Chapter 19.2-4: 1976-1980
Hawes & Harrogate. Rennovations and a Property Portfolio.
Investing in Friendships! Featuring the Kirkham's and the Pickerings...
...with mentions of The Early's, Ascrofts and Joe Oliver.
The Village of Hawes
For the last 10 years or so Dave Kirkham, a good friend and Joiner, had been working on our various ventures, mainly at weekends.
His wife, Joan, had recently inherited a small sum from her mothers estate and the Kirkhams expressed an interest in becoming partners in any future venture we might embark upon.
In 1976 two small adjacent cottages came on the market in the village of Hawes. They were down a ginnel and fronted on to a small river and waterfall. A beautiful and convenient location, albeit with minimal parking.
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When we first viewed them, it was a Friday and they were for Auction the following Monday. Following frantic phone calls to the Agents and Vendors Solicitors we agreed a price of, I think, about £4,000.
I purchased a new pullover and next morning, a Saturday, we attended solicitors and signed up.
There was some sort of closure notice on them so when I later saw our own solicitor he said “Neville, what have you done this time!!” We went 50/50 on these, with Dave and Joan.
It had been the assumption that any buyer would knock the two small properties into one. We had other ideas, as, for Holiday Lettings, two units were better than one.
Beckside & Dyers Cottages, Hawes
Renovation took some time, but after about 20 trips to the tip we were in business. I think that I can say that no other person has been on Sedbergh Tip more times at midnight than I have. (Tip since closed).
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We were to see still more of Hawes!!
John Early offered to assist at Hawes one weekend, so I collected him and Dave Kirkham and we took the Ingleton Route, pausing at the Masons Arms at Ingleton for a couple? of pints and a game of darts.
For a short while, Dave Kirkham rode on the roof rack! It was late when we hit Hawes. And I mean HIT. Looking out of the bedroom window in the morning it was clear that my car was parked IN THE WALL that divided the pedestrian walkway from the river.
Someone had moved my car to knock over the wall, and none of us had heard anything!! Strange.
One night out in a Hawes Pubs involved Dave 'Kirk' being punched and the need to call the Police.
Another Hawes incident was when Dave Kirkham gave our next door neighbour some medication advice. Our neighbour had terrible knee problems.
David tried to help him by giving him some advice. He said “I have a friend with a bad leg and he rubs Brasso on it.” “It eases it amazingly.”
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Next time we went up, the neighbour collared David. “That Bl..... Brasso!” he yelled. “It nearly crippled me”.
It was then that David remembered that his Blackpool friend had a WOODEN LEG, and that he used the Brasso on the Metal joints”.
A factor not to be ignored is that every property we renovated needed fully Re-wiring, Decorating, Furnishing. Carpeting, Kitchen Units, Baths, Showers, Toilets, Seating, Tables, TV, Storage Heaters etc.
Six properties also needed a new, private, water supply. Plenty of scope for Marjorie to spend her days sourcing all the materials and contents.
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However much work appears to have been involved in dealing with properties, the reality was, in fact, far greater. Thousands of hours of hard labour were involved, plus hundreds more in purchasing supplies, obtaining planning, dealing with the administration etc etc.
A number of friends came to “give us a hand” but few returned for a second time.
“Dyers Cottage,” as we were to name it, was very small. It had a 12ft square lounge opening on to a courtyard and a narrow 4ft by 8ft kitchen.
Narrow stairs led to a small toilet/bathroom and a tight double bedroom. One up and one down.
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The adjacent “Beckside Cottage”, as we named it, was a little bigger, having a lounge, small narrow breakfast- kitchen, two bedrooms and space for a shower room.​
Wife Marjorie Wiseman back left and our children Susan and Andrew, front left, with friends Dave and Joan and their daughter Amanda (right). They were fellow investors in Beckside & Dyers Cottages.
At some point we applied for an Improvement Grant, and we had to list out other projects- we had quite a portfolio building up (see list pictured).
Dalesway Cottage, Hawes
Another couple with whom we were very friendly were Stuart and Mavis Pickering, and they, too, expressed an interest in joining us on a venture.
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We visited several properties at various places, including one at Sedbergh (Too near a stream that almost ran through the property), and one at Grasmere (auctioned at twice our budget).
We then spotted that Burneside Railway Station was for sale alongside the Kendal to Windermere line, and we put in a sealed bid, losing out by a few hundred pounds, only to be advised somewhat later that the top bidder had dropped out and did we wish to continue?
Too late, we had already spied another cottage advertised for sale.
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An unoccupied mid-terrace it said, just on the edge of Hawes and opposite the Cheese factory.
The agent advised us that we didn't need keys. As was the norm in this area, you put your hand through the letterbox and found the keys dangling on a piece of string.
Armed with directions to the property and how to access the keys we duly arrived at the middle of a terrace of three.
Hand through letterbox. Key found. Open door. Walk in, and then stop, flabbergasted, as the frail ghost of an old lady tottered towards us, out of a back room, into the hallway.
I don't know who was the most surprised. She seemed unperturbed. “I suppose that you have come to take me away!!” she said softly. We were speechless. What was happening?
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Things became clearer when, on questioning, she assured us that, although she was probably due to go into a rest home, she did not think that the property was, as yet, on the market.
Abashed and puzzled we made an apologetic retreat and paused to gather our wits.
“Look” someone said “There is another terrace of three further down the road”.
And so it was that we purchased what we came to know as “Dalesway Cottage”, Westbank, Hawes, with us owning three quarters and Mavis and Stuart a quarter.
Apart from knocking two rooms into one and a lot of decorating there was not, comparatively speaking, too much work to do.​
There was, however, still plenty to keep us fit!
1977 Isle of Wight- holidaying with our property partners the Kirkhams and the Pickering's son Darryl... and other friends
Immediately prior to Easter, in 1977, we booked several chalets on a Caravan Site at pre season rates on the Isle of White.​​We were quite a large party, consisting of: Marjorie and myself with children Susan and Andrew; John and Viv Early with children Simon and Joanne; Dave and Joan Kirkham with daughter Amanda; June and Gerard Ascroft with daughter Louise; and Darryl Pickering.
Amanda Kirkham, Susan & Andrew Wiseman, Joanne Early and Darryl Pickering on model horse at Black Gang Chine
​The Earlys were predictably late for the Ferry.
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We explored the Island, visiting The Needles, with its sea cliffs and coloured sand, coastal paths, and the large Children's Amusement Centre at Blackgang Chine.
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Dave Kirkham showed us how to set out night fishing lines and we had a beach BBQ with sausages.
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One morning, the men took the children out for breakfast. We found an easy, welcome, option.
This was simply to let the children loose in a cake shop with instructions to buy TWO CAKES EACH.
Marjorie, Simon Early, Louise, June & Gerard Ascroft, Andrew Wiseman centre front then Susan Wiseman with Joanne Early, Darryl Pickering and Amanda Kirkham. At Black Gang Chine.
When they found out, the ladies were not impressed with our ploy!
Harrogate- Doing it the easy way
We could get grants, and offered to improve. The elderly tenant, fearing a rent increase (from 50p per week) declined to entertain any improvement.​
We employed an agent to collect the rent and control repairs and for over 15 years ticked along with a nil income.
However, in 1991 one property was sold for £34k and the more basic one fetched £32k in 1994.It was an amazing return for so little outlay.
Perhaps we should just have purchased tenanted property, or rented out the properties we renovated, instead of running a work intensive, time consuming, low return, Holiday Cottage business?
In 1977 I had an elderly client, Miss Olga Jefferies, who had once inherited about 30 properties in Harrogate.
As they came empty they were sold, and she was now left with just two tenanted properties.
The rental income for the two was about £1 per week in total, and after agents expenses, repairs and accountants charges they were bringing in a nil income, and the chances of obtaining vacant possession were slim, as tenants rights were heavily protected.
She had decided to sell the pair and advised me that a solicitor had offered her £1000 and she was going to accept this offer as the Agents had said that it was a fair price.
I had never seen the properties, but after a quick chat with my then partner, Hugh Tootell, we decided to offer £1250, unseen.
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The offer was accepted and we became distant owners of two terraced properties at 28/42 Butler Rd Harrogate. One had been slightly modernised but the other still had no hot water and no inside toilet etc.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
