We bought the worst house on the street & made £70K on it – there were mushrooms in the walls before our transformation

A COUPLE revealed how they turned the ugliest house on the street into a beautiful pad – and they made around £70,000 profit on it in 14 weeks.

Appearing on this week’s Worst House on the Street, first-time buyers Gemma and Scott shared how they took on a decaying house in York which was a 1960s time capsule.

The Victorian, three-bedroom house had been left untouched for decades, with nicotine-stained wallpaper and cracked ceilings.

The couple even discovered there were mushrooms growing in the kitchen wall, and the home needed some desperate TLC.

Office manager Gemma, 34, and sales consultant partner Scott, 42, had paid £195,000 for the crumbling house and budgeted £20,000 to do it up.

They hoped to fully transform the property in just 14 weeks, while they crashed rent-free in an annex in Gemma’s mum’s house.

The first-time homeowners met with property experts and siblings Scarlette and Stuart Douglas, to get their advice and some money-making tips.

Scarlette called the dated property “diamond in the rough” and said they could make over £100,000 profit if they made it as good as similar properties in the area that go for £320,000.

Gemma said: “When I first saw the house I thought it had lots of potential.

“It needs to be brought back to life.”

Stuart added: “When this is brought into the 21st century it will look amazing.”

They firstly advised the couple to transform the third bedroom upstairs into a stylish large bathroom. 

Gemma and Scott weren’t initially keen and wanted to turn it into a study and small bathroom.

Scarlette showed them two houses in the area which featured each renovation option for the third bedroom.

She later revealed the one with the large bathroom was valued £50,000 higher, despite then only having two bedrooms.

Speaking of the small third bedroom and bathroom option, Scarlette said: “Because it’s not really a usable space, it’s actually devaluing the property.”  

Gemma laughed: “Looks like we are putting the bathroom in then.”

Gemma and Scott set about stripping the house of tiles and wallpaper so it would be an empty shell for the builders.

With labourers costing up to £150 a day, they saved the best part of £1,000 a week doing it themselves. 

Another advantage of stripping everything back was they found 150-year-old Victorian tiles in the hallway, which they decided to clean and keep.

They also pulled the plywood off their inside doors, and found traditional Victorian doors.

Scarlette advised that replacing each door could cost £125, but dipping and stripping the existing seven doors could cost £200 in total and keep an authentic feel.

The property experts advised that keeping a downstairs bathroom can add five per cent to your property, as can having a desirable outside space. 

After transforming the house, the couple admitted they had spent over budget at £31,000, but Scarlette and Stuart were amazed at the result.

Gemma and Scott spent just £250 renovating the outside of their house, adding a £50 gate, painting the door a dusky pink and adding gold fixtures. 

Looking at the finished result, Scarlette: “This is a transformation. 

“This goes to show you don’t have to spend a huge amount of money on the outside to make an impact.”

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The property siblings were even more impressed with the inside, with Stuart gasping: “I feel like I’m somewhere totally different.”

On Stuart and Scarlette’s advice, Gemma and Scott had knocked down their crumbling shed and made a stylish outside space with seating and fake grass.

Scarlette exclaimed: “You’ve pretty much created another room onto the house, which will undoubtedly add value.”

And it turns out she was right, as she revealed the entire house was valued at an average of £298,000 after the work, with the highest valuation being £310,000.

After 14 weeks and £31,000, the couple had made around £72,000 profit, which is over 30 per cent profit.

Scott was amazed, and said: “Hard work, that’s what it’s all about.”

Worst House on the Street aired on Tuesday on Channel 4 at 8pm