We do like to buy beside the seaside

House prices on coast rise by up to 95% in decade

HOUSE prices in seaside towns have risen by up to 95 per cent over the past decade, according to a report published today.

For the second year running, the most expensive place to buy a home on the coast is Sandbanks in Poole, Dorset, where the average house costs £664,051 – up 32 per cent since 2007.

But analysis by Halifax found that the biggest increases saw houses almost double in value.

The average house price in seaside towns rose by a quarter from £181,060 in 2007 to £226,916 – equivalent to £382 a month.

And eight of the ten most expensive were on the south coast.

While top spot went to Sandbanks – home to celebrities such as football manager Harry Redknapp and interior designer Celia Sawyer – second was Salcombe in Devon, with average prices at £617,743.

Outside southern England the most expensive seaside areas are the Scottish towns of North Berwick, at £314,435, and St Andrews, where houses are an average of £300,319, while in Wales, homes cost £284,804 at Mumbles, near Swansea.

Meanwhile the biggest rises were at Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire, up 95 per cent to £136,889, and Lerwick in the Shetlands, up 77 per cent to £160,689.

Shoreham-by-Sea in West Sussex had the largest increase in England, with prices rising 70 per cent to £373,056, followed by Aldeburgh in Suffolk, where they rose 67 per cent to £526,689.

Second home-buyers are often blamed for helping push up house prices in many popular seaside towns, making it harder for locals to get on the housing ladder.

But a stamp duty hike introduced in April last year has helped keep house prices in check in some areas.

Martin Ellis, Halifax’s housing economist, said: ‘Seaside towns are extremely popular places to live, offering soughtafter views and desirable weather.

‘Being by the seaside does come at a price – with the marked increase in house prices reflecting the demand for rooms with a sea view.

‘Over the past decade, house prices in the South East, especially coastal towns within commutable distance to London, have shown strong growth and have become Britain’s most expensive seaside towns. However, the strongest-performing coastal towns in terms of growth have been north of the border in Scotland, where property prices on the Aberdeenshire coastline have been helped by the oil industry more than the sunshine.’

Nine of the ten cheapest seaside spots were in Scotland, with the average home in Port Bannatyne, a village on the remote Isle of Bute, costing just £71,550.

In second place was New-big-gin-by-the-Sea in Northumberland, at £ 75,779, followed by Campbeltown in West Scotland, on £80,737.

‘Strongest growth north of the border’