£1 house for sale in Durham

Not sorted out a house for next year yet? Already way into your overdraft? Look no further. A steal at £1, this house in Sacriston, Durham, is up for auction on April 4^th.

Once you remove the boarding it should be fine (Picture: Robinson Estate Agents)

This two bedroom-terraced house pretty much has it all: an entrance hall, living room, kitchen and dining room, basement and rear porch, not to mention a location not far from the city centre, Chester-Le Street, and the A1. Day trips galore.

 But if you’re wondering how times of austerity can support a house of £1 value that has made it all the way to auction, here’s the catch:

The house has had no habitants for around a decade- that’s 10 whole years of peeling wall-paper, stagnating rooms and collecting dust. Whilst it will only set you back by £1 initially, making the place even vaguely liveable is likely to cost around £30,000.

A few loose floorboards can’t be that hard to fix (Picture: Robinson Estate Agents)

If you’re a fan of the yellow and brown décor, who knows, this could be the biggest bargain of your life. If not, you should probably stick to hunting around the Viaduct.

To add to the glamour of the house, Michael Hughes, the manager of the estate agents Robinsons, who are auctioning the house, says the property belonged to a person who died several years ago.

Bargain price and a lovely colour scheme, what’s not to like? (Picture: Robinson Estate Agents)

Other houses in the vicinity are being sold at £70,000-£100,000. The price difference reflects the somewhat unusual circumstances, the main reason for the auction being that £1 was deemed a fair price for the property based on the principle that it was hard to discern a reasonable figure for the house.

Almost too luxurious for student living (Picture: Robinson Estate Agents)

Despite this, Hughes told of his optimism for the house: ‘It could be really beautiful’, implying that looks are often deceiving, and that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Potential is a key factor. Think of it as failing first year but reasoning that it will probably all be alright in the end.

So, if you thought £1 was too good to be true, this one time scepticism worked out for you. But who knows, five years down the line, it might be that one investment you’ll live to regret.

Information sourced from Metro.