Snooping around

Property of the week: Magdalen Road, St Leonards, Exeter. A glamorous survivor of the art deco era, recently transformed from a garage into seven town houses. You soar above the city on the roof terrace, while folding glass doors lead to the garden room. Downstairs, a 37ft oak-floored living area beyond the breakfast bar absorbs family life, and a dumbwaiter hauls groceries to the kitchen. It’s a shame there’s no actual garden space. Cost: £699,500.
Strutt & Parker, 01392 215631. Photograph: Strutt & Parker/Strutt & Parker

Wreck of the week: West Lynn, King’s Lynn, Norfolk. This four-bedroom gaff is in perilous condition. The first floor is structurally unsafe and everything needs renewing - £60,000 at the very least. The sitting room has part-panelled walls, two original sash windows, window seats and a brick hearth. There are views of the river and a little ferry to take you to the shops in the centre of town. The grade II listing may hamper your ambitions. Cost: £120,000.
Sowerbys, 01553 766741. Photograph: Sowerbys/Sowerbys

Take three: homes at £425,000. Near Colchester, Essex, this four bedroomer offers two receptions, a kitchen, breakfast room and a bathroom. It’s a distinguished Victorian specimen with stripped pine floors, pine doors and three fireplaces. A 60ft part-walled garden beyond the french doors unfolds into a shrubby haven. Be aware that you have to share the stretch of front shingle with the neighbour.
Fenn Wright, 01206 763388. Photograph: Fenn Wright/Fenn Wright

Take three: Homes at £425,000. This extravagant confection in Ambleside was whipped up by a Liverpool sugar merchant in 1831 and divided into apartments in the 80s. You get a reception, three bedrooms and a bathroom. Oh, and seven acres of communal gardens, which front on to a river from where residents can launch dinghies to Lake Windermere. Surely enough to make you overlook the dated décor and service charges of £246 a month?
Carter Jonas, 01539 722592. Photograph: Carter Jonas/Ambleside

Take three: Homes at £425,000. This grade II-listed ex-farmhouse is in a conservation area near Holywell, Flintshire, and comes with kitchen/breakfast room, two receptions, five beds, a bathroom and outbuildings. An inglenook fireplace survives from the 18th century, when it was built as part of the local castle estate. Despite the serene setting, you’re only five minutes from the A55 expressway.
Denton Clark, 01244 409660. Photograph: Denton Clark/Denton Clark