ROOF Blog

A two-bedroom flat in County Durham has been labelled Britain’s cheapest flat after it was placed on the market for just £1000. Situated above a group of shops, the flat has an open-plan lounge and kitchen and is located in the heart of Catchgate, Stanley. But it has no water or electricity, rubble litters the floor, the walls have huge holes and the ceilings have crumbled leaving a corrugated iron roof to protect the rooms from wind and rain. The property was left to an unnamed woman in a divorce settlement, who realised it belonged to her after she began receiving council tax bills and other official letters. Estate agents are set to auction the first-floor flat, which they admit needs ‘refurbishing’.

The average price of a house sold at auction has dropped 31.1 per cent in the three months to November, compared with the same period a year ago, auction specialist Essential Information Group said. The average cost of a property stands at £114,208, which is 34 per cent lower than prices at their peak last summer. A spokesperson from EIG said that it was a common misconception that auctions sell properties cheaply: ‘They don’t. They sell them at their true market value – what people are willing to pay’.