Ben Radstone from YouSpotProperty.com presented Rebecca with a cheque for £10,000
Balham resident Rebecca heard about the initiative after seeing a post on social media.
The story detailed a company, YouSpotProperty.com, which rewards members of the public for reporting empty and derelict homes in their neighbourhoods.
If the house was eligible according to the firm’s criteria, the person who reported it would receive a £20 voucher.
Rebecca received the money after reporting a derelict home in her area to the company
And for houses the company actually ends up buying and putting back into use, they would pay “spotters” 1% of the purchase price, up to a cap of £10,000.
Last month, YouSpotProperty.com confirmed it handed out more than £1 million in reward monies and vouchers to members of the public.
Rebecca recalled how shocked she was to learn the value of her reward from the company.
“I’d come across YouSpotProperty.com on social media and thought I’d give it a try when I uploaded a few lower value derelict looking properties,” she explained.
“The house in question though – on the corner of my road – I thought would be the least likely to get anywhere.
“It’s a large, 2,000 square foot, late Victorian house with some intricate detailing.
“It was boarded up, but a neighbour had told me it was squatted in where there was a broken window.”
The 54-year-old decided to leave a note for the owner in the letter box but “received no reply”.
“Done up versions of such properties would fetch anywhere around £1.5 million so I thought such a valuable house would ultimately be on the owner’s radar,” Rebecca said.
And as it turns out, reporting this property turned out to be a profitable bet.
Recently, Rebecca received a phone call from Ben Radstone, co-founder of YouSpotProperty.com, informing her she had earned £10,000.
The company rewards ‘spotters’ for flagging abandoned houses in their area to them
The spotter, who has worked in television production on popular programmes such as Cash In The Attic and crime-related shows, said the money would be put to good use.
She plans to repay a £5,000 loan to her mum in addition to buying a “decent” computer.
The remainder of the cash will be put into savings with some set aside for holidays, potentially to Ibiza where she visited many times before.
YouSpotProperty.com explained the investigation process involved after the house was brought to their attention.
The property had been derelict for a ‘number of years’ as the owner was ‘incapacitated and living elsewhere’
“Having discovered that the house had sat empty for a number of years, our investigation uncovered that the owner was still alive but incapacitated and living elsewhere in care,” Ben said.
“We traced the owner’s sister who has asked our advice as what to do to help her brother (the owner) liquidate his house so the proceeds could be put towards his care.
“In order to gain permission to act on her brother’s behalf she had to gain court of protection for her brother – enabling her to legally make decisions on his behalf.
“We were eventually able to secure the house for £1 million.
“Listing a house in such a condition with a high street estate agent would otherwise [have] taken ages to sell and mortgage buyers would struggle to gain finance for such a property – this is where we step in.
The company has applied for planning permission to convert the home into three flats
He went on to reveal the company has applied for planning permission to convert the home into three flats.
“Most of it hasn’t been touched in more than 40 years and is in serious need of refurbishment,” Ben added.
“We hope to have new home makers in there as soon as possible.”
For more than a decade, YouSpotProperty.com has identified and put back into use, through the help of the public, more derelict homes around the UK than any other single organisation.
Article written by: Rosie Chapman, Lifestyle Reporter, The Sun
https://www.mirror.co.uk/money/retired-police-officer-makes-almost-32538738