You know there's going to be a lot of work to do during a house renovation when you walk in for the first time and find plaster on the floor - and it used to be on the wall.
This was the scenario facing BBC's Homes Under The Hammer presenter Martin Roberts as he ventured into this end of terrace in the valleys.
He should have known it was going to be a rough ride as soon as he turned up at the front door of this auction property in Cwm.
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Because the Welsh weather had just broken his umbrella and the glass in the front door was smashed and making pretty patterns on the pavement - not a great start.
And inside the horror of surely Wales' wettest wall was waiting for Martin; the plaster had all fallen off and was on the floor and there was water literally running down the exposed stone.
Martin puts his hand on the wall, while stepping over the fallen plaster, and it comes back soggy - yuk. He says: "Obviously it's in a bit of a state - what is going on with this wall? It's the end wall of the house and it's absolutely sopping wet to the point where the plaster has dropped off!"
Martin is a bit shocked. He says: "Obviously it's in a bit of a state - what is going on with this wall? It's the end wall of the house and it's absolutely sopping wet to the point where the plaster has dropped off!"
But Martin is in a positive mood and can actually see the silver lining of this wet wall rain cloud.
He says: "Do you know what? I reckon that's done us a favour because what it's revealed is this traditional Welsh stone wall and, I don't know about you, but isn't that beautiful?!
"I know it needs cleaning up but I think I would make that a feature of this room, so you've got this massive room, and then this huge, great feature there, which really links the house with the location. I think that (wall) is gorgeous!"
A quick inspection of the external side of the end wall of this end of terrace and the reason, at least initially, becomes clear; the render has blown, creating large cracks and exposing the bricks beneath and demolishing the mortar in between them too.
But Martin is not perturbed at all, in fact his reaction is quite the reverse. His view of this soggy house is 'wow' and not just because of the exposed stone wall.
Yup, Martin is smitten, he smiles and glows, saying: "The house is surpassing expectations!"
The house has seduced him because a previous owner has removed the dividing wall between the two reception rooms, something he loves to see and often recommends, to create one super sized, open-plan space.
Martin says: "This is a surprise, I'm often talking about making simple terraces like this open-plan, and here's a classic example of what happens when you do - this amazing space!
"Although it's a relatively small house you come in here and it feels like you've got so much room to breathe and it's absolutely fantastic."
Even the rather drab courtyard garden on a dull and damp day in the valleys can't dampen Martin's enthusiasm for this property.
He chirps: "It's not huge, but plenty big enough to have a BBQ if the weather improves." You've got to love this man's optimism.
There's a small kitchen at the rear that is trying to impress Martin with relatively new and neutral units but sadly, as there are signs of damp, Martin thinks ripping out and starting again once the damp has been treated is the way forward here.
Upstairs the three good-sized bedrooms and an upstairs bathroom cements Martin's affection for the home.
He says: "I'm blown away! It's much better than I expected, great stuff! So it's got a few drawbacks, but there's still a lot going for this property.
"Even with the wall water feature, this house offers a good opportunity to make a nice home or rental opportunity."
The house in Blaenau Gwent went to auction for a guide price of £40,000 and was bought by brothers Simon, who works in legal services, and electrician Tristan, for £52,750 as a house to renovate and sell.
The duo had a budget of around £10,000 and a timescale of two months once the house had dried out, so an estimated four months in total.
They planned on keeping the stone wall exposed as a feature and even thought angling some new spotlights at it to highlight its unique texture was a great idea - once it was dry of course.
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The programme returned six months later to inspect what the brothers had achieved.
The rendering on the end wall has been repaired and the front door now has glass and the whole facade has been painted a smart grey.
But the level of damp was much worse than the brothers anticipated, with water penetrating down the whole of the end wall.
The plaster had to be removed all the way up, the kitchen needed attention for damp and the decor started again, so it's not a surprise to learn that the project went significantly over budget.
A shiny new kitchen, posher looking bathroom and new white and grey decor throughout, including carpets, brought the interior design scheme up to a bright and fresh reselling standard.
The brothers spent £17,000 getting the house to the standard where it was dry, water-tight, damp free and looking smart.
The estate agent returns and values the house at £89,950 making the boys a profit in the region of £20,000, so rental is an option that might make them more money in the long run based on an annual rental yield of around 7.5%. At the time of filming, the brothers had not decided the future of this valleys house.
And what of the stone wall that Martin loved so much?
It's now back under the plaster; it's hidden away and not the feature Martin was hoping to see.
Tristan explains that advice from local agents about the local demographic this house was going to be aimed at meant that plastering it was the preferred and more appropriate option.
Tristan says: "I personally loved it and I knew Martin very much liked it and my brother absolutely hated it.
"We talked to friends and family and got a feel from other people, talked to a few estate agents and they felt it was a little bit too much for the local area." Ummm, ok then.
Martin takes the bad news well, saying: "Awww, what a shame but you can't argue with people who know the local property market."
Would you have plastered the wall or left it exposed if this had been your auction property?
This story was in series 24, episode 12, currently still available to view on BBC iPlayer.
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