This average rise of 42% over the last decade has taken the price in seaside locations to £196,826 with the most expensive in Salcombe and Sandbanks in the south west of England, according to latest research from the Halifax.
In Salcombe in Devon, an area of outstanding natural beauty, average prices increased to £615,344 and Sandbanks in Dorset they reached £574,089, making them the top two most expensive seaside towns to buy in.
The research also shows that five seaside towns in Scotland have recorded at least a doubling in house prices since 2004, all on the Aberdeenshire coast.
Fraserburgh has experienced the biggest rise with a 141% increase from an average price of £53,641 in 2004 to £129,325 in 2014 followed by Cove Bay at 119%, Peterhead at 118%, Inverbervie at 114% and Stonehaven at 101%.
South of the border, Aldeburgh, on the Suffolk coast line, has seen the best house performance among seaside towns with average property values almost doubling at 95% in the decade to £446,576. Other English seaside towns in the top 10 for average price increases are Wadebridge in north Cornwall and Workington in Cumbria, both at 91%.
With the average house price in a seaside town now standing at £196,826, this means that buying beside the seaside is still cheaper than compared to the average house price across Great Britain which is £239,518.
‘Seaside towns provide a unique lifestyle opportunity and remain popular places for people to live, while also attracting those looking for second homes or holiday properties which can place additional upward pressure on house prices,’ said Craig McKinlay, mortgage director at the Halifax.
The research shows that finding a bargain is likely to be easier the further north you go, where average prices for the top 10 least expensive seaside towns are all below £95,000. Newbiggin by the Sea at £83,769 in the North of England and Port Bannatyne at £85,605 and Girvan at £85,868 in Scotland are the three least expensive seaside towns to buy in.
‘Living near the seaside remains an achievable dream for many. Even in the places experiencing the biggest house prices rises in the past 10 years, four are still substantially below the UK average. Places like Workington in the North, and Montrose, Peterhead and Fraserburgh in Scotland have experienced exceptional growth but on average houses cost below £150,000,’ added McKinlay.
