Snooping around

Property of the week: North Littleton, Evesham, Worcestershire. The kitchen is the tastiest part of this barn conversion with its vaulted ceiling, stained-glass window, web of beams, a double range cooker and solid beech work surfaces. Resulting banquets can be consumed on a decked terrace and digested in a choice of four bedrooms, or sweated off on the nearby north Cotswold escarpment. Ignore the petite garden. Cost: £575,000.
RA Bennett, 01386 765200. Photograph: RA Bennett

Wreck of the week: Settle, North Yorkshire. This basic Dales farmhouse has two bedrooms and is flanked by a damp one-bed cottage and an unrenovated barn. It would take around £100,000 to restore and reconfigure. Once amalgamated there could be 2,000ft of living space, as well as spectacular views across the Ribble Valley to Pendle Hill. But beware the treacherous farm track on your way up. A rather steep £395,000 and it’s yours.
Simon Thornton, 01943 816213. Photograph: Simon Thornton

Take three: homes with swimming pools. With two reception rooms, study, kitchen, hobby room, four bedrooms, three bathrooms, as well as a self-contained basement, it would seem you get a fair whack for your money on the Isle of Wight. From the balcony you can see over the pool, across the town of Shanklin and out to the sea. Cost: £449,950.
The Wright Agency, 01983 866822. Photograph: The Wright Agency

Take three: homes with swimming pools. You scarcely need the swimming pool seeing as the garden sits on the banks of the river Witham, near Boston, Lincolnshire, but there it is, along with a garden room, four receptions and a kitchen/breakfast room. For the money - £400,000 - it’s enormous; 3,700ft of floor space, a quarter of an acre of garden and parking for eight cars. Crikey. The only drawback is that it’s attached to a larger house.
The Georgian House, 08456 344069. Photograph: The Georgian House

Take three: homes with swimming pools. Water, water everywhere. Your pool is fed by a spring that sits next to three ponds. This former barn in Liskeard, Cornwall, was converted into two cottages and is now used as a single residence. It has a reception, a kitchen/diner, six bedrooms, a workshop, an orchard and - my personal favourite - some piggeries. Unfortunately, most of the bedrooms are downstairs with the living area above. Cost: £495,000.
Bradleys, 01579 346700. Photograph: Bradleys