1x1 - Martin

September 18, 2013

With house prices out of the reach of many people and banks refusing to lend, buying a home in the UK is becoming an impossible dream. So a few brave but ordinary souls are trailblazing what could be the solution for all of us - trying to build their own house from scratch. Architectural journalist and critic Kieran Long and award-winning architect Piers Taylor are following self-builders as they take on the biggest gamble of their lives. Kieran and Piers will try to help them create the house they've longed for. But all have less than £100k to spend, little or no experience and life savings on the line - it won't be easy. Martin Whyment is desperate to get on the property ladder. A young man running his own pizza van business, he has saved enough money to buy a backland site in the centre of Leeds to build himself his first home. But when the bank refuses him a mortgage, Martin is left with only one option - to ask his retired parents to lend him their own hard-earned savings.