Liquid assets: why waterside properties are worth the investment
Next time you wonder about the allure and impact of second homes, break this interesting article out for a bit more context! It tells us:
High summer is here so let’s all go down to the beach. Family seaside houses have flung open their windows and picnics are being made. Children are gathering sand between their toes and collecting shells. Tide tables are being studied and rockpools plundered. What price do we place on properties that can offer all this – plus swimming, surfing, sunbathing and sailing?
Despite all our worries about the stability of the market and last winter’s storms, the answer is that we value these properties more highly than ever. The latest Knight Frank waterfront index, given exclusively to The Sunday Telegraph, shows that houses beside water are now worth an average of 60 per cent more than their counterparts inland, which is 11 per cent more than at the same time last year.
The wild cliffs, coves and sailing havens of the South-West exert by far the most powerful pull on those with money to spend. A house by the sea here can command a premium of up to 75 per cent, which is 17 per cent more than last year, creating a new seaside property superclass.
The seaside resorts of the South-East follow, with a premium of 44 per cent. East Anglia, with its creeks, marshes and rustling reed beds, comes next, at 41 per cent. In Scotland, the premium is 31 per cent, and in Wales 27 per cent.