Snooping around: Rural, urban or renovation

In town: Croydon. This is only the second time this property has been on sale since it was built in 1927. The living areas are beamed, the four bedrooms are doubles and there’s a 130ft garden at the back. Unfortunately, it's on a busy main road and the decor is dated. Cost: £519,950.
Townends, 020 8680 8585 Photograph: Townends/Townends

In the country: County Durham. This £365,000 beamed and flagstoned house in Sidehead, with original fireplaces and a new kitchen, opens onto a dramatic panaroma across Weardale. If more space is needed, the study could be converted into a third bedroom. The downside? For all its remoteness, it's attached to a neighbour.
George F White, 01388 527966 Photograph: George F White

Wreck of the week: Suffolk. This four-bed Victorian house in Fressingfield was last lived in a decade ago. It has no bathroom and a kitchen from circa 1910 - but £150,000 would go far. 4.2 acres of land and outbuildings are included in the £270,000 price tag, but be warned, it fronts onto a main road.
Durrants, 01379 852217 Photograph: Durrants

Dream home: Cumbria. A 16th-century farmhouse in the Lake District, delectable in its own right, perched on nearly five acres of land, with vistas over Loweswater lake to the surrounding fells. Ownership includes boating rights. Inside is a stone staircase, a bread oven and a cupboard installed in 1691, while an adjoining barn retains an original spinning gallery. If two reception rooms, four bedrooms and a study leave you feeling cramped, there is room for expansion. Cost: £795,000.
Savills, 01625 417450 or Edwin Thompson 01768 772 988 Photograph: Savills