The last few competitions have been pretty successful- people seem to love the Beeny and her expert advice (or the pictures of her inside the book). This competition is much like the first one I ever held, but with a slight twist. Previously, you had to guess, which pair belong to Sarah Beeny. But this time round…yup, you’ve guessed it, you have to tell me which pair DON’T belong to Sarah Beeny. CLEVER, HUH? Right, anyways…

How can I win a free copy? That’s EASY

Competition Rules

• First person to guess correctly wins a copy. Simply pick a number and explain why Sarah Beeny is AWESOME (this competition is only for Beeny fans). Just to clarify, you only need to guess the right number. Explaining why Sarah Beeny is awesome will have no reflection on the outcome
• Closing date is Sunday (6th Sep 2009). Winner will be announced Monday (7th Sep 2009)
• You can only have ONE guess
• The winner will be contacted via the email address they submit when answering the question. Once contacted, the winner will need to supply a postal address.
• You can enter for fun if you don’t want a copy of the book- simply state so when you enter

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! And don’t worry if you don’t win this time round, I’ll be giving more copies away shortly! If you can’t be bothered to try your luck, you can buy it on Amazon

Successful entrepreneurs Nigel and Sarah have a romantic notion that they can make a quarter of a million pounds by creating a swanky LA pad in the heart of a run down bit of Rotherhithe, East London.

I don’t usually dedicate individual blog posts to episodes of Property Ladder, but fuck me, it was car crash TV, so keeping my big mouth shut over this shit required too much effort.

It was horrible, it was hideous, truly sickening….and I loved it. Throughout the episode I was waiting for Sarah Beeny to say the entire episode was a sick joke while taking her off top and calling my name. Sorry, what? Anyways..

It had all the signs of a joke- the developers purchased an old sausage factory. They wanted to spend 10k on a fish tank for the bathroom. They wanted to cover the place in purple velvet and leopard skin. Come on, surely, it’s a joke?

Unfortunately, it was never confirmed to be a joke, so I was left watching the darn thing in entire disbelief, with my jaw resting on the ground.

Who remembers this couple? Richard & Isabel…

A few seasons ago I nominated Richard & Isabel as being the worst developers on the entire planet. Well, they’re now being joined by another set of chuckle brothers’, Nigel and Sarah.

As people, they seemed nice enough, but as developers, they were soul destroying individuals. I mean, it’s not that they were completely stupid, they were just completely ignorant. The fact they thought they were all-knowing was beyond cringe worthy. I was on the floor shaking like I had a snake bite, begging for them to stop talking, developing…moving.

They had this very bizarre specific idea of what they wanted from the development. Sadly, I fail to believe the ideas floating around in their heads’ were generated by sane minds. They clearly didn’t understand the industry, and to invest over £1m into something you don’t understand is financial suicide. It was like watching children trying to decorate a doll’s house.

I think my favourite bit was when Beeny suggested splitting the property into 3 flats to minimize loss. Of course, as per, it was a smart, sensible suggestion from the Beeny. Nigel and Sarah went against the idea because apparently, they wouldn’t “enjoy” developing flats over a house. Right, that’s a great reason to defy good business advice…*slaps forehead*

I’m still amazed that people go on Property Ladder and brush Sarah’s advice aside so easily. It makes me wonder if these people have ever watched an episode. A scarier thought would be that these people have watched Property religiously, but failed to learn a damn thing. If I went onto Property Ladder it would be a pretty mundane episode; I would just say, “yes, you’re right, let’s do that, Sarah”, the entire time. Who’s the expect here? I know it’s not me.

Ordinarily I would have flicked that shit over and watched the Antiques Road Show, but there was something unusually intoxicating about watching these two cheese-dildos in action.

Anyways, I’m not going to write a long essay on how terrible these clowns were because I’m more interested on your thoughts about the episode. I rarely remember the specifics of many Property Ladder developments, but I’m pretty sure this one will haunt me for a few good years.

This is what they did wrong:

• 1] They didn’t listen to Beeny
• 2] They set an unrealistic budget
• 3] They bought an overpriced property
• 4] They bought at the peak of the property boom
• 5] They targetted the wrong market
• 6] They stopped development for months
• 7] They catered for their own taste
• 8] They spent money on unnecessary shit, which wouldn’t have added any value
• 9] They got emotionally involved with the development
• 10] They purchased a property which was on the market for 4 years without any hesitation

This is what they did HALF right…

• listened to Beeny about splitting the house into flats, when it was too late (so they only get half a point here)

On a more positive note, it’s a perfect example of how not to develop property. In fact, Sarah Beeny should release the episode as a DVD and title it, “The Developer’s Bible on how NOT to develop property”. I’m sure she’d make a killing.

It’s not too late to watch it

For those that missed it, I urge you to watch it. It’s not too late. Catch it on Channel 4’s website, over here. It’s brilliant!!

Competition

I may as well make a competition out of this. The person that best describes how terrible this couple truly were will win a copy of Sarah Beeny’s latest design book. More details about Sarah Beeny’s new book.

Competition Rules

• Closing date is on August the 8th, Friday.. Winner will be announced on Saturday (9th August 2009)
• The winner will be contacted via the email address they submit when answering the question. Once contacted, the winner will need to supply a postal address.
• You can enter for fun if you don’t want a copy of the book- simply state so when you enter
• Keep your responses on topic- about their development skills. I didn’t think they were nasty or horrible people, so there’s no need to go down that route.
• I’m the jury, I will decide who’s response is the most articulate and comical

GOOD LUCK!!

So here’s a picture of Sarah Beeny’s latest book: Property Ladder- Sarah Beeny’s Design For Profit

What’s the book about?

The book contains all the D.I.Y know-how and design tips you need to maximise profits and minimise design mistakes in your home.

The book reveals Sarah Beeny’s design secrets that will let you maximize the potential of your home.

Packed full of inspiring ideas and simple design rules everyone can follow this invaluable design resource and directory takes easy element of your home from kitchen to the garden and explains how you can make it look its best.

My thoughts

Ok, even though I’m obliged to say the book is awesome- i’m not the type of person that will say something is awesome when it’s total rubbish, under any circumstance. You can trust me on that.

The book is actually really good. It covers a broad area, and really makes you think twice before you do any work to your home. It was just odd details like how you should paint a room and he impact of colouring certain rooms a certain colour. Details like that I really don’t think about it, but probably should.

Anyways, basically, it’s an extremely useful book for property developers, those into D.I.Y, or anyone considering a new look in their home. It’s always worth investing a few quid in a book if it means getting expert advice, and saving you from D.I.Y hell.

How can I win a free copy? That’s EASY

Competition Rules

• First person to guess correctly wins a copy. Simply pick a number and explain why Sarah Beeny is AWESOME (this competition is only for Beeny fans). Just to clarify, you only need to guess the right number. Explaining why Sarah Beeny is awesome will have no reflection on the outcome
• Closing date is Sunday (26th July 2009). Winner will be announced Monday (27th July 2009)
• You can only have ONE guess
• The winner will be contacted via the email address they submit when answering the question. Once contacted, the winner will need to supply a postal address.
• You can enter for fun if you don’t want a copy of the book- simply state so when you enter

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! And don’t worry if you don’t win this time round, I’ll be giving more copies away shortly! If you can’t be bothered to try your luck, you can buy it on Amazon

As I’ve stated before, I’ve never given the impression that I am Sarah Beeny; i’m merely a fan of her assets and her property related work.

I usually ignore most of the emails that start with, “Dear Sarah” or the alike, but I got the weirdest email the other day, so I thought I would share.

Dear Mrs, Beeney,

seeing how you and your family have taken to the European continent, could I place an obligation on you the next time you are going out. Please become aware of the situation facing the residents of Belarus, who’s second generation are feeling the effects of radiation emitted in the Chernobyl nuclear accident.

This is a terrible liberty, but you are a practical sort, who can refuse when it is not impossible to assist.

There are systems in place to transport children with unique problems to the U.K. for free treatment and if you loved the land, perhaps I could pass your interest on?

I was always told to be polite to those from whom I asked for help. Knowing your life is full, and that you can not be everywhere and do everything, disregard this if it does not square with your own intentions. It is a good thing that you are on telly, building houses and families if the matchmakings as successful as the construction advice.

God Bless you and yours
[insert name]

Errr…what? Now there’s a head scratcher, right? I’m completely baffled by this email. Don’t get me wrong, the person who wrote the email sounds like a genuine and sincere….fruitloop with good intentions, but seriously…what?

No idea what this person is talking about. Does anyone else?

If you happen to read this Sarah, please feel obliged to step in and help the residents of Belarus, who’s second generation are feeling the effects of radiation emitted in the Chernobyl nuclear accident….Errr yeah.

Because the nation clearly has an interest in Sarah Beeny (for one reason or another), I decided to buy a fair amount of her property development books for the purpose of giving them away. I plan on giving one book away every few weeks.

I’ve ordered a large range of her books (the picture only shows a small portion of them), some are more desirable than others, but overall, I think they’re all pretty decent. The books are all up-to-date and contain plenty of useful information for any property development enthusiast. Hell, even if you don’t particularly want any of the books, it’s free to win- so why not enter?

How do you win?

Good question. I’m going to ask unbelievably simple questions. The first person to answer the question correctly takes home the gold. It’s as easy as that. Each competition will run for 2 weeks.

The Competition Prize – “Sarah Beeny’s Property Ladder Hints & Tips” book

Quick checklists Top tips for buying Project-managing Finding builders Budgeting Selling for profit

Competition Question

Like I said, I’m going to make the questions easy as pie. The books aren’t worth much, so I doubt anyone will break their back over one.

Question:
This house is currently on the open market for sale, how much do you think it’s going for (in Sterling pounds)? The person that guesses the closet will win.

“Sarah Beeny’s Property Ladder Hints & Tips” Reviews

I live in North Cumbria and wanted to buy a house in need of work, do the work and sell for a profit. If I had done so before reading “Property Ladder” I think I would have lost money.

This book has been a great help as I have been interested in buying a house and renovating it. This book has helped me decide that I probably do not want to do this at the moment as I think that it would be too difficult for me to fit in around everything else in my life.

Brilliant book, brilliant woman. If you follow all advice she gives, you wont loose- we didn’t.

Competition Rules

• There’s no limit to how many books you can win. If you enter a competition and win, you’re free to enter the next one…and win again.
• You MUST enter a valid email address in the comment box when you answer the question, so I can contact you if you’re a winner.
• If you’re a winner and you fail to respond to my email with in 5 days, I’m going to give the book away to someone else.
• You must be willing to give me your postal address, for obvious reasons.
• Not essential, but I’d really appreciate it if the winners could take a picture of themselves with the winning book so I can display it on the site. I’ll understand if you’re not accepting to that request.
• this competition will close on the 4th of June 2008

Good luck, people!

Well, now it’s 2008; It should be an interesting season as the market was starting to get tough at the back of 2007. The market is unpredictable as ever, with house prices falling after a long lasting boom; more and more people are starting to back away from the market. My only hope is that more dumbass developers surface from under the woodworks thinking they know more than the Beeny. Lets face it, it’s the people that can’t (but think they can), who make the show most interesting.

Is there still money to be made in the property market? If so, there’s no better time for Sarah to guide developers through the choppy waters in a new series of Property Ladder.

I’m sorry, but the innocent male in me also has to mention that I’m looking forward to seeing Beeny’s late 2007/2008 look. I’m sure she won’t disappoint her many fans, unless she’s been under the chopper and removed her holiest of assets.

For those who don’t listen to The Scott Mills show, you’re missing out on some light entertainment on the way home from work. It’s on 4pm-7pm every weekend on Radio 1. I think Scott and his faithful sidekick Chappers do a fine job. My ears naturally perked up when I heard they were collaborating an interview with Sarah Beeny. I was not disappointed to say the least.

Before I write anymore, it’s probably best if you listen to the interview. It’s approximately 12mins in length. They discuss the usual topics you’d expect from a Beeny interview- tits, sheds and dating sites. No, really. The first 30seconds or so of the interview is a bit confusing and irrelevant, so just ignore it.

So, what did you guys think? I thought it was extremely entertaining. Good to hear that Beeny has a sense of humour about her assets. I wonder if she’d be as forgiving if I was swinging off them like a monkey?

For those that aren’t so internet savvy, fear not, I did my own investigating and gathered together all the sources they were referencing during the interview.

The Guy that just couldn’t hold back

Pure desire got the better of this young chap, he eventually had to surrender to Sarah Beeny’s most prized possessions. The peeking perv:

Seriously, I don’t blame the guy, afterall, he’s only a human with a penis. I doubt even Shaolin Monks could have conjured up enough discipline to stop eyes from straying. He has nothing to be ashamed of. I’m actually surprised it took him that long to holme in on those puppies. Jokes aside, they actually look like footballs. I’m not even trying to be sleazy, I’m genuinely making a realistic comparison here. Footballs!

I wonder if that couple are still together. Perhaps after that development the guy’s partner felt a little too inadequate. Poor thing. The guy I mean. It must have been tough for him to experience such a bubbly high, only to fall back down onto such a flat playing surface.

The Sheddies

Now, I thought the topic about the Sheddies was golden. I’ve had a look at the website in question, Reader Sheds- I think it’s fair to say that the sheddy community are on the same par as Star Trek fanatics. I don’t think I need to say anymore.

Here’s the clip of ‘Uncle Wilko’ announcing ‘The Shed of the year 2007‘.

If he looks like a Peado, sounds like a peado and has a peado name…what is he? Only joking, Unc. We’re all friends here.

And here’s a picture of Tony and his award winning shed:

Pretty fucking ridiculous, right? Right. More ridiculous pictures here.

I think Beeny got it right when she said it’s a ‘niche’ area. For some odd reason I don’t actually see the Sheddy community expanding to Global domination. But then again, I would have said the same about Star Trek before it became a phenomenon. I just hope the Sheddy community isn’t as radical as the Star Trek community, otherwise I’ll be hunted down like a dog and hung to dry after this article.

I watch Sarah Beeny’s Property Ladder religiously. I think it’s a great show, even though I spend most of the time with my mouth open, eyes covered and my skin crawling. Let’s face it, the show is about stupid people developing property, for the most part. Believe me when I say that witnessing stupidity isn’t as glamourous as it may seem. Then again, Property ladder wouldn’t be worth watching if it had normal people wanting to develop. We also can’t diminish the fine moments when Beeny drops her golden tips.

My question is, why do people appear on Property Ladder? One thing is for sure, it sure as hell isn’t to benefit from the free, professional advice that La Beeny has to offer. If anyone knows how to squeeze and maximize profits out of a shed, it’s her. So why do the majority of people on the show completely ignore her advice as if they know better? I don’t get it. Do you get it? I want to get it. Do you want to get it?

Granted, at times Beeny doesn’t appreciate the restrictions of finances, consequently suggests pulling an extra 20k out of an asshole to finance a 50ft extension. Putting those moments of insanity aside (forgive me, Beeny), the majority brush away the logical and realistic suggestions that are made. What fizzles my mind is that the people that appear on Property Ladder obviously watch the show themselves, so they must have countlessly witnessed moments when the developers get their evaluations at the end. You know, that’s when the agent always says the property would have been more valuble if they had done this or that. “This or that” usually being something that Beeny suggested during the development. Yet when the viewers go on the show themselves, they ignore the advice. It’s mind boggling and frustrating.

So, we’ve established it’s rarely about the free advice. So what’s it about? Is it to satisfy those that thrive from publicity; those that simply want to get their face on TV? I used to think so until last week. For those that aren’t regulars on my site, I run a Property Ladder forum discussion where everyone has the opportunity to get their claws out and discuss the week’s development(s). I must admit, I do enjoy the cattiness. At times I think the producers intentionally hand pick the most inadequate ‘victims’ just to boost the entertainment value, whilst throwing the names of the sane applicants straight into the bin; not that I mind or anything.

On the 20th of November a couple (Richard & Isabel) developed a property in Chiswick. You may remember them (they were kind of hard to forget- the episode was a corker).

Richard & Isabel got a bit of a slating in the forums, not only in terms of their poor development skills (they ignored a lot of Beeny’s fundamental advice), but also as humans. Isabel got the majority of the negative criticism, I think it’s fair to say that her development style wasn’t exactly orthodox and her personality was, well, you know….not great. Am I being harsh? Well, these guys on the Channel 4 seem to agree with me, so perhaps I’m just a realist. I quote:

La Beeny again demonstrating the patience of a saint – I dont think I would tire of slapping that stupid woman in a month of Sundays. The sheer arragance of her (Isabel) when Sarah pointed out at the start that they could guarentee a nice profit from 2 flats but oh no it had to be an over personalised mish-mash house!

I guess that’s what happens when you throw yourself into the spotlight- you start getting judged on every possible level, even if it has nothing to do with the subject matter. You’ll find poor Richard in that thread defending his partner and his development.

To my surprise, Richard stumbled upon the Property ladder Chiswick thread on my site and made it clear that they were human (good thing he cleared that up) and he didn’t appreciate the comments people made about Isabel. While I did sympathise with him (kinda’) and understood why he was protecting his spouse, it was apparent that he didn’t like the attention the media had bought them. On a side note, I find it intriguing that someone that appeared on Property Ladder went onto various forums defending their development and their g/f after receiving blows. He must be tired after all that online combat.

So, like many, he didn’t take advantage from Beeny’s advice and didn’t appear to be craving from the attention of the media, which brings me back to my initial question- why do people appear on Property Ladder if it’s not for the advice and it’s not for the media coverage?

Perhaps it’s purely because anyone that appears on property ladder can potentionally save money on the build because they get cheap supplies. People will do anything for a buck. If that’s the case, the majority of people aren’t utilising their biggest tool- knowledge of The Beeny. I know many people will agree on how excruciatingly frustrating it is to watch a tool so useful to be pushed aside like a sack of shit.

Email: mailamanda@yahoo.com

Dear Sirs,

I represent Sarah Beeny, as her business partner.

We would like to give you one opportunity to cease using her name in the advertising, page titles and content of your website ‘propertyinvestmentproject.co.uk’ (the website) in order to immediate avoid legal action.

Your actions amount to ‘passing off’, as Sarah does not endorse your website, nor has she given permission for you to use her name in advertising your services.

Please do take this opportunity to cease the infringement.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Amanda Christie

Amanda Christie is actually a business partner of Sarah Beeny. From what I remember they’re childhood friends and they run My single friend together. However, i’m not entirely convinced the email is genuine.

Reasons why I think the email may be fraudulent:

1: the email used is from a yahoo account, which is unbelievably unprofessional. It means anyone could have created that account and sent me that email. Anyone serious would have emailed me from a verifiable email account e.g amanadachristie@sarahbeeny.com.
2: the allegations don’t even reflect reality. I’m not pretending to be Sarah Beeny, nor am I selling/advertising a service. They basically have no case, unless a fan site is illegal (which it isn’t).
3: There are no contact details from Amanda Christie. If the email was legit, there would be a contact address and telephone number

Regardless of thinking it’s a fake, I played it safe and responded with this:

Dear Sir
Thank you for your enquiry. As a conscientious webmaster, I am very concerned by your suggestion that my site may have infringed any laws and am very keen to put a stop to any such infringement immediately.

To the allegation of ‘passing off’, as per my post of the 7th of April 2007 (http://www.propertyinvestmentproject.co.uk/blog/i-am-not-sarah-beeny/) I have never claimed to be representing Sarah Beeny and have, in fact, taken steps to make it very obvious that she is not associated with my site. Users searching my site for blog entries categorised ‘Sarah Beeny’ will see, in large letters, the title of that post (‘I am not Sarah Beeny’). Passing off, as I understand the law, would also require me to be trading goods. The only thing for sale on my site is advertising space, and I am not aware that Sarah Beeny is in the business of selling advertising space. The only service I offer is related to advertising. If you could send me examples of instances of ‘Passing off’ (screenshots, links) that would help elucidate your request for content to be removed which would, in turn, expedite my compliance.

To the use of the name ‘Sarah Beeny’ in advertisements, the advertisements that run on my site are supplied by the Google AdSense programme. If an advert appears on my site that contains her name, it is because an advertiser has paid for their content to show opposite the keyphrase ‘Sarah Beeny’. The fact that such adverts appear on my site specifically is a function of Google’s association of that phrase with my site, which is out of my control. If you believe that it is an invalid contextual association, or you believe that the Google AdSense program infringes your trademarks, please contact them directly.

Finally, to your being Sarah Beeny’s associate, in order to take this matter further I would be obliged if you could provide details of your association with Sarah Beeny and, at the very least, contact me from an official e-mail address for the company that you represent. If the company you represent is Yahoo and the address ‘mailamanda@yahoo.com’ is your official company address, please provide details of the nature of the relationship between Yahoo Inc. and Sarah Beeny.

Kind regards

I haven’t received a reply yet

So, what do you guys think? Is someone playing games or do you think it’s legit? I mean, it could be legit. If that’s the case, Sarah Beeny’s business partner doesn’t really have much of a case, in my opinion. Also, if it is genuine, I might have to put my foot down and retract my statement about marrying Sarah Beeny one day. And I mean it!!

The show is a documentary series following British people attempting to make substantial profit from investing and developing property outside of the UK so they can pay off their mortgages.

It’s a 6 part series, and apparently it presents a high risk, high reward solution to your mortgage problems.

I’ve been looking out for people’s reactions on the show, but to be honest, there’s not much out there. However, I did find a rather snotty discussion on channel 4’s forum regarding how “vulgar” this particular show and other “profit for property” shows are; I quote:

I think “vulgar” is an excellent way of describing these “profit from property” programmes.

Really, you do? The thought of people trying to make money through property- you’re right, it’s DISGUSTING! And you know that Gordan Ramsey guy, he should burn in hell for exploiting the catering industry by profiting from a chain of expensive restaurants that serve up pretentiously small sized dishes. Absolutely vulgar, dear chap!

Another quote:

Well I’m glad I’m no the only one. I just find it sad that there are people who can’t afford a home to live in yet we still get programmes about buying houses to make money from.

Lady, some people can’t afford TVs. Should we stop television? Some people can’t afford food, should we ban food chains from profiting? It’s not sad that there are documentaries about profiting from property, it’s sad that people can’t afford homes and/or food, period.

Amongst the screeching and whimpering, there was a particular issue that was being discussed that I found quite interesting. Actually, wasn’t actually a discussion per’se, it was more of a bitch-fest where people complained about the concept of the show:

Take all your English cash to somewhere people earn less money and push up the prices there so they can’t afford them. Even worse than doing it in your own country..

It’s a moral issue which I’d rather not get too involved with, because I’m not sure where I stand. However, I suspect there may be a lot of hypocrites out there. Do these people also frown upon anyone that invests in property abroad? If so, they must be VERY bitter people, since it’s a growing fad amongst the Brits. And if they don’t have a problem with every “exotic investor”, their moral stand is grey. I would bet my bottom dollar on the fact that at least one of their friend’s has a nice little holiday villa somewhere in Europe.

Unfortunately, Sarah Beeny received a lot of negative feedback for associating herself with such a project:

Yes, I normally like Sarah Beeny but putting her name to this leaves an unpleasant taste in the mouth. I will not be watching.

Sarah Beeny is normally one of the better presenters. I was horrified when I heard the adverts for this show. I won’t be watching!

Rather OTT, if you ask me. Sarah Beeny is a property guru; property is her career. Heaven forbid she’s presenting a documentary on a huge property sector- investing abroad for profit. I don’t agree with sweatshops, but I probably still own items of clothing that were produced in sweatshops. It’s just a harsh reality of life. It’s not going to help if I stop wearing clothes…

I think “exploiting” is a harsh word in this circumstance. If you think it’s exploitation to profit from a foreign country in the property market, then you’re probably being hypocritical. Most products/services in the UK profit from someone less fortunate.

So, have you guys been watching the programme? What are your thoughts? Did the programme help you? Useful tips? Inspirational? Are you offended by it?