Twenty years ago, the owner of this detached property in Bingley spent a winter obsessed by the weather and wondering if the roof of his new home would stay where it was.

“When I bought the house, I already had plans for a new bathroom and kitchen, and redecorating throughout. What I hadn’t planned for was the leaky roof!” he recalls.

“I was anxious not to spoil the character of the house by patching up the roof or putting on modern roof tiles, so I eventually decided on slate.”

Prior to the new roof going on, he remembers a winter of watching every weather forecast and hoping the existing roof would stand up to any rain.

The owner already lived in Bingley and wanted to stay in the area, but required somewhere larger.

“The agents arranged for me to see this one; as soon as I pulled up outside, I was attracted to it. Within two minutes, I knew I wanted to live there. It needed quite a lot of work doing, but I loved the light and airy feeling inside, and the big, private garden.”

Built in 1926, the house has some nice Art Deco touches, such as the leaded lights at the top of the windows.

The interior doors are glass and the sitting room has French windows into the garden, both of which contribute to the feeling of space.

“My favourite room is the guest suite,” the owner says. “When I had the extension built, I wanted it to echo the feeling of space there is in the main house, so I made sure that it was full of light and had access straight into the garden.”

As well as three bedrooms and two reception rooms, there is a ground floor guest suite which would be ideal for visitors, an independent teenager or dependent relative.

Off the entrance hall to the left is a dual-aspect lounge with a lovely bay window, feature fire surround with living flame gas fire and slate hearth, French doors to the garden and modern exposed beams.

To the left of the hallway is a dining room, which also has a bay window with leaded lights, a modern gas fire and an archway into the kitchen. The latter has a range of eye-catching blue base and wall units, integral microwave, gas hob with electric oven below and a slim-line dishwasher. A nice touch is the original built-in cupboards with drawers beneath.

Elsewhere on the ground floor is a rear hallway and cloakroom, while the guest suite is a lovely space with feature beams, glazed wall and a stylish standalone bath with shower fitting.

There are built-in wardrobes on the first floor landing, off which are three bedrooms – two being dual-aspect – and a shower room with tiled walls, shower cubicle, wash basin and WC.

At the front of the house is a low maintenance garden, off-road parking and driveway leading to a single garage with electric up-and-over doors, while the back garden is lawned, with flower and shrub beds.

“The garden is beautifully mature,” the owner adds. “I have a great gardener, who’s been helping it along naturally for the past couple of years, adding lavender and white snapdragons and training the honeysuckle to grow around the windows.

“I have to say, all I do is sit in it and appreciate the calm and the wildlife. If it wasn’t for the fact that my work requires me to move away from the area, I wouldn’t be leaving.”

This property in Ghyllwood Drive, Bingley, is on the market for £325,000 with the Green Partnership, Bingley, tel (01274) 551552, web www.greenpartnership.com.