The UK is home to a wide array of stunning coastal destinations which any prospective house buyer would dream of moving to.
However, some seaside areas have sky-high asking prices, with one area’s homes going for fourteen times the price of one in Scotland.
Glamorous Sandbanks in Poole, Dorset, has been identified as the most expensive seaside area to buy a home out of more than 200 coastal locations across Britain.
The town – dubbed ‘Britain’s Palm Beach’ after the pricy Florida destination – has an average price tag of nearly £1.6 million.
Homes in Sandbanks were found to be the most expensive typically in Rightmove’s analysis, as their prices continue to ‘increase and become further out of reach’.
Sandbanks in Poole has been identified as the most expensive seaside area to buy a home
A MailOnline graphic showing the most and least expensive seaside towns to buy a house
Pictured: A street in the sleepy village of Easington, County Durham
Pictured: Properties on Banks Road, in Sandbanks
A view from the ‘most expensive’ house in Sandbanks, Dorset
The seaside resort of Lyme Regis in Dorset is an expensive but sought-after area
Celebrities which have settled down in the affluent area include former cricketer Sir Geoffrey Boycott, ex-football manager Harry Redknapp and celebrity interior designer Celia Sawyer.
Last year, a millionaire who splashed out £13.5m on the most expensive house on Sandbanks said he wanted to demolish it.
Tom Glanfield set a record for the price paid for a property on the exclusive Dorset peninsula when he bought the 117-year-old bungalow in March.
People could typically buy nearly 14 homes in Saltcoats in Ayrshire, Scotland, for the asking price of one property in Sandbanks.
Saltcoats was the least expensive seaside location in the study, with an average property asking price of £114,365.
Padstow, Cornwall, is the fourth-most expensive seaside destination
The average asking price for a house in Padstow is £678,058
Canford Cliffs Village, in Poole, Dorset, is the second-most expensive area for homes
Easington in County Durham had the second-cheapest average asking price (£122,520) in the study, with Peterlee in County Durham was the third-cheapest (£124,593).
Rightmove said Peterlee is also a ‘price hotspot’ with average asking prices in the area up by 15 per cent compared to this time last year.
Heysham, on the edge of Morecambe Bay in Lancashire, is also a price hotspot, with asking prices up by seven per cent annually, Rightmove added.
Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s property expert, said: ‘While the pandemic-driven surge for seaside areas has calmed down and reversed back to more normal levels, areas around Great Britain’s coast continue to be popular with many people.
A popular choice is Sidmouth seafront with red cliffs of the Jurassic Coast, Devon
Saltcoats, North Ayrshire, is the cheapest option for a home with average prices of £114,365. Pictured is Saltcoats Beach near the town
Lymington in Hampshire, with its colourful rendered walls and bay windows, is a pricy area
Grimsby, in Lincolnshire, is another budget option with average prices of £135,951
‘Particularly at this time of year, many people consider what a home by the sea and away from the hustle and bustle of a city could look like, or perhaps explore estate agents’ windows while on holiday.’
Steve Isaacs, director at Luxury and Prestige Realty in Poole, said: ‘The areas of Sandbanks and Canford Cliffs continue to be very popular, and prime waterfront properties in Sandbanks have been doing particularly well.
‘For those that can, the lifestyle of living in a beautiful location by the sea will always be appealing and is not to be underestimated.’
Nathan Emerson, CEO at property professionals’ body Propertymark, said: ‘While many homeowners will no doubt be happy to see their homes increasing in value in these coastal locations, many locals who aspire to one day live where they have grown up will be unable to do so as prices increase and become further out of reach.’
