For empty-nesters David and Rhona Haslewood, it’s downsizing time: their Grade II-listed vicarage in Theale, Somerset, is for sale for £800,000 with Cluttons (01225 469 511, www.cluttons.co.uk). With their four children at university, art teacher David, 55, and Rhona, 48, want to release equity and embark on a new life in Bath, where David will resurrect his career as an artist.

After living in small towns since university, this will be an enormous change. In Bath, good properties are snapped up within hours and they have not been able to dedicate themselves to the search, even though Rhona is an estate agent.

The brief

David wants to earn a living as an artist, so the ability to paint as well as exhibit his work at home is a priority. He paints large canvases (www.streetlegalimages.o.uk) and so needs space.

With a budget of £500,000, they are looking for a house with at least three bedrooms and three reception rooms. They would prefer to be in central Bath, but Rhona wants a decent-sized garden. They do not want a flat or a terraced house.

The issues

Downsizing involves important financial and emotional decisions — mistakes are not easily rectified. Before embarking on it, you need to consider all the options very carefully.

I’m not convinced the realities of the market quite match up with the Haslewoods’ criteria within the budget. The necessity for large wall spaces restricts the search. An alternative suggestion would be to create a studio (shed) to work from in the garden and to exhibit in an existing gallery with other local artists.

Bath has an excellent website, www.housesforsaleinbath.co.uk, that is a househunter’s dream as it features almost every property for sale in the city.

Spencer’s selection: The likely candidates

Frankley Buildings, Bath, £395,000

A cheaper alternative that would still allow the leasing of a studio or gallery space in central Bath with the remaining budget, this is a charming Georgian terraced townhouse with three bedrooms, three reception rooms and walled gardens to front and back. It has a first-floor living room and offers good value for money on the edge of town.

Whiteley Helyar, 01225 447 544, www.whiteleyhelyar.net

London Road, Bath, £485,000

To the east of central Bath, but within walking distance of the city’s facilities, this is a classic four-storey, Grade II-listed Georgian townhouse. It has three reception rooms with decent wall space, four bedrooms and a garden. Although it is not detached, this is a close fit with the Haslewoods’ requirements.

Crisp Cowley, 01225 789 333, www.crispcowley.co.uk

Norton St Philip, Bath, £500,000

This pretty Grade II-listed Georgian house, nine miles from Bath, has five bedrooms, three reception rooms and a walled garden. There is an art gallery in the village so if David decided not to exhibit at home, this is an option. The room configuration is ideal for the Haslewoods and, although the house is not huge, at 2,280sq ft, it is well proportioned.

Hamptons International, 01225 312 244, www.hamptons.co.uk

Brock Street, Bath, £450,000

If the Haslewoods insist on being in the city centre, we must look at flats. This is a large, beautifully presented four-bed flat across the top two floors of a Georgian terrace and it is a real find — if they can bear to be without a garden. It has two south-facing reception rooms. It is owned by an artist, who uses one of the bedrooms as a studio.

Pritchard & Partners, 01225 466 225, www.housesforsaleinbath.co.uk

Phil Spencer runs Garrington Home Finders (020 7349 7030, www.garrington.co.uk) and presents Channel 4’s Location, Location, Location, and Relocation, Relocation

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