The seaside is the place to buy if you are looking to make a tidy profit on your property investment, new research has found.
However, it does really matter where you buy according to this top ten list compiled by property portal Rightmove. Some areas of the country are most definitely leading the coastal home property price increase table. Check out the research below to find out which areas are on a roll!
This year, it’s the beautiful seaside town of Mumbles in Wales that has been ranked Britain’s top coastal hotspot. The town, which is nestled on the coast of Swansea Bay has seen average asking prices rise by a whopping 47 per cent since 2015. That’s a bigger five-year increase than any coastal area across the whole of Britain!
Swansea town itself is often also ranked highly in property surveys as one of the best places to buy a property in the UK.
The average asking price of a home in Mumbles is currently £344,832, which is £110,537 more expensive than five years ago. Asking prices in the Welsh town are over £22,000 more than the national average of £322,025 and almost £130,000 more expensive than the Welsh average.
Local agents report that the new seafront development Oyster Wharf, which boasts a variety of restaurants, coupled with outstanding beaches, has contributed to the rising prices.
Ben Davies, managing director at Belvoir Estate Agents in Mumbles, said: “As a former Victorian fishing village, Mumbles has definitely got its own identity. It’s a destination in its own right and we’ve always seen huge demand to live here.
“Mumbles has seen lots of development in recent years, too. Oyster Wharf is a shining new development which has created a Mediterranean style plaza fronting onto the seafront. However, the town has still retained its charm and you’ll find lots of seafront restaurants and independent boutiques, bars and delis down here.”
The new study from Rightmove also revealed that Camber in East Sussex and Fowley in Cornwall scooped joint second place in the UK coastal property hotspot table with average asking prices rising by 45 per cent over the past five years (between October 2020 to October 2015). Out of the two towns, Fowley saw the biggest increase in terms of money with prices rises from £337,425 five years ago to £487,531 today – an increase over £150K whereas Camber in Essex only notched up a modest £96K increase with prices rising from £210,895 to £305,891. Mind you, we wouldn’t say no to a £96,000 ROI!
Fourth in the coastal property hotspot lists is Sandilands in Lincolnshire which boasts a 43 per cent increase in average house prices over the last five years with prices rising from £187,697 to £268,527. Sandilands is also the only coastal location in the top ten from a northerly region.
In fact, locations in Wales and the south of England dominate Rightmove’s top ten as you can see in the table below.
Top ten coastal areas with the biggest five-year increase in average asking prices:
Rightmove’s data analysts also found that Sandbanks in Poole – one of the most exclusive enclaves in the country – remains the most expensive coastal location in Britain, with average asking prices of almost £1.2 million. Buyer searches for the south coast town have more than doubled (+104%) since this time last year.
While Seaford in East Sussex has emerged as the coastal town that’s seen the biggest spike in interest over the past 12 months, with searches more than doubling (+104%) over the past 12 months.
Teignmouth in Devon (+99%) and Shoreham-by-Sea (+96%) are two other coastal areas that have seen a sharp rise in popularity.
Rightmove’s Director of Property Data Tim Bannister said: “Relocating to a coastal area is a dream move for many home-hunters and it’s safe to say that lockdown has intensified that desire to live beside the sea for many people. Properties in seaside towns usually come at a premium, but what’s fascinating about this list of coastal price hotspots is that there’s a relatively wide range of price points. Mumbles has always been a popular destination among British holidaymakers and therefore it stands to reason that home-hunters would seek it out for their year-round fix of sand and sea.”
Which of out these locations would you love to live in?
