This Victorian water tower, long since retired from aquatic duties, makes for a vertiginous home with aerial views from its top-floor terrace. It quite literally turns conventional living on its head – the kitchen is on the third floor, the living room is above and the bedrooms below, with a commute to the ground floor bathroom for those who don’t qualify for the master suite. The property, which will set you back £549,950, has a lift although it terminates at the kitchen and you have to conquer a spiral staircase to the crowning glory that is the living room.
Strutt & Parker, 01858 438723 Photograph: Strutt & Parker
This light, bright top-floor section of this former brewery near the centre of town is well worth viewing. Its lofty position allows views over rooftops to High Woods country park and the four-windowed open-plan living area overlooks the best of this historic town. Both bedrooms are served by a bathroom and there’s allocated parking for you plus extra space for visitors and a secure storage area off the car park. The brewery was founded in 1828 and operated for a century. A Grade II listing now preserves the building’s handsome features.
Fenn Wright, £159,995 Photograph: Fenn Wright
In two of the three bedrooms and the bathroom you can find the original wheel mechanisms that operated this former water mill. The huge water wheel is still in place at the back. The building, on the market at £325,000, has been stylishly converted with wooden floors, beamed walls and ceiling and exposed stone window surrounds. There’s room to expand into the boarded attic and at one point planners were agreeable to the barn being converted into an annexe. Beyond its third of an acre of land, there are sweeping green views.
H&H King, 01228 810799 Photograph: H&H King
Its manorial grace belies the history of this waterside building, which has earned its keep as a forge, corn mill and textile mill. Its latest incarnation is as a complex of 13 homes that share communal gardens and pastoral views over the river Severn. Woodland rises behind and it’s a green mile and a half’s walk along the river into town. £230,000 buys you a three-bedroom, three-bathroom flat with open-plan living space and wall-to-floor windows to maximise the view.
Strutt & Parker, 01743 284200 Photograph: Strutt and Parker
This brewery, built in 1840, is one of 16 landmarks officially recognised on Krakow's industrial heritage route. In its day it was the largest brewery in the city and was used by Carlsberg until 2001. The stately buildings a few hundred yards from the market square now house the Hungarian embassy, offices, restaurants and homes, each with their own garden or terrace and surrounding communal green spaces. £77,500 is the starting price for a one-bedroom flat. You’ll have to find an extra £12,000 or so to floor, plaster and fit it as Poles tend to buy new builds as shells.
Property Venture, 01932 849536 Photograph: Property Venture
