Salcombe in Devon has been named as the UK’s most expensive seaside town to buy a house in.
According to Halifax’s annual seaside homes review, the average home in Salcombe now costs £1,244,025, placing it above Sandbanks in Dorset, which has been named the priciest spot on several occasions, including last year. In Sandbanks, the average property now costs £952,692.
At more than £1.2 million, properties in Salcombe are more than four times more expensive than the average home in other UK seaside towns (£304,460) and the average property in the UK (£290,000).
Why Salcombe?
Located in the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Salcombe is known for its spectacular coastal views and rolling countryside. It is also a centre for sailing.
“It’s beautiful. It’s got lovely, golden sandy beaches. It’s got really good amenities, and the surrounding countryside is gorgeous as well,” says Amy Hart from Savills’ Exeter office. “People have quite an affinity with Salcombe, because they’ve often had family holidays there for years. It’s got a nostalgic feel for people as well.”
Hart says that prices in the town can range from around £750,000 up to £5 million. Since the pandemic, which made working patterns more flexible, there has been a surge in demand for properties as people —largely families from London and the Home Counties— relocate to the coast.
“Now that people can work from home, or they need to commute much less, there’s been a real shift in people moving there full time…There are also a lot of local people who are upsizing – of course, you want to be in Salcombe as a local because it’s beautiful.”
This is contributing to rising property prices in Salcombe, but, broadly speaking, the increases are reflected throughout Devon, says Hart.
“Salcombe has established itself as one of the best coastal towns in Devon and along the south coast,” she explains. “Neighbouring seaside towns haven’t got all the amenities that you have in Salcombe. Salcombe has a real microclimate in terms of the weather; the beaches are some of the best in Devon. And, because they’re on the estuary, they’re fairly safe for young families. Those sorts of things are a real draw for people.”
The south west is priciest
Sandbanks and Salcombe have repeatedly topped Halifax’s review in recent years, with Sandbanks having the priciest seaside properties for four consecutive years. Since 2021, they have alternated in top spot.
Behind Salcombe and Sandbanks is Aldeburgh in Suffolk, where homes cost £794,492. Padstow in Cornwall was in fourth place, with properties at £790,847, and Lymington, in the New Forest, was fifth, at £663,474.
This year’s 10 most expensive seaside towns were all in England, with Aldeburgh being the only location outside the south west.
In contrast, the UK’s least expensive seaside towns were almost entirely located in Scotland, with the exception of Newbiggin-by-the-Sea in the North East.
Greenock, Renfrewshire, where the average property costs £97,608, was the UK’s most affordable seaside town, followed by Girvan, Ayrshire (£105,41) and Millport, Great Cumbrae (£111,381).
Property prices in seaside towns are going up
Across the UK, properties in seaside towns are becoming more expensive. Coastal properties have more than doubled (56 per cent) in price between 2012 and 2022. This is a smaller percentage increase than the average property in the UK, which cost £168,556 in 2012 and rose by 72 per cent in price in the last decade.
In Salcombe, property prices have increased more in the last 10 years than any other seaside location, rising from £558,538 in 2012 to £1,244,025 in 2022, representing a 123 per cent increase.
In the last year alone, house prices in Salcombe rose by 33 per cent, or £309,655. In contrast, average property prices across the UK have increased by 6.3 per cent in the last year.
“Prices have risen in Devon as a whole,” says Hart. “On the incoming tide, all the boats rise.”
Despite the influx of new buyers in Salcombe since the pandemic, Hart argues that the town still retains a strong, established local community and sense of character. “People living in the local area have also seen their houses rise in price, so I don’t think it’s necessarily pricing the locals out of the market.
“I don’t think it’s changed hugely in the last 10 years – probably it has in the last 20…It’s got a good core local community, there’s good schools around, lots of lovely shops and boutiques. People want to spend time there and move there. It’s been a natural push up. But I think it’s beauty and accessibility, compared to other places, has meant that it’s topping the charts.”
Margate in Kent has also seen considerable hikes in property prices over the last decade. In 2012, the average home in Margate cost £146,276, rising to £305,191 in 2022. This represents a 109 per cent increase.
Likewise, in nearby Westgate-on-Sea, prices rose by 100 per cent since 2012, from £154,686 to £308,764.
In the last year, however, Yarmouth, Aldeburgh, Campbeltown and Padstow have seen the most dramatic property price rises, followed by Salcombe.
Coastal locations across the UK saw property prices increase by four per cent on average – less than the national average.
“For many, owning a home by the sea is an aspiration, with coastal living offering beach walks, clean air and other health benefits,” says Halifax’s mortgages director Kim Kinnaird.
“When we delve deeper into the cost of Britain’s seaside homes, it’s clear that there is a broad spectrum in house prices. Whilst 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.
“Second home ownership undoubtedly 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. 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.”
