£200,000 for villa-style home near city

At first glance the single redbrick storey villa-style houses off the South Circular Road all look pretty much the same, but closer examination reveals great differences in size and style. What they all have in common is that they are manageable sized period houses with some grand details. A definite plus is that this maze of quiet roads is so close to the city centre. Number 4 Vernon Street is for auction by Douglas Newman Good on March 4th with a guide price of £200,000. It may well achieve more: a similar house just doors away made £235,000 at auction last April.

The redbrick terraced house has two bedrooms and one very large attic room currently in use as a bedroom. The real plus in these villa-style houses is the grandly proportioned livingroom which in this particular house is made all the more lovely by having a large bay window. A great deal of work has been done to the house over the years to extend its accommodation including adding a large conservatory at the back and creating a very large and bright double room in the attic. The house has its original cornices and details intact so the hallway is very attractive with its high ceilings and period features. Off the hall is the formal livingroom, which again has a wonderfully high ceiling and original features including a cast-iron fireplace. Down a couple of steps is a large family bathroom and the greatly extended kitchen. This has several fitted pine units against one wall with a green tiled splashback and chequer-board tiling on the floor. There is a nice cast-iron heater in the fireplace.

A conservatory attached to the far end of the room greatly extends the living space and opens up the entire area to the landscaped patio garden. This has been paved and includes a built-in barbecue and a back entrance to the laneway that runs behind these houses. Upstairs there are two bedrooms, one a single, the other a double. This has been fitted with modern wardrobes and has a small en suite. On the landing, a spiral staircase leads up to the attic room which takes up the entire roof space so it is spacious and bright, thanks to several Velux windows. There is a small railed front garden.