Where's the fun in buying a pristine property that you can move straight into? From crumbling ceilings to decaying walls, these bargain fixer-uppers may look a little scary, but just think of the satisfaction when you whip them into shape. Take a look inside these incredible project homes currently available around the world...

Built around 1860, this late-Victorian house has seen better days, however, it could make a wonderful home for anyone brave enough to take it on. Located in the well-connected business district of Scotland Neck, a quaint North Carolina town, this period property is packed with features but needs a lot of attention to restore it to its former glory...

Inside, there’s a grand entrance hall with a beautiful stained bead-board ceiling and original carved bannisters. Throughout the 2,900-square-foot house, there are wood floors and decorative woodwork, including the door frame pictured here. As you can see from the damaged walls and falling down ceilings, the property is in need of structural repairs to get her up to scratch. 

This historic house has all the charming features you could hope for including two fireplaces, which could become lovely focal points once properly restored. Currently the four-bedroom, two-bathroom house has no heating system so you’ll need to install one to stay cosy in the winter.

The kitchen walls and ceiling have been damaged by rot caused after a leaking roof but once renovated this will be a fabulous space - just check out that vintage sink! Perfect for an ambitious fixer-upper with boundless creative vision, there are no restrictions on how you restore this home so you can transform it however you like.

Love this? Step inside another historic North Carolina home that's been renovated to perfection!

This old farmhouse dating from 1920 is in a peaceful rural setting and comes with three acres of land. It needs a complete overhaul but the rewards could be great for anyone willing to give it some love.

The old house currently has just one bedroom but the rooms are spacious enough to function as extra bedrooms or could be knocked through to create a large master suite. They all have the original sash windows and there are panelled doors and wooden floors throughout. The cherry on the cake is the fireplace downstairs, which could easily be made beautiful again.

Downstairs in the 2,700-square-foot house, there's a roomy hallway with an original wooden staircase and decorative carved bannisters. The walls are currently clad in two-tone wood that could either be repapered or restored to let the beauty of this natural material shine through.

This porch will be a lovely place to relax once spruced up and the overgrown foliage is trimmed back. Despite its quiet location, the house is just a few minutes from the interstate so is well connected to nearby towns and cities.

 

This amazing historic house dates from 1894 and was the home of one of the six families who originally settled in Betty’s Creek Valley in northern Georgia. Positioned in a lush mountain valley setting, the sale price includes more than three acres of land and a giant Chinese fir tree. 

This is one of the three bedrooms, which is currently painted in a striking shade of pink. Whether you repaint it in a more serene colour or go for something vibrant, this will be a lovely room once revamped.

The living room has a large brick fireplace attached to the stone chimney you can see on the outside of the house. There’s a large sash window plus a smaller one so there’s plenty of light flooding in. Once restored, the wooden floors will add rustic style.

A whole new floor is needed in this room, which may once have been the kitchen, and the walls are in desperate need of repair but it’s easy to see that this room will be a lovely light space once renovated. The property comes with a barn and two cellars.

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Built in 1898, this spacious five-bedroom late Victorian farmhouse has been reduced in price for a quick sale so it could be a bargain for the right buyer. It needs new everything, including plumbing and electrics, but is crying out to be transformed into a fabulous family home.

All the rooms have fireplaces, like the one in this reception room, and hardwood floors in need of refinishing. There are also original sash windows – the two tall ones here maximise the natural light coming into the room.

This old bathroom – one of two in the house – has real character but will need to be completely ripped out and replaced to create the luxurious room this house deserves. The roof may also need replacing, which should be factored into the renovation costs.

The spacious landing is in relatively good condition but still needs a lot of work to restore it to its former glory. It has the original carved bannisters and a colourful stained glass window at the top of the stairs.

This pretty two-storey house dating from 1900 is on a spacious corner plot and has four bedrooms. It needs lots of work but at just $25,000 (£20k) it could prove to be a wonderful investment. Located near to downtown Brighton, a small city around 40 miles south-west of Iowa City, this house is perfect for a family to make their own.

Inside, there are lovely big sash windows in this reception room and decorative architraves and skirting boards. The wooden floor currently has a flower-patterned covering but once it’s stripped and refinished it will be a beautiful feature of this grand room.

There are one and a half bathrooms in this 2,400-square-foot house, including this large family bath that has double-aspect windows and a cute freestanding tub that could be salvaged and reused. Much like the rest of the house, the walls and floor are in need of repair but there’s easily enough space to install double sinks and a separate shower cubicle, too.

The fabulous stairway and landing is currently a calming shade of green, which adds to the sense of space and light, and there are more original features in the wooden bannister and door surrounds. Downstairs, the existing kitchen currently joins onto another room – together they could create a large kitchen-diner at the heart of the home. 

Love this? Take some refurb tips from Chip and Joanna Gaines' best fixer upper projects

The Nelson Homestead dates from around 1836 and has been designated as one of the top 10 most important endangered sites in Maryland so it desperately needs a buyer who is willing and able to restore it and bring it back to life. Set on over nine acres of land, there are meadows, marshlands and woods to explore – perfect for escaping the rat race and building a new life in the countryside. 

This historically important building is identified as a Federal-period telescope house and about 95% of the original woodwork inside is still intact, like the beautiful wooden panels, doors and architraves you can see in this reception room. The centrepiece of the room is a lovely fireplace surrounded by raised panel wainscoting and over-mantel panelling complete with a layer of tiger-maple graining.

The current owners of the house are looking for a buyer who will restore this house sympathetically – such as fixing the broken wooden floors and preserving the original sash windows. The house is facing a real threat from a dilapidated asphalt shingle roof, masonry damage, and foundation rot. The Lower Eastern Shore area is prone to heavy storms and the house could suffer irreparable damage if someone doesn't make the necessary repairs soon.

In addition to the lovely fireplaces found throughout the house, there's a lot of outdoor space included too. There’s a covered porch that runs along the entire length of one side of the house, a small outbuilding and even an old family cemetery in the grounds. 

Here's one for the Francophiles! This beautiful old 17th-century orangerie, which originally formed part of the chateau nearby, has 16 rooms and is located in the medieval commune of Duras, in the Lot-et-Garonne department within the Nouvelle Aquitaine region. Complete with a private entrance, this grand old house has been made structurally sound but it needs extensive renovations to turn it into the fabulous residence it has the potential to be.

Inside this enormous house, the ground floor has eight rooms, an entrance, hallway and access to the cellar. The first large reception room has rustic stone walls, a wonderful fireplace and chimney, and there are floor-to-ceiling glass doors with windows above that let in plenty of natural light. Best of all, the original beamed wooden ceiling is intact and in a fair condition. 

In another of the downstairs rooms, the fireplace and walls need a lot of work to become habitable but lots of the original features still exist. The Orangerie is set up for guests and has two bedrooms with bathrooms on the ground floor and a further six bedrooms upstairs.

This stone outbuilding comes with the property, which could be turned into a fabulous holiday home to generate income that could go towards the renovation costs. Within the four-acre grounds, there’s also a lake with a freshwater spring on the grounds and the river Dropt is nearby. Shops, restaurants and markets are also within easy reach.

Looking for your next project? Why not buy a fixer-upper from Chip and Joanna Gaines?

Maesgwendraeth Farm is a crumbling collection of buildings on 1.6 acres of land and would make a fantastic renovation project for an ambitious buyer. There are beautiful country views surrounding it and even river frontage for fishing or boating, plus access to the property is via a grand private driveway.

Inside the main house, a seriously dilapidated staircase shows there's much work needed to make this a liveable home, but on the positive side, there's lots of space. There’s a lovely original window at the top of the stairs, which lets light pour into what could become a welcoming entranceway. Also on the ground floor, there's a kitchen/dining room with dual-aspect sash windows, a fireplace and hearth plus a pantry and downstairs bathroom.

This reception room currently has a 1960s fireplace so you may want to replace it with a more traditional one or restore it to its original state. The house needs gutting completely – every wall, floor and ceiling of this property needs repairs – but with four bedrooms, it could be a wonderful family home in the country.

The house comes with a number of outbuildings, including the former pigsty, a large salting room with original flagstone floor, a garage and kennels. There’s also the option to buy an extra 5.4 acres of land – maybe you could even start your own smallholding with livestock!

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This tumbledown farmhouse is nestled in 80 acres of land located in the spectacular Byron Bay hinterland – the perfect project if you want to live the good life. While the dilapidated house is on the brink of collapse, its hilltop location enjoys fantastic views of the surrounding countryside, making it a very desirable plot in a sought-after part of Australia.

Inside the weatherboard house, things aren't quite as bad as they first seem. There are large rooms including a living room, kitchen and three bedrooms downstairs. Original features abound throughout, including hardwood floors and stained glass feature windows. The high ceilings add to the sense of space.

Talk about an extreme fixer-upper! The floor covering in this bedroom can be removed to reveal the original wood floor and, once the walls and ceilings are restored and painted, it could make a cosy boudoir. There's currently no bathroom in the house either, so plumbing will have to be one of the first jobs the new owner tackles.

But the one thing this house has got in abundance is natural beauty. The property includes a huge tropical fruit orchard where you can grow your own mangoes, bananas, citrus fruit, jackfruit and avocados. You can also find swimming holes and a stone quarry on the land, which overlooks Nightcap National Park. We'd love to know who's brave enough to take this project on! Even Chip and Joanna Gaines would surely think twice.

With over 2,400 square feet of interior living space, this large three-storey house would make a lovely family home or could be turned into two apartments to let if you’re looking for an investment. The house is near a town called Zeitz on the White Elster river in the Burgenlandkreis district of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It's surrounded by rural farmland, woods and lakes, so this house could be a lovely base for a second home in the country. 

With three floors and a loft, this house is practically a mansion! The bones of the house are in a good condition to renovate and little details, like this arched recess above a double window, give the rooms added character. There are even original panelled doors and tiles remaining from what looks like an old fireplace. Judging by the visible wiring, the house will need new electrics before anyone can move in.

This bedroom has definitely seen better days but with its own ensuite bathroom as well as a sink in the corner, it might make a perfect guest room. The peeling wallpaper indicates that there may be a damp problem to fix in here and the walls, floors and ceilings need stripping and possibly replastering before any decorating can take place. 

You’ll need to completely rip out and remodel this bathroom but despite the evident work need, it’s spacious and could easily fit a separate shower cubicle, too. Best of all, at less than $23,698 (£19k), there should be enough money in the budget to turn this tired old building into a stunning home.

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