Househunter

Rymans, near Chichester, West Sussex

With a spiral stone staircase, tower and trefoil windows, Rymans is a house for medieval enthusiasts or for present-day romantics. The stone manor sits in 14 acres, surrounded by walled parterre gardens: the lavender garden, the rose garden and the iris garden, beyond which are the kitchen garden, orchard and paddocks. Inside, the five reception rooms and eight bedrooms retain many ancient features, though the kitchen and bathrooms are looking a little tired. Savills (0171-499 8644) and Jackson-Stops & Staff in Chichester (01243 786316) have set a guide of pounds 600-650,000. You could always sub the costs by letting it as a film set.

For what it's worth

Before you rush out to buy a house in John Gummer's new bargain basement sale - Big Cash Bonuses! All Housing Association Homes Must Go! - take a look at what happened to the first wave of council tenants who took up their right to buy. Some are living in tower-block flats that have no market value, as lenders refuse to offer mortgages on them. Others are trying to sell for rock bottom prices. The cheapest flats in Winkworth's new London Property Register are predominantly ex-council owned. A one- bedroom flat in Islington is for sale at pounds 30,000. In the real private sector it would cost double that. In addition, anyone who takes out a new mortgage after October and subsequently loses their job, will get no government help with the repayments for nine months. If they lived in the same house, but stayed as tenants, their rent would be paid. The happy ones are those ex-local authority tenants who have no wish to move, whose mortgages are almost paid off and who are able to leave a home to their children. Buying a house makes more sense if you are facing retirement rather than redundancy and repossession.

Who's moving

Roger Taylor, the drummer for the band Queen, is trading up in his native Cornwall. He is leaving The Coach House, a secluded cottage overlooking the Fal Estuary, for a larger house on the Helford. The Coach House, with three living rooms and lovely gardens down to the beach, is being sold for pounds 295,000 by Knight Frank & Rutley (01392 423111).