Beautiful homes - and ruins (8)
I believe the answer is:
handsome
'beautiful' is the definition.
(similar in meaning)
'homes and ruins' is the wordplay.
'ruins' is an anagram indicator.
'homes'+'and'='homesand'
'homesand' anagrammed gives 'HANDSOME'.
(Other definitions for handsome that I've seen before include "Good-looking, as a male say" , "large" , "Fit" , "Attractive in a strong, imposing way" , "Well-proportioned" .)