Can Harrogate-based property expert Tim Waring interest you in a generously-proportioned county with far-reaching views?

As a long-standing Harrogate estate agent, I feel almost contractually obliged to extol the virtues of living in a lovely part of Yorkshire, able to enjoy lazy weekends walking in the Dales visiting an excellent choice of pubs and restaurants.

I’ve been lucky to spend a large part of my professional life in Harrogate; a great town with fabulous facilities that’s often voted one of the best places to live in the UK. And having a flat in the centre means I can experience the best it has to offer.

Being part of Dacres, an estate agency with 20 offices across Yorkshire, is a 24-7 job. Fortunately, however, modern communication means I don’t have to physically be in the office every weekend. Instead, you’ll find me wandering around Harrogate or the Dales or, perhaps, armed with an apron, rubber gloves and a bottle opener as I diligently work behind the scenes in my partner’s outside catering business, Guest Dining, near Holmfirth.

Helping buyers and sellers through the stresses and strains of moving house can be tiring but, since meeting Amanda, my admiration for her and indeed anyone in the catering industry has grown immeasurably. It’s long hours of hard, challenging work. Although I hope my weekend role helping the team set up, clear away and wash up into the early hours of Sunday morning takes off some of the pressure after Amanda’s batteries have finally run out after a 6am start.

With my life split between Harrogate and Holmfirth, the working week can involve a large amount of time on the M1 and M62. My commute to the Harrogate office is either five minutes or just over an hour. Again, thanks to modern communication, the latter can be useful thinking time, as well as the chance to catch up with my grown-up children.

Perhaps not surprisingly, when Amanda and I do have a weekend off together, I’m very happy to spend time in the passenger seat on the A64 heading to the east coast.

We’re fortunate to have a family bolt hole in Filey and enjoy long weekend walks along the beach towards Flamborough Head, which can be wonderfully invigorating, whatever the weather. Last year, it was also my weekend training ground for the London Marathon, so I got to know the skyline of Bempton Cliffs very well.

We often ask friends over and, almost without exception, they take to Filey as much as Amanda and I have. The Imperial pub plays good music to go with great beer and there are several places to eat in and around the town (fish and chips on Coble Landing are a must).

And if we are ever on our own in Filey, we have one golden rule, no mobile phones when walking together on the Brigg!

Tim Waring is director of Dacre Son & Hartley in Harrogate, specialising in selling top end homes across North Yorkshire. For more information, visit dacres.co.uk