The annexe to this old smithy is a one-bedroom arrangement with an upstairs sitting room to absorb the rural views. There’s no kitchen but a door spirits you into the dining room of the main house where you can dine on someone else’s labours. There are four bedrooms and three receptions, many quaintly beamed in this portion and a number of outbuildings in the large grounds, including stables servicing the paddock. Sale price: £375,000.
H&H King, 01228 810 799 Photograph: H&H King
The thatched barn has been converted into a dramatic cottage with a vaulted living area 29 ft long with a mezzanine level, two bedrooms and a galley kitchen so occupants can live in total independence. The 16th century main house sits in 1.5 acres with rolling green views and no near neighbours. There are three bedrooms and two bathrooms and a large utility room and store room to supplement the kitchen. It’s as quaint inside as out. Sale price: £495,000.
Fine & Country, 01769 575797 Photograph: Fine & Country
In the half acre of garden is a detached building housing a long, narrow bedroom, shower room and bathroom and, next door to it, a home office and cloakroom. In the main house there is a choice of two staircases serving the four bedrooms (if you pick the wrong one you’ll have to barge through bedroom two to reach your berth). An inglenook fireplace and beams in the two receptions illustrate the cottage’s vintage. Sale price: £539,950.
Mullocks Wells, 01799 520520 Photograph: Mullocks Wells
Down the garden in the garage block is a one-bedroom cottage with its own small plot. Residents will need to be petite since the living room has restricted head height, but the three receptions and conservatory in the main four-bedroom house should provide emergency respite. Victorian graces abound in this latter home in the form of ornate fireplaces and bay windows. The village houses an aviation museum with a landing strip so it would help if occasional low-flying aircraft excited you. Sale price: £274,950.
Robert Bell & Co, 01507 522222 Photograph: Robert Bell & Co
The two gites beside the main house, one one-bedroomed and one with three, can either help pay your mortgage as holiday lets or house extraneous family. A berth in this three-acre plot near Charroux in the French departement of Vienne will be especially desirable thanks to the newly installed swimming pool in the grounds which are dotted with fruit and nut trees. A detached barn could provide a garage or further accommodation. Core family can disperse among three bedrooms in the main house, one of which has restricted head height. Sale price: £248,647.
Leggett, 08700 11 51 51 Photograph: Leggett
