These are the most - and least - affordable seaside homes

Oh we do like to be beside the seaside, living beside the sea especially.

And there is now a guide detailing most expensive - and affordable - coastal towns on the property market.

An analysis of house prices in seaside towns across England, Wales and Scotland found buying by a beach des res is pretty reasonable on average, coming in at £264,528, although this is 14 per cent higher than current national average £232,401 property price.

At an average cost of £619,431, Sandbanks in Poole is the priciest seaside spot to settle in across the UK, 167 per cent higher than the UK average.

Also ranking within the top ten least affordable seaside property resorts are; Salcombe (£602,667), Aldeburgh (£507,143), Lymington (£482,071), Dartmouth (£458,051), Southwold (£447,855), Padstow (£433,812), Lyme Regis (£425,238), Bigbury on Sea (£416,965) and Hayling Island (£400,678).

At the other end of the scale, the most affordable locations lists 15 of 20 within Scotland, with eight of the top ten most affordable seaside towns also being in Scotland.

Campbeltown is the most affordable of the bunch, with an average house price of £71,500, some 69 per cent lower than the UK average.

Outside of Scotland, Blackpool in Lancashire is the most affordable resort in England and Wales with an average house price of £93,104, with Southport proving a more expensive choice in the county at £207,527. Newbiggin by the Sea is the second most affordable spot at £99,017.

Over on the East Coast, the property average in North Yorkshire’s Robin Hood’s Bay is £242,364, closer to the UK average, while Whitby commands an average £238,262 for a home, and Scarborough £153, 498, which is down 34 per cent on the national average figure.

Property expert Colby Short, of GetAgent.co.uk, said: “As a nation, we love to be beside the seaside, as the recent hot weather has demonstrated despite lockdown restrictions remaining in place.

“However, on average, the cost of living there will set you back above and beyond the wider UK average.

“It’s also clear that the house price ripple effect isn’t just confined to the outer boroughs of London and it’s clear that as a number of seaside hotspots have increased in value, smaller neighbouring towns have also seen the benefit of this overspill in demand.

“If you can’t afford to live in Padstow for example, opting for nearby Wadebridge provides the next best option and while it isn’t cheap in itself, it still provides a serious property price discount in the region of fifty thousand pounds.

“Of course, this heightened demand for these ‘next best’ options will often cause prices to increase and so the downside to this is a reduction in affordability in the long term.

“That said, areas such as the Sandbanks that are extremely sought after at the top end of the ladder have since seen demand fall off and prices fall due to an over-inflated market.

“While these areas will always carry an air of prestige and attract a certain type of buyer, in tougher market conditions they are often first to see the largest corrections in price as demand falls off and asking prices suffer.”

Analysis of house prices was carried out by GetAgent.co.uk in 100 coastal towns across the UK.