People got tired of asking when the owner was going to move into this three bedroom Thirties semi while he carried out an extensive renovation project.

It wasn’t that he was being lazy or couldn’t make up his mind... it was just a case of wanting to make sure that the end result was perfect.

“Before I bought it in 2001 it had been rented out, and both inside and out it needed a substantial amount of work,” he recalls. “Luckily I wasn’t in any immediate need to move in.

“Let’s just say it took quite a while to get the house how I wanted it.”

Most weekends were spent either plaster-boarding or moving partition walls. “It’s amazing what you can do when you have to.”

All the rooms, bar one, had the old plaster knocked off and were re-boarded. Partition walls were moved back between the bedroom and bathroom, and hallway and kitchen, and the front bedroom ceiling was taken down and replaced.

The bathroom was ripped out, made larger and the new suite repositioned, with a large vanity cupboard completing the look.

The hall and landing had plaster and woodwork done, and the banister and spindles were replaced. The outside coal shed was closed off, and made into a useful downstairs cupboard.

“The kitchen was awful, and again was completely ripped out,” the owner says. “The pantry space was opened up and the internal kitchen door moved to create more space.”

Plenty of new fitted units were installed, along with extra power points, and the old external door was replaced with French doors to the patio.

The living room was the last to be done, with among many things a new gas fire and surround installed.

“I also wanted to redesign the back garden, as there was just enough space-wise for a chair before.

“The garden wasn’t a priority, but it was something that we wanted to do. We set about demolishing the garage, so it could be replaced with a new larger one, and a spacious patio area was created with retaining wall and steps up to the lawn. I think the excavation filled around 14 skips.”

The next part of the house to receive a transformation was the rendering. “Although it looked fine from the front of the house, the back was a different matter. It had been very badly repaired, but as the house isn’t overlooked at the back it didn’t create an issue.

“The drive and front garden had always been in a bad state of repair, but could be lived with. The drive was widened, block-paved, with stone walls rebuilt, a fence added together with a bespoke gate which was fitted towards the top of the drive to make it more private. The whole front garden was also landscaped.

“There’s now nothing else left to do... it’s like living in a new house.”

The owner’s favourite room is the kitchen.

“The kitchen’s breakfast bar is brillant as you can chat to those at the kitchen table and see out into the back garden,” he adds.

“I love the fact that the sun shines at the front of the house in the morning, and then through the back of the house at lunch time. The back garden is very private, and is a sun trap.

“Extending the drive was one of the best things we did as we can now get four cars on it. The long distance views to the front of the house are fabulous.

“It’s taken a great deal of time, hard work and money to get the house as it is today. In some ways it seems a pity to be moving.

“Although we have plans for our next house, I still appreciate all the changes that have been made at this one.”

This property in Strathallan Drive, Baildon, is on the market for £183,950 with Dacre, Son & Hartley, Baildon, tel (01274) 532323, web www.dacres.co.uk