Empty Home Lead Helps Sally Buy a Car

Sally with her new car outside the Darlington property she originally reported to Empty Property Hunters.

When Sally spotted a long-term empty property near her home in Darlington, she took a photograph, noted the address and submitted it to Empty Property Hunters.

It was a simple action that would eventually help bring an unused home back into occupation and provide Sally with some extremely well-timed extra money.

After receiving Sally’s lead, our team researched the property, traced the owner and successfully agreed to purchase it.

EPH founder Simon Taylor then called Sally to let her know the good news: because her lead had resulted in us buying the property, she was owed a Hunter’s reward.

Sally could hardly believe the timing. Her car had broken down only a few weeks earlier and, after looking into the cost of the repairs, she had discovered it simply wasn’t worth fixing. She suddenly needed to find the money for a replacement and then Simon called.

Sally said:

“I couldn’t believe it when Simon told me I was going to receive the money. My old car had just died and wasn’t worth repairing, so the timing couldn’t have been better. I only took a photograph and sent in the address, I never imagined it would end up helping me buy another car.”

Sally used her reward towards her new wheels and returned to the property she originally submitted to have her photograph taken alongside them.

Simon Taylor, founder of Empty Property Hunters, said:

“Calling Sally was a brilliant moment. When I explained that we had purchased the property she reported and that we owed her money, she told me her car had just packed up. You couldn’t have planned the timing any better.

“Sally helped us identify a long-term empty home that may otherwise have remained unused, and her reward made a real difference when she needed it most. It shows what can happen from simply noticing an empty property and taking a few moments to tell us about it.”

Empty Property Hunters works with members of the public across England to identify homes that appear to have been unoccupied for a prolonged period. We then attempt to trace the owners and explore whether they may be interested in selling, allowing the property to be renovated and returned to use.

Anyone who submits a qualifying property receives an initial Hunter’s reward of £20. If EPH subsequently purchases the property, the person who reported it also qualifies for a much larger finders fee - 1% of the purchase price.

So, if there’s a long-term empty property in your neighbourhood, it could be worth sending it our way.

After all, you never know what your next walk around the block might help you buy.