Trading up, trading down

Trading up: Cornwall. The world, as witnessed from this perch in the Cornish village of Gulval, is a place of unsullied loveliness. Mount's Bay glimmers across the fields from the windows, and your neighbour is an ancient church and graveyard. Internal glories include a stone inglenook fireplace in the dining room, an A-framed living room with a cast iron stove, four bedrooms and sea views. It is a mile into Penzance. Cost: £375,000.
Marshalls, 01736 360203 Photograph: Marshalls/Marshalls

Trading up: Norfolk. This example of Georgian grandeur is in Fakenham, voted Britain's seventh best place to live by Country Life magazine. The flagstones, stripped pine and black and white ceramic tiles in the antique-style kitchen are a thrill. There are also five bedrooms, a study, two receptions, two bathrooms and a utility room. You would pay a good deal more than £375,000 for this, but for the disfigurement of a Peugeot salesroom opposite.
Sowerbys, 01328 730340 Photograph: Sowerbys/Sowerbys

Trading down: Northumberland. A shoemaker was the first resident of this 1750's house within the old walls of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and metal shoe moulds are still in place in the converted attic. It is thought the intricately banistered staircase was the work of a Chippendale joiner working with his master at a nearby mansion. Up those stairs is a startlingly large lounge with a wood-burning stove. The dining room could be a third bedroom. Cost £148,000.
Tyne and Tweed, 01289 331555 Photograph: Tyne and Tweed/Tyne and Tweed

Trading down: Shropshire. This elegant grade II-listed cottage in Bridgnorth has a large living room with an open fireplace. Exposed brick and beams mingle prettily with the modern fittings. A toilet lurks in a cupboard in one of the two bedrooms, sparing you a nocturnal trip through the kitchen to the bathroom. An attached brick store is plumbed for a washing machine and, for a town centre house, there's a surprisingly long garden. Yours for £194,950.
Berriman Eaton, 01746 766499 Photograph: Berriman Eaton/Berriman Eaton

Dream home: Warwickshire. Rearing over your garden are the battlements of Warwick Castle - your boundary wall adjoins the castle grounds. Situated on a cobbled no-through street, your six bedrooms, three receptions and a study were built in 1730 and garnished with exposed beams and trusses, marble fireplaces, stone floors and aristocratic panelling. Town planners have consented to a conservatory off the Aga-warmed kitchen/breakfast room. Cost £975,000.
Knight Frank, 01789 297735 Photograph: Knight Frank/Knight Frank

Bargain of the week: Wiltshire. Until recently you would have needed around £300,000 for a four-bedder backing on to a canal. But this townhouse near Devizes has been reduced to £265,000 for a quick sale. For that you get a 29ft Shaker-style kitchen/dining room, which opens on to a landscaped gravel garden with access to said canal. Glass doors in the upstairs living room waft you on to a balcony with watery views. One of the bedrooms has an en suite shower.
Strakers, 01380 723 451 Photograph: Strakers/Strakers