A house there costs an average £1.24 million
Want to buy a home in the popular resort town of Salcombe in Devon? Be prepared to spend around £1.24 million for it.
Latest analysis from Halifax has found that picturesque Salcombe is now the most expensive seaside setting in Britain to buy a home, with an average price tag of £1,244,025.
The town has swapped places with last year’s priciest spot, Sandbanks in Dorset, where homes now cost an average £952,692.
Aldeburgh made the top three most expensive seaside areas, with the Suffolk spot’s house prices costing £794,492 on average. It is the only place outside of the South West or South East of England to appear in the top 10.
The lowest average price for a home near the sea can be found in Greenock, Scotland, where homes cost on average £97,608. With the exception of Newbiggin-by-the Sea in the North East of England, nine of the 10 least expensive seaside locations are in Scotland.
Coastal house prices soar over the last decade
Halifax also reported that the cost of coastal homes in Britain increased by an average of 56% between 2012 and 2022, with some areas more than doubling their house prices in the last 10 years.
Sellers in Salcombe made the greatest gains, with average prices soaring by 123% from £558,538 in 2012 to £1,244,025 in 2022. At the end of 2022, homes in Margate cost £305,191 on average or around 109% more than they did in 2012, when average house prices were only £146,276. Properties in Westgate-on-Sea also doubled in price over the past decade, rising from £154,686 to £308,764.
In terms of annual growth, house prices in Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight grew the most in 2022 – up 53% on average – to £611,816 from £399,206 in 2021. House buyers in Aldeburgh, Suffolk need an average £794,492, up 47% in 2022, from £539,882 in 2021, while those looking for a property in Campbeltown saw prices increase by 42% during last year, to £129,348 from £91,201 in 2021. This annual price growth, just like last year’s, was primarily due to increased demand.
“For many, owning a home by the sea is an aspiration, with coastal living offering beach walks, clean air, and other health benefits,” Kim Kinnaird (pictured), mortgages director at Halifax, said. “But this comes at a price in many locations and Britain’s most expensive seaside spot, Salcombe in Devon, will set buyers back over £1.2 million on average.
“When we delve deeper into the cost of Britain’s seaside homes, it’s clear that there is a broad spectrum in house prices. While million-pound properties are abundant in the South West of England, in contrast, homes in Greenock in Scotland are valued on average at less than £100,000.”
Kinnaird added that second home ownership plays a role in driving up prices in the most desirable locations.
“While house prices in any location are driven by factors such as supply and demand and interest rates, there are also socio-economic factors at play,” she noted. “Some of these factors are more acute in Britain’s coastal communities, and many British towns most in need of investment also sit near the shore.”
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