Surry Hills bargain renovator terrace comes with a hole for a toilet and a hose for a shower

Fancy a beautiful old gem of a historic three-bedroom terrace house right in the centre of Surry Hills?

There are only a few drawbacks: it doesn’t actually have a bathroom, just a tap with a hose attached for showers; in place of the toilet is a simple hole in the ground; and, well, yes, it’s in a state of complete, utter, appalling disrepair.

But apart from that, it’s likely to be a snip of a catch for just around $1.5 million, based on comparable recent sales of unrenovated terraces nearby.

SOLD - $1,645,000

13 Chapman Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010

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“It’s pretty unliveable in its current state but it certainly is a renovator’s dream,” said agent Nicholas Murray of Murray Property. “It’s very different, very out-there.

“When we first went into it, there were pieces of concrete falling on our heads from the ceiling, which was falling apart. But we’ve now had a builder in to make it safe, so it’s open for inspection, and no one will be in any danger.”

The house, at 13 Chapman Street, is a deceased estate that’s being sold by the trustees, so there has been no price guide set. Murray thinks there had been a single man living there for the past 40 to 50 years, and obviously someone who was happy  to do without modern day luxuries, like a flushing toilet.

Fellow agent Michael Murray, his brother, says entering the home was like stepping back into another era, a time quite possibly when it was first built in the early 1800s.

“We even have a floor plan which doesn’t show anything like a shower,” he said. 

“But there were some old newspaper cuttings preserved in a plastic box left inside, and one described the area as the ‘Paris end’ of Surry Hills.

“It was such an experience going inside the first time. Along with the big chunks of concrete dropping down – you needed a hard hat – the floor upstairs didn’t feel too strong. The builder has fortified it all but for openings, we’ll say only two people should be allowed upstairs at a time.”

While the house has crumbling brickwork, broken plaster on the walls, damaged timber flooring and a broken window at the front, it undeniably has its charms, too. 

There are no fewer than three original fireplaces in the house, one of them upstairs, and a balcony with traditional iron lace. There’s also rear access from Kendall Lane to the back.

Despite the work that needs to be done, hard-core renovators are unlikely to be deterred from transforming the two-storey, wide-fronted terrace. 

Inspired by TV home shows like The Block – now in its 20th season – renovators are drawn to homes that need a spot of TLC, or a lot of TLC.

This June, a dilapidated timber shack in Enfield, at 21 The Parade, described as “uninhabitable”, sold at auction for $2.41 million, despite needing at least half a million dollars spent on repairs. In October last year, the graffitied and rubble-filled shell of a broken-down house at 52 Juliett Street, Enmore, sold for $1.725 million.

SOLD - $2,410,000

21 The Parade, Enfield NSW 2136

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Just last month, Michael Murray sold a tiny, completely unrenovated studio apartment at 73/27 Ithaca Road, Elizabeth Bay, for $525,000 – a record for the building.

“Renovators get very excited by homes like these,” he said. “They see a blank canvas and what the place could become.”

This house, close to the end of a cul-de-sac off Phelps Street, and with plenty of cafes and restaurants and the light rail nearby, is to go under the hammer on September 14.

And just to show that everyone has their standards, there’s still a defiant notice on display to the front of the house: No junk mail.