I transformed my £37,000 house after becoming obsessed with home improvement programmes – now it’s worth £170,000
- Fay Murrish, 33, from Durham, transformed her home and tripled its value
- Fay and her husband Michael bought the house under the right to buy scheme
- Read More: Couple DOUBLE the value of their £175,000 Welsh cottage with a stunning £50,000 renovation that transformed it from an ‘uninhabitable shell’
A mother who is obsessed by home improvement programmes has transformed her own home and more than tripled its value.
Fay Murrish, 33, and husband Michael, 36, from Seaham, Durham, bought their ex-council house nearly five years ago – at a bargain price of £37,500.
Despite having no formal qualifications, the DIY enthusiasts set about their renovations with such stunning results that their home is now worth £170,000.
Mother-of-three, Fay said: ‘I am obsessed with home improvements shows on telly. I love them and I apply every year to take part.
‘I am always coming up with new ideas and designs for our home. My husband just rolls his eyes because he knows it will become my new project.’
Fay Murrish, 33, from Seaham, Durham, who is obsessed by home improvement programmes, has transformed her own home and more than tripled its value (pictured with her daughter eight year old Chanel)
Before: Fay and her husband Micheal bought their ex-council house nearly five years ago – at a bargain price of £37,500 (left). After: Despite having no formal qualifications, the DIY enthusiasts set about their renovations with such stunning results that their home is now worth £170,000 (right)
The family, including Chase, 13, Cole, 10 and eight year old Chanel, bought their four bedroom home in June 2018.
The council offered them a discount under the right to buy scheme. The asking price was average for their street at that time and they had already lived in the house for a year, which is a council requirement.
The couple took out a mortgage to afford the property and their subsequent planned renovations.
Fay says: ‘I had loads of changes in mind, and we got builders in to add a loft conversion and knock down some walls so we could make the bedrooms and bathrooms much bigger.
‘I gave myself the job of project manager. Micheal is an HGV driver and I had him driving up and down the country to source a particular type of skirting board or door.
‘I sourced everything myself and we did lots of the work ourselves too, to save money as much as possible.
Bathroom Before: After buying the council house the couple got to work on the interior by knocking walls and renovating each room to make it more modern and spacious (left). Bathroom after: Fay said her personal favourite room is the ensuite with the gold hardwear because it ‘feels like a little bit of luxury’ (right)
Fay designed a stylish dining room area in the house with dramatic gold and black furniture and a lavish cream leather corner sofa
‘Micheal works hard and I am a full-time carer for our daughter, who was born with complex health issues and became the youngest ever open heart patient in the entire world when she was born.
‘We have to be very careful with our money but we wanted to put everything we had into creating a lovely family home for our children.
‘It wasn’t easy, juggling motherhood with DIY, and we had to negotiate our way through Covid and Brexit which really held up our supplies.
‘At one point we had no roof on the house. Another time, we were all sleeping in one bedroom. We had to bath in a room filled with rubble with no wall. It was chaotic.’
The couple, Fay and Micheal, took out a mortgage to afford the property and their subsequent planned renovations
The family, including Chase, 13, (right) Cole, 10 (left) and eight year old Chanel, (centre) bought their four bedroom home in June 2018
When the building work was finished, Fay took over the indoor décor.
She says: ‘I was forever coming up with new designs and I really enjoyed it. As each room was finished, I felt a real sense of pride.
‘The kids’ favourite room is probably the kitchen. They love sitting at the island and helping me cook, doing their homework or chatting about their days.
It has totally changed how we interact with each other and use each of our new spaces.
‘They like the ensuite bathroom because they have two showers side by side, which are great for water fights!
The kids’ favourite room is the kitchen as they love sitting at the island and helping Fay cook, while doing their homework and chatting
The mother gave the sitting room a modern look by using cream furnished with hints of black to tie in with the rest of the house
Fay even updated her children’s bedrooms to give them the feeling of having more space but also made them more modern looking
Fay also designed a chic family bathroom and she sourced all the black fittings herself online to save money and Micheal collected them from around the country
Fay said her pantry has been the biggest hit on Instagram saying over the past few years the ‘organisation of spaces has become a big hit with people’
The family have wonderful views overlooking a vast golf course with the beach also nearby for family walks, the house now works so well for the family
‘My own personal favourite is the ensuite too, all in gold, because it just feels like a little bit of luxury in my day.
‘I love using gold and black accents in rooms. Gold gives the touch of luxury while I think black is dramatic.
‘Our pantry has been the biggest hit on Instagram and I think over the past few years the organisation of spaces has become a big hit with people. We don’t have a big house, but we do make the best use of the space.’
Fay’s Instagram posts clocked up over a million views in 72 hours and views currently stand at over 3.5 million.
She also made the garden a stylish minimalist place for the children to play in during the summer holidays complete with a garden shed for tools
She planted shrubs and flowers in planters around the garden to add some colour and laid artificial grass for the clean structured look
She says: ‘In total, the work has cost us about £90,000 and we have added so much more than that to our house value.
‘At the moment, we’ve hit the top price for our street. We are really proud of the work and love we can show there is no limit for any property. But it’s not all about money.
‘We have wonderful views overlooking a golf course with the beach beyond. We have created a home that works for us and suits our family life and how we like to live.
‘We’ve gone from a house to a home that will see our family hopefully through many years to come.’
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