“If you’ve got £100,000 you will get a luxury house of at least 300m2. You also get four bedrooms, a double garage, swimming pool plus a lot of house.” Campbell has found that the country’s relatively low cost of living is an attraction for people retiring permanently to South Africa.She explains: “They can sell their homes in the UK for £200,000, find an equivalent home here for around £50,000-£60,000 and put the rest of their money in the bank. People find that they come here and they are millionaires times three!” And Campbell has discovered the reverse when she visits the UK: “Here, I can buy a whiskey for around 50 pence but when I come to you I can’t even afford to drink whiskey.”David and Margaret Marsh recently retired to South Africa after selling their Yorkshire home and have already benefited from the cheaper cost of living. “We bought a large, rundown house as our plan was to turn it into a guesthouse. We started doing it up but in the meantime someone offered us more than we paid for it, around £40,000, so we made a huge profit.”The Marshes are full of enthusiasm for their new life in Cape Town: “It’s an absolutely beautiful country.

We’ve travelled all over the world but this beats everything, including Australia.” The Marshes have recently bought another property on the upmarket Flamingo Vlei, complete with large plot and swimming pool, but their initial success at selling on their first property at a profit has inspired them to do the same thing again and bank the profit. “The interest rates on savings here are so good, around 12 to 13 per cent, that we are finding that we can live off the interest as it’s very cheap to live here.”The Marshes believe that South Africa gets a bad press in relation to its actual crime figures: “Just the other day, Sky News said there is shooting on the streets of Cape Town. It annoys us as we find it so safe here and street crime really is confined to a very small area. There is absolutely no need to be frightened of coming here.”Seeff Residential are marketing several properties on Flamingo Vlei, including a three-bedroom house complete with Jacuzzi, pool and views of Table Mountain on Weaver Street, which is for sale at R1,250,000. R510, 000 buys you a three-bedroomed house with pool on Table View and for R2,150,000 a four-bedroomed house with pool on West Beach, Cape Town is being marketed as “a Tuscan masterpiece” due to its opulent style.Ocean Estates manager Sharon Lester relocated to South Africa from Spain six months ago to run the Cape Town branch. Although enquiries were initially slow, the coming months will see at least 30 inspection flights from the UK. Lester has noticed that a younger, wealthier set are being drawn to the country, both for its outdoors pursuits – game watching, surfing and river-rafting – and its nightlife: “Many of them want to be in Camps Bay, which is very like Puerto Banus in Spain and where there are great clubs, bars and restaurants.”Barney Spender of Blendon Communications, which produces Homes Overseas Magazine, lived in the country for several years before returning to London.

A frequent traveller all over the world, it is South Africa that tops his wish list: “If I had a spare £100,000 I would definitely buy a retreat there. It’s a wonderful country and a fantastic investment.”Seef Residential: 0027 21 557 1115, Ocean Estates South Africa: 0027 214 172 600, . Do the sails still turn around?

Do the sails still turn around?
Sadly, no. When Kirkham Windmill was converted into a family home, the builders removed them Its appearance, however, is still distinctly mill-like.Ah. Any other alterations?Quite a few actually, most of which are internal. The first floor is now a 19ft circular lounge and there are five bedrooms (two of these form part of the extension, which was added in 1973), a fully fitted kitchen and two balconies.Sounds great, but I want a windmill with real sailsClearly you’re looking for something a little more preserved, in which case you’re in luck. Outwood in Surrey, Britain’s oldest working windmill, is up for sale along with a two-bed bungalow, stable and outbuildings.

Built in 1665, it stands 39ft high with 60ft sails and still produces flour.Can I turn it into a fabulous home?Certainly not. The owner is looking for someone to preserve the mill as a working piece of British heritage. Besides, it’s a Grade I-listed building, so you wouldn’t get very far without extensive consultation with the council.Is there anything else on the market?Lucky you asked. Hot off the press is a striking Grade II windmill in Leicestershire.