Room to Improve viewers were left surprised by architect Dermot Bannon as the show returned to screens last night.
Dermot worked with couple Amy O’Sullivan and Conor Dunne on renovating their century-old property in Tullamore, which belonged to Conor's family. Dermot was given a strict budget of €325,000 for the renovations, and he left viewers in shock when he didn't overspend.
The RTE star managed to transform the property into a modern home and stuck to the couple's tight financial limit. Dermot has been criticised in the past for going overbudget, but last night's episode left viewers impressed.
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With a €20,000 grant, the total spend of the build came to €326,000 and the property received an A2 BER rating. Fans of the show took to Twitter to comment on the build.
One person wrote: "Extraordinary value for money there: a really smart job". Another person tweeted: "All within budget ??? Huh @dermotbannon are you excelling yourself".
One other person said: "Great to see these buildings which are full of memories and history, brought back to life. Rejuvenation of such houses should be encouraged by all (planners, banks, state agencies) not left to rot. Congrats all, a job well done. A2 rating proves it can be done".
Dermot has denied in previous interviews that he often overspends on his projects. Speaking to the Irish Independent, he said: "I actually haven’t been over budget for 10 years. I think we went over on season one and season two but it’s all anyone remembers."
Room to Improve returns to RTÉ One and RTÉ player next Sunday at 9.30 pm.
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