HOMES Under the Hammer’s Martin Roberts blasted “sinister, awful” house after spotting something VERY wrong.
The 57-year-old presenter was left gobsmacked after he viewed a three-bed house in Newcastle Under Lyme.
The property expect was in for a shock when he explored the boarded up house, which had been badly damaged by fire.
The house which sold for £35,000 left Martin with a headache after he spotted a number of serious issues.
He kicked off the viewing telling viewers that he was disappointed with the appearance of the outside of the property.
Martin said: “It doesn’t look to be in too good condition from the outside.
“Boarded windows and cracked glass are never a good sign and I also spy a concrete base which also signifies this house is a non-standard construction.
“Now just occasionally, properties which look pretty awful from the outside turn out to be a bit of surprise when you walk through the front door. That’s not the case here. It’s bad”
The TV host was given the fright of his life when he entered the inside of the house.
As he searched the property it became clear how much damage the fire had caused to the upstairs.
As he approached the top of the staircase, he spotted several dark patches over the walls and ceiling.
A startled Martin explained: “Wow. That’s either very dark paint on the ceiling or something a bit more sinister.
“You guessed it, it’s something a lot more sinister.
“We’ve got a loo there, a bedroom towards the front, another bedroom towards the back and you’ll guess what’s going on here, severe fire damage.”
Martin was surprised by the extent of the damage which could result in structural issues.
He said: “Now this is unusual, you’d normally expect fire damage to be downstairs because fires invariably start in the kitchens, living rooms, open fires, but clearly, this is the epicentre of where the fire in this property was.
“And you can see the damage it has done; windows broken, holes in the floor here. Fire and the ensuing water damage from extinguishing it means it’s what you can’t see that you have to consider.
“There could be structural issues, damaged timbers, electrics and then factor in this place was lying empty for some time before the fire.”
The property developer was lost for words towards the end of his visit, admitting that plenty of work would be needed to restore it.
He explained: “There could be a lot to do before you even get to the regular renovation challenges like layout.
“Obviously the biggest issue is this – it’s upstairs, there is a toilet, that’s it, the shower is downstairs, ideally you want that on the same floor.”
Homes Under the Hammer airs on BBC One on weekdays at 10am.
