Suffolk £750,000
Exposed timber frames and inglenook fireplace? Check. Dual-aspect kitchen, Aga, thatched roof and valley views? Check. Midway between Ipswich and Bury St Edmunds, Grade II listed Church Farm ticks all the boxes for a rural family home, yet the four-bedroom house costs no more than a one-bedder in central London. There are award-winning restaurants in nearby Lavenham, Bildeston and Hadleigh, and good local schools include Lavenham Community Primary. 01473 289700, fineandcountry.com
Kent £650,000
Next to Hadlow Tower, an imposing former folly, the grade II listed Keep is part of a community of pretty period homes that survived the demolition of Hadlow’s castle. This architectural enclave is reached via a gothic-style gateway; the Keep itself is a honey-stone house with three bedrooms and a garden. The owner gets a parking space and a key to the churchyard, which is a stone’s throw from the town square. Hadlow is four miles from Tonbridge, from where there are frequent trains to London. 01303 474101, grahamjohn.com
Wiltshire £725,000
Looking more like a Provençal gîte than a former coach house in Turleigh, near Bradford on Avon, this conversion blends traditional Cotswold stone with bright, boho interiors. Now a four-bedroom home with a self-contained annexe, it’s centred on an open-plan kitchen, living and dining area; from here, bifold doors open onto the garden, which has views of the Avon Valley. The Georgian splendours of Bath are just seven miles away. 01225 747250, carterjonas.co.uk
Oxfordshire £1.8m
Where better to chill out than in a period farmhouse in the heart of rural England? Tucked away at the end of a village lane in Merton, this five-bedroom property is set in more than four acres of lush countryside, and the kitchen is large enough for family get-togethers. The house has formal gardens, a paddock, an orchard and a lake with a stone bridge that leads to an island. When retail therapy is required, you can drive to Bicester in less than 15 minutes. 01865 759500, scottfraser.co.uk