SDL Auctions has been regularly holding property auctions in cities like Leicester, Nottingham and Derby for more than 10 years. In mid-April it reported that after a busy week of auctions, it had raised more than £8.8m under the hammer for properties ranging from garages to large apartment blocks – and everything in between. The company says that refurbishment properties are currently attracting a great deal of attention at auction. Below are some examples of what people are buying at auction in these cities at the moment.  

In Leicester, a spacious 4-bed town house, sold for £124,000 from a guide price of £100,000, while a 3-bed semi on a large plot, sold for £148,000 from a guide price of £120,000+. It was a similar story in Nottingham, where a traditional bay-fronted 3-bed semi-detached requiring improvements, sold for £185,000 from a guide price of £150,000+ and a terraced house in Mansfield, sold for £54,000 from a guide price of £50,000+.

In Derby, a refurbishment property lived up to expectations after receiving more viewings than any other lot in the auction. The 3-bed semi-detached house with a large garden had a guide price of £45,000+ and sold for £124,000.

Some of the larger refurbishment properties were sold in Derby too, including a two-storey former Baptist Church, which sold for £107,000 from a guide price of £55,000+ and a former farmhouse in Breedon on the Hill ended the auction with a bang selling for £410,000 from a guide price of £225,000+.

Also in Derby, a 6-bed House in Multiple Occupation sold for £180,000 from a guide price of £165,000+. When fully let the HMO produces an annual rental income of £27,000 (15% gross yield) and includes land to the rear suitable for development.

There were commercial and development opportunities to be had too, including plots of land, retail units and, in Leicester, a block of 12 lock-up garages, which proved extremely popular, selling for £160,500 from a guide price of £45,000+.