BBC Homes Under The Hammer episode ends with hole in the ground instead of apartment block

BBC viewers were left disappointed after an ambitious plan for one property, which would see it transformed into an apartment block, was still just a hole in the ground by the end of the episode. Property developer Mulhern snatched up a three-bedroom detached house with a guide price of £750,000 in an episode of Homes Under the Hammer that aired this morning, Wednesday, May 1.

He managed to get the property in Crystal Palace, London, at auction for £10,000 less than this. However, what makes this property special, is that planning permission had already been granted to turn the house into a block of five flats.

Mulhern explained: "I think the previous owner had spent the last two or three years going back and forth with planning trying to get it granted, and it eventually did." To avoid wasting time he decided to stick with the plan to create five apartments, which he planned to sell once complete.

He had a healthy budget of £975,000, and hoped to complete the project in 12 months. However, when host Jacqui Joseph returned to the property nine months later, viewers were left a bit disappointed.

Expecting to see a large building starting to take shape, viewers were instead greeted with a giant hole in the ground with foundation works still ongoing. Mulhern said: "We've taken the whole site down three metres and started the forming the reinforced slabs and retaining walls.

"The next step is for the structural steel frame to go in. Once completed, this low ground floor level will be the three-bedroom garden flat." Once completed, which was expected to take an additional four months, the building will have a three-bedroom flat, two two-bedroom flats and two one-bedroom flats.

Despite there not being a building yet, a local estate agent was able to give an estimate to each of the apartment's value. He estimated the three-bedroom flat at around £650,000 the two-bedrooms at around £575,000 each, and the one-bedrooms at £375,000 each.

Mulhern said: "If we're able to hit those values I think we would have done very well out of the project. I'm quite happy with that. If Mulhern was able to stick to his £975,000 budget and meet those values, he would be left with a pre-tax profit of £835,000.