{"id":2672,"date":"2015-07-30T14:19:16","date_gmt":"2015-07-30T14:19:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/the-5-worst-grand-designs-builds\/"},"modified":"2018-10-05T12:47:00","modified_gmt":"2018-10-05T12:47:00","slug":"the-5-worst-grand-designs-builds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/the-5-worst-grand-designs-builds\/","title":{"rendered":"The 5 Worst Grand Designs Builds"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<!-- SEO Ultimate Plus (https:\/\/seoultimateplus.com) - Code Inserter module -->\n<script async>(function(s,u,m,o,j,v){j=u.createElement(m);v=u.getElementsByTagName(m)[0];j.async=1;j.src=o;j.dataset.sumoSiteId='b68b392479b5981b8acf46565e9fe32a0734fc21a1f7c1e60121eaa6ca1a1c64';v.parentNode.insertBefore(j,v)})(window,document,'script','\/\/load.sumo.com\/');<\/script>\n<!-- \/SEO Ultimate Plus -->\n\n<p><!-- [if gte mso 9]&gt; 0 0 1 1060 6042 The Little House Company 50 14 7088 14.0 &lt;![endif]--><!-- [if gte mso 9]&gt; Normal 0 false false false EN-GB JA X-NONE &lt;![endif]--><!-- [if gte mso 9]&gt; &lt;![endif]--><!-- [if gte mso 10]&gt; \/* Style Definitions *\/table.MsoNormalTable{mso-style-name:\"Table Normal\";mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;mso-style-noshow:yes;mso-style-priority:99;mso-style-parent:\"\";mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;mso-para-margin:0cm;mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;mso-pagination:widow-orphan;font-size:10.0pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\";}&lt;![endif]--><!--StartFragment--><\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><\/h2>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\">The Most Troubled, Disastrous &amp; Downright Dreadful Grand Designs<\/h1>\n<p>Whilst watching <a href=\"http:\/\/www.channel4.com\/programmes\/grand-designs\">Grand Designs<\/a> recently, I considered how rewarding it would be to build my dream home. Although, creating your own utopia sometimes comes at a heavy price. Here are 5 of the worst Grand Designs builds, which left their owners cursing the day they met Kevin McCloud.<\/p>\n<h2>Thames Barge<\/h2>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\">In 2007, two social workers, keen to leave their small <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\"  href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/london\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/london;http:\/\/sws.geonames.org\/2643743\/;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.04jpl;http:\/\/yago-knowledge.org\/resource\/London;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/London\" >London<\/a> flat, decided to convert their 100-foot long barge, into a <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\" title=\"houses\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/house\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/house;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.03jm5;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/House\" >house<\/a>. What could possibly go wrong?<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">For starters, the appearance of the boat-house was simply weird. Large corrugated iron roofing jutted up from the barge into the air, creating quite an eyesore. Whilst this didn&#8217;t look\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">very pretty,<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0the couple should be praised for using recycled materials. This noble and intriguing idea seemed a little half-baked and they ended up spending \u00a380,000 on this <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\" title=\"projects\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/public-housing\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/public_housing;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.0184vk;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Public_housing\" >project<\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">Presenter Kevin McCloud was sceptical from the onset, saying, &#8220;The project was compromised from the beginning.They were not prepared properly from the beginning and were relying on happenstance. I didn&#8217;t want to do that one from the start.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">As the project ran into cash problems, the couple eventually abandoned it, and left the barge moored on the Thames estuary. Sadly, four years later, the unfinished barge was vandalised and cut adrift. It was later found washed up on an <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\"  href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/essex\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/essex;http:\/\/yago-knowledge.org\/resource\/Essex;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.02ly_;http:\/\/sws.geonames.org\/2649889\/;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Essex\" >Essex<\/a> beach, with too much <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\" title=\"Property damage\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/property-damage\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/property_damage;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.0clxv;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Property_damage\" >damage<\/a> to consider refurbishing it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><img src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2011\/02\/02\/article-1352749-0D000D21000005DC-100_634x405.jpg\" alt=\"\" align=\"none\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">image source: www.dailymail.co.uk<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">Kevin McCloud referred to it as a <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/money\/2011\/apr\/09\/grand-designs-kevin-mccloud\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">floating scrapheap challenge. <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\">Church Conversion<\/h2>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><img src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2011\/01\/18\/article-1348271-0CD02354000005DC-38_634x337.jpg\" alt=\"\" align=\"none\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">image source: www.dailymail.co.uk<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">When builder Dean Marks decided to convert a dilapidated 18<\/span><\/span><sup style=\"font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;\">th<\/sup><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"> century church into a new <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\" title=\"homes\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/housing-estate\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/housing_estate;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.01rtvp;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Housing_estate\" >home<\/a>, he\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">could hardly<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0have guessed what he had in store.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">He endured a four-and-a-half year struggle to convince Sandwell Council to allow him building <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\" title=\"Planning permission\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/planning-permission\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/planning_permission;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.01zn89;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Planning_permission\" >permission<\/a>. After starting building work in 2005 he ran into a series of problems, with\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">tension leading<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0to the break-up of his marriage. If that wasn&#8217;t enough he also had\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">two heart<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0attacks, and cited the stress of the project as the reason. He also suffered a serious shoulder injury.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">He may have questioned whether God was trying to tell him not to convert the church. Dean Marks powered on regardless and eventually completed the conversion. He introduced a\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">swimming pool<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0and the completed aesthetic wasn&#8217;t to everyone&#8217;s taste. Kevin McCloud said, &#8216;It broke my heart to see so much of the character, the integrity of\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">this place<span style=\"line-height: 115%;\"><\/span>\u00a0disappear, to be replaced by some pretty hideous features and a rather clunky layout.&#8217;<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">It wasn&#8217;t all doom and gloom though, as the church he bought in 1999 for \u00a312,750, is now worth around \u00a31.3 million. <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\">9 Storey Water Tower<\/h2>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\">One of the most adventurous Grand Designs builds was a 9 <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\" title=\"floors\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/storey\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/storey;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.02vk6kk;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Storey\" >storey<\/a> water tower in London. This was a key historical site of a Lambeth workhouse in Kennington.<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">This grade II listed <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\"  href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/building\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/building;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.0cgh4;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Building\" >building<\/a> was a logistical nightmare from start to finish. It was bought for \u00a3380,000 and a further \u00a32 million was spent converting it into a stylish family <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\" title=\"homes\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/home\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/home;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.01l0mw;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Home\" >home<\/a>. The entrepreneurial owner got into serious debt and resorted to borrowing \u00a395,000 from his grandmother to finish the project.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">Whilst the build was completed, and looked spectacular, the owner had had enough and decided to sell the building.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\">The Curve in Brighton<\/h2>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><img src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2010\/03\/01\/article-1254568-086F1F34000005DC-314_468x297.jpg\" alt=\"\" align=\"none\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">image source: www.dailymail.co.uk<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\">This project is another example of an owners passion and perseverance leading to serious health problems.<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">Barry Surtees eventually created a building that looked truly spectacular, modernist and unsurprisingly had\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">a curved<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0shape. The <a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\"  href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/brighton\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/brighton;http:\/\/sws.geonames.org\/2654710\/;http:\/\/yago-knowledge.org\/resource\/Brighton;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.0d6yv;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Brighton\" >Brighton<\/a> based project ran into a series of problems, including bank issues and a serious supply issue relating to the 360 feet of curved glass he needed.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">Refusing to be beaten by the project, Surtees suffered a serious heart attack and went on to have 5 heart bypasses. This was in addition to the home next door he occupied during the build catching fire.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">Eventually he had had enough, and is now looking to sell this spectacular home for around \u00a33.5 million.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\">16th Century Guildhall Conversion<\/h2>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><img src=\"http:\/\/www.abc.net.au\/tv\/common\/images\/publicity\/1132_1_gran_90.jpg\" alt=\"\" align=\"none\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">image source: www.abc.net.au<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">Giving up their life abroad, Simon and Jill Bennett returned to Suffolk to purchase two timber framed barns,\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">which they<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0<a class=\"wl-entity-page-link\" title=\"Planning\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/planning\/\" data-id=\"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/entity\/planning;http:\/\/rdf.freebase.com\/ns\/m.0217bt;http:\/\/dbpedia.org\/resource\/Planning\" >planned<\/a> to convert into a contemporary house.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">However, one of the barns turned out to be one of the smallest surviving medieval guild halls in the country. They then faced the challenge of how to convert a single storey sixteenth century barn into a modern home.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">They struggled to find a balance between maintaining the medieval appearance and bringing it into the 21<sup>st\u00a0<\/sup>century. To the dismay of Kevin McCloud they even concreted over the stained glass windows. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">Although this build wasn&#8217;t the\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">most disastrous<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0it fell far short of the potential it had, and\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 18px;\">didn&#8217;t<\/span><span style=\"line-height: 115%;\">\u00a0really work at all.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/advertise-your-property\">Selling your very own grand design?\u00a0Advertise for FREE on TheHouseShop today!<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Not quite ready to invest in your own Grand Design just yet?<\/h3>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-to-rent\">Find thousands of properties to rent<\/a> from letting agents and landlords on TheHouseShop.com!<\/h3>\n<p><!--EndFragment-->[vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator][vc_column_text]\n<h2>Find Properties for Sale in London and the Surrounding Area:<\/h2>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_column_text]\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/barnet\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Barnet<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/bexley\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Bexley<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/brent\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Brent<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/bromley\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Bromley<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/camden\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Camden<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/chelsea\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Chelsea<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/croydon\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Croydon<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/ealing\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Ealing<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/enfield\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Enfield<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/fulham\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Fulham<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/greenwich\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Greenwich<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/hackney\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Hackney<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_column_text]\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/hammersmith\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Hammersmith<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/haringey\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Haringey<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/harrow\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Harrow<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/havering\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Havering<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/hillingdon\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Hillingdon<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/hounslow\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Hounslow<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/islington\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Islington<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/kensington\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Kensington<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/kingston\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Kingston<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/lambeth\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Lambeth<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/lewisham\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Lewisham<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/london\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>London<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_column_text]\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/merton\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Merton<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/newham\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Newham<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/redbridge\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Redbridge<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/richmond\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Richmond<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/southwark\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Southwark<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/sutton\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Sutton<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/tower-hamlets\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Tower Hamlets<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/waltham-forest\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Waltham Forest<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/wandsworth\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Wandsworth<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-for-sale\/greater-london\/westminster\"><span style=\"color: #1e3b5d;\">Property for Sale<\/span> <span style=\"color: #f58350;\"><strong>Westminster<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Most Troubled, Disastrous &amp; Downright Dreadful Grand Designs Whilst watching Grand Designs recently, I considered how rewarding it would be to build my dream home. Although, creating your own utopia sometimes comes at a heavy price. Here are 5<span class=\"ellipsis\">&hellip;<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/the-5-worst-grand-designs-builds\/\">Read more &#8250;<\/a><\/div>\n<p><!-- end of .read-more --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":4903,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wl_entities_gutenberg":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","spay_email":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[41,39,232,231],"wl_entity_type":[602],"modified_by":null,"_wl_alt_label":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/grand-designs.png","wl:entity_url":"http:\/\/data.wordlift.io\/wl0502\/post\/the_5_worst_grand_designs_builds","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2672"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/41"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2672"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2672\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18278,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2672\/revisions\/18278"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4903"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2672"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2672"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2672"},{"taxonomy":"wl_entity_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thehouseshop.com\/property-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wl_entity_type?post=2672"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}