The Walled Garden, Gloucestershire, UK

The Walled Garden, Gloucestershire, UK, £1.65m

Where In the village of Uley, south Gloucestershire, 100 miles from London and 35 miles from Bristol international airport.

What A contemporary, five-bedroom home with a pool, two ponds and a greenhouse set in just under two acres. The house has a reception hall, a dining room, a study and a gym with wet room and sauna. An outbuilding incorporates a garage, studio and workshop.

Why The layout of the house has been designed to maximise heat and light from the sun, which means many of the south-facing walls are made of glass or have large windows. The property also has a “green” roof covered with sedum plants, which helps keep the house warm in winter and cool in summer.

Who Carter Jonas, carterjonas.co.uk, tel: +44 1225 747250

The Chameleon House, Son Vida, Mallorca, Spain, €40m

The Chameleon House, Son Vida, Mallorca, Spain

Where In the hills overlooking Palma, the island’s capital, 15km from Palma de Mallorca airport.

What A 10-bedroom, nine-bathroom villa with almost 2,500 sq metres of interior living space. The property has a helipad, cinema, library, gym, indoor and outdoor pools, and an LED lighting system that can change the colour of the house as desired.

Why The property is fitted with a shading and climate-control system to reduce energy consumption, and 46 sq metres of solar panels.

Who Mallorca Sotheby’s International Realty, mallorca-sothebysrealty.com, tel: +34 971 721 000

8 Kent Road, Scarsdale, New York, US, $3.55m

8 Kent Road, Scarsdale, New York, US

Where In Westchester County, New York, 25 miles from Manhattan and 30 miles from JFK international airport.

What A six-bedroom, five-bathroom, New England-style property built in 2013.

Why The house is designed to maximise energy efficiency, water conservation and air purity. Features include a power-loss mitigation system that stops appliances drawing power when in standby mode, solar-powered water heating and a high-efficiency condensing natural gas boiler.

Who Houlihan Lawrence, houlihanlawrence.com, tel: +1 914 523 3764

Via di Monti, Pisa, Italy, €3.8m

Via di Monti, Pisa, Italy

Where In the village of Ghizzano in Tuscany, an hour’s drive from Florence and 50km from Pisa and its international airport.

What A Tuscan farmhouse with 10 bedrooms and eight bathrooms. The property comes with a guesthouse, infinity pool and more than 20 acres of land, the majority of which is planted with olive trees.

Why The property has been restored in line with Italy’s highest standards of energy efficiency, earning it an ‘A+’ rating. Solar panels help provide energy for both the main house and guesthouse.

Who Sotheby’s International Realty Tuscany, tuscany-sothebysrealty.com, tel: +39 055 0751888

House of Waterfalls, Vieques Island, Puerto Rico, $2m

House of Waterfalls, Vieques Island, Puerto Rico
© Brock Michael Sorenson

Where On Vieques Island, six miles off the east coast of Puerto Rico. The house is a 10-minute drive from Antonio Rivera Rodriguez airport.

What A three-bedroom villa designed by architect John Hix. It has a large open-plan living and dining area, a spa and hot tub, outdoor pool, a garden with water features and an orchard growing star fruit, sea grapes, bananas and pineapples.

Why The property is fitted with solar panels and relies on tropical trade winds to help regulate temperature, rather than air conditioning.

Who Sotheby’s International Realty Puerto Rico, puertoricosothebysrealty.com, tel +1 787 523 6503

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