumney, Cardiff a first floor flat was looking tired and damp, offering a potential buyer rooms decorated with mould. Add to this property's woes a short lease of only 40 years left so maybe getting a mortgage to buy it might have been tricky too, which made this a potentially challenging purchase when it went to auction.
When Tommy Walsh, one of the presenters of BBC's Homes Under The Hammer popular daytime property programme, visited the Cardiff flat he was impressed with the home's proximity to local shops and access into the capital's centre.
But this positivity was tempered by his worry that the camera crew were going to trip on pot holes on the approach to the front door. And that is the story of this two-bed flat before it found a new owner - positive aspects such as space and light plus a parquet floor still in place in the hall and lounge, as well as a garage and shared outdoor space, were tempered by negatives including damp, mould and very tired interiors.
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But that didn't put off teacher Helen who, supported by friend Susie, was so pleased to have won the bidding for the Cardiff flat for the price of £63,000 that she celebrated by cutting a ribbon before entering the premises, to declare her new home 'open' for visitors.
It was in a bit of a state, so maybe she should have waited for the renovations to be completed before the opening ceremony, but Susie was full of support for her friend saying: "We're really looking forward to transforming this place into a really beautiful home."
Helen had a £30,000 budget for the renovation, which included investigating and securing a longer lease, and a flexible timescale although was hoping to complete the work within six months.
The show returns in five months and a lot has changed at the flat, with maybe the most significant budget spend going on something the cameras can't see - Helen has increased the leasehold of the flat to 999 years at a cost of £20,000, but it was an element of the property that had to be resolved for possible future sales.
Outside the newly-fitted electric garage door is an instantly noticeable improvement. Inside, Helen has managed to keep the original parquet flooring and restore the broken pieces, and it's a warm welcome that is the perfect balance to the freshly painted white walls.
The kitchen has gone from a 'no-go' area with patches of mould to a room anyone should be happy to cook up a feast in, joined by hungry companions sitting and watching from the integrated breakfast bar.
The flat has been fully rewired and a new gas boiler has been installed - not an element of the renovation project that Helen was expecting, but done after advice from the plumber.
The large lounge now looks fresh with the restored flooring and newly painted white walls, and the bathroom is almost totally unrecognisable with a new white suite, large wall tiles with grey grouting and a pretty patterned floor.
And Helen loved the wallpaper in the second bedroom so much, a pattern design that was based round London in the 1960s, that she kept it and just decorated around it, adding grey carpet and full-length curtains.
The internal glass doors from decades past were relocated to the skip due to the fact they were not made with safety glass, and new doors were added.
The floor is maybe the element of the renovation that Helen is most pleased to show the viewers. She says: "It does look beautiful - we've sanded it all down, took us a long time, and then we buffed it and put some varnish on it and I'm really pleased with it. I'm so glad Tommy advised me not to get rid of it, I think he'll be pleased."
The budget was £30,000, with the refurbishment only costing £20,000, but the project went over budget due to the necessity of extending the lease that added an extra £20,000 onto Helen's overall spend.
Helen struggled to find reliable tradespeople to carry out the work at the flat but, despite this, completed the work earlier than planned. She says: "I'm happy (the flat) is finished, it's been hard work, a bit stressful, but I'd still do it again."
And Susie can't hide her enthusiasm for the finished flat, she gushes: "It's a complete transformation and it's a remarkable achievement, truly remarkable." But does a local agent agree?
The agent takes a tour and comes back with the figures of £750 rental income per calendar month giving Helen a yield of around 8.7% on her total investment of £103,000. Helen says: "Sounds good but the agent I've got, he's going for the higher market for £850 a month."
The agent values the flat for resale as between £115,000 and £120,000 and, despite this achieving a pre tax profit of £17,000, Helen's not having any of it saying, and won't even entertain that idea proclaiming: "It's too low!"
Despite her obvious disappointment at the agent's financial feedback, it looks like Helen might have been bitten by the property auction bug, saying she might well return in 2023 and buy another one.
This story appeared in series 25, episode 79 of Homes Under The Hammer and is currently available to view on iPlayer.
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