Three-bed terraced house for sale for only £18,000

This family home in County Durham has an appealing price tag, but you’ll have to be willing to take a bit of a gamble

At first glance, this three-bed terraced house in Chilton, County Durham seems a pretty good deal.

It’s being sold for just £18,000 on a street where a number of homes have gone for closer to £30,000 in the past couple of years.

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The property was previously purchased for £27,000 back in August last year so if you snapped it up for the guide price – and added the £1,074 buyer’s fee – you’d be getting around a 30% discount on its market value.

There’s a catch though and it’s a big one – the vendor isn’t allowing any viewings prior to the property auction, which will take place on the 13th February with SDL Auctions.

According to the listing, the house is set in a row of similar terraces and has a fairly standard layout. The spacious ground floor houses the open-plan living areas, kitchen and bathroom, while the smaller first floor contains three bedrooms.

The pictures suggest the house is in fairly good order. However, while there’s a generous lounge-diner, the listing states that the room has fire damage.

Unfortunately, there aren’t any images of the affected area, so it’s difficult to tell how much of an issue this is or discern what remedial works will need to be undertaken.

The traditional galley kitchen, meanwhile, is quite modern and some of the units are newly fitted so it’s unlikely to need any immediate work.

Helpfully, there's a large side return adjacent to this space, so further down the line, you could even think about knocking out the wall to create a larger kitchen extension.

Upstairs, the bedrooms are all decent sizes, with all three large enough to accommodate a double bed. Measuring around 124 square feet, the master is particularly spacious and also comes complete with fitted cupboards.

The bathroom looks to be in decent condition, however, some touch-ups to the paintwork may be needed and the suite is a little basic so you might want to carry out an upgrade at some point in the future.

If you don't fancy extending out, the snug enclosed brick courtyard could be transformed into an outdoor oasis with a little elbow grease.

Looking for a rental investment? The returns here could be pretty attractive, with similar houses for rent in the surrounding streets going for between £300 and £375 per month. At these figures, the home could provide an enormous rental yield of between 18% and 23% – not bad at all!

If you fancy taking your chances with this secretive property, check out the listing for more information before it goes under the hammer on the 13th of February.

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Images: SDL Auctions