To think the budgets on these home improvement programmes are lies.

[Alwaysaware]

Just watching homes under the hammer and thinking how lovely it would be to refurbish my home like the couple in the programme did. The house before was damp, required full refurbishment throughout etc. They installed a new kitchen, bathroom, knocked walls down, stripped every wall back to the plaster, redecorated completely, repointed the walls, new roof, new UPVC windows and doors.
They spent just 20k!

I know they can do the redecoration by themselves so the labour costs aren’t there for that but surely bathrooms, Kitchens, roofs and windows all require external help?

I need two new bathrooms, a large kitchen and all new windows and have thought it maybe would be 30k to do all that - is it really doable for less?

Where are these bargains from? How realistic is it to do the work these amounts?

On Homes Under the Hammer, they're usually doing them up for rent or resale so they are buying cheap bathrooms and kitchens. I wouldn't want them to do that kind of work in my own house.

Other than hooking up the gas/electric, you can install a kitchen yourself.

Agree they’re usually cheap renovations to either sell on quickly or rent.

We bought decent (mid or top range) cabinets and induction hob, oven, dishwasher, laminate worktops, sink and tap on offer, mid price extractor from Magnet got 3 sets of drawers etc came to £7k plus £1k fitting though our builders. Bathroom refurb £2k.

You set your budget then strip out what you can't afford!

It all depends on how good your DIY skills are.
My DF or my DH could both do most stuff inside a house (including electric stuff you aren't allowed to do these days).
Both would need help for roofs and windows though.

They are also cheaper as no-one is living in the properties at the time of refurbishing, so that they can get on and do the job and not have to worry about personal items around the house.

They also would be using cheaper suppliers, so Benchmarx instead of magnet for example.

Trade accounts are about 50% discount on retail prices!!! I reckon if I rocked up to Magnet the quote would be nearly double what I paid.

surely bathrooms, Kitchens, roofs and windows all require external help

My ExH was pretty good with diy and installed a bathroom and kitchen himself. The bathroom suite cost around £400 (this was 15 years ago!). The labour on top, had we paid for it to have been installed, probably would have easily doubled the cost! Any of the jobs you mention could be done yourself if you know what you're doing. Me? I can just about hang a picture...

Well we will always be paying through the nose then sadly as neither DH nor myself can do more than paint. And even that we don’t do well.

I think most of those people have a network of suppliers and contacts and also buy ex display or stuff from eBay.

When they’re doing it for themselves, they upgrade and spend much more.