Snooping around

Property of the week: Mousehole, near Penzance, Cornwall. Right on the waterfront with views across the harbour to St Michael’s Mount, you can watch the fishing boats from the window seat beside the huge inglenook fireplace. There's also a sandy beach just below the front door where you can apply for a private mooring. Yours for £395,000.
Marshalls, 01736 366778. Photograph: Marshalls/Marshalls

Wreck of the week: Burley-in-Wharfedale, near Ilkley, West Yorkshire. So everything needs a proper overhaul and updating, and you’ll need to set aside £50,000 upwards, but it’s large - five bedrooms and cellars that could be expanded into. Elaborate plastering and fireplaces have also survived. Pick it up for a tidy £375,000.
Dacre, Son & Hartley, 01943 862131. Photograph: Dacre, Son & Hartley/Dacre, Son & Hartley

Take three: commuter idylls. Built in the 18th century by the Duke of Bridgewater, this cottage is in Water End, near Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire. It sits delectably on a river bank with views to a pretty, humpbacked bridge, and has two bedrooms. The £300,000 price tag is not excessive, but it is in need of renovation.
Strutt & Parker, 01727 840285. Photograph: Strutt & Parker/Strutt & Parker

Take three: commuter idylls. This three-bedroomed property offers a Thomas Hardy lifestyle in the pretty hamlet of Efford, six miles from Exeter. There are all the pre-requisites for the rural dream - beams, inglenooks, a bread oven - and a sizeable chunk of the county is laid out to lawn for your own private use. Yours for £495,000.
Jackson-Stops & Staff, 01392 214222. Photograph: Jackson-Stops & Staff/Jackson-Stops & Staff

Take three: commuter idylls. Once a village smithy, the rafters, handsome stonework and inglenooks are testament to its age. Inside, it’s on a grand scale - even the utility room is 19ft long - with three receptions, a kitchen/breakfast room, three bedrooms and two bath/shower rooms. Ignore the tartan carpets. Nerston, near East Kilbride, £325,000.
Corum, 0141 639 5888. Photograph: Corum/Corum