When winter weather keeps us all captive indoors more than we'd like, the second-best thing to being outside is being comfortably indoors while feeling the sense of the being outdoors — relishing in sunlight when it shines, gazing at the stars at night, catching glimpses of passing wildlife and birds, or even enjoying sanctuary during a raging storm. Having a sunroom in the home makes this all possible and not only extends the home's living space, it can be a rather flexible room, able to multitask depending on the homeowner's needs.

Fundamentally, a sunroom is intended to tear down the visible barriers between a home's interior space and the yard outside. It might be used as a charming sitting room or a place for casual dining and afternoon teas. Some homeowners find them to be extensions of gardens, a place to bring outdoor plantings in for the winter, or a warm spot to pot seeds in early spring.

Ryan Lajoie is the broker-owner of Johnston & Associates Real Estate in Thompson, Connecticut. Asked how sought-after sunrooms are with today's homebuyers, Lajoie said, "Sunrooms do not often come up on buyers' must-have lists, but certainly we find that those who have had them before and enjoyed their features do end up appreciating them enough to put them onto their 'wants' list when weighing property features."

Lajoie is the listing broker for 69 Heritage Road in Putnam, a ranch-style, built in the mid-1980s, with three bedrooms and five baths. Among the 5,944 square feet of living space is a solarium-like sunroom, with a tiled floor and exterior access.

"The sunroom at 69 Heritage is nicely located in a central rear location of the home, with views of the backyard and an exit to the pool, jacuzzi, pool house and entertaining areas," Lajoie noted. This, like other well-appointed sunrooms he's seen over the years, afford the buyer lots of options on how best to leverage the space.

"Sunrooms have been used a number of different ways, including for year-round rotating of plants, an additional living space, dining areas ... or even more important now, as a potential home office," he suggested.

The sunroom at 48 Hillcrest Drive, Uncasville, affords four-season utility. It has a wood-clan vaulted ceiling, access out to the backyard deck, and baseboard heating for year-round comfort. The space is part of the nearly 1,500 square feet of living space at the two-bedroom home in a 55+ community, recently listed by Broker Bud Bowes at RE/MAX On the Bay. The property was listed for $229,500, but at press time, it was already under contract.

The three-bedroom shingle-style colonial at 11 Red Bird Trail in Old Saybrook is currently for sale. Broker Rick Weiner with William Pitt Sotheby's represents the seller. The current asking price — recently reduced — is $1.495 million. This is a "value-add" property, in that the buyer not only purchases the 1,931-square-foot main house, but also a charming cottage on the adjacent lot.

The main house has a lovely sunroom on its first floor. Weiner described it as, "The perfect space to enjoy a summer book while glancing out at Long Island Sound steps away."