East cost seaside towns in Scotland see greatest price increases
The old saying ‘We Do Love to be Beside the Seaside’ is proving true for the property market with new research showing that five seaside towns in Scotland have recorded at least a doubling in house prices since 2004. A further 20 coastal towns out of a total of 60 surveyed have recorded price increases of at least 50% since 2004, the research from the Bank of Scotland shows.
All five towns where prices have doubled, or more, are on the Aberdeenshire coast. Fraserburgh has experienced the biggest rise with a 139% increase from an average price of £53,641 in 2004 to £128,418 in 2012. Peterhead at 116% and Macduff at 115% have seen the next biggest gains, followed by Cove Bay at 108% and Inverbervie at 100%.
Partly due to the substantial rises in the top performing towns, the average house price in Scotland’s seaside towns rose by 45% between 2004 and 2012, exceeding the 36% increase for the whole of Scotland. The most expensive properties are along the eastern coastline, creating an east/west divide in house prices in Scottish seaside towns, with nine of the 10 most expensive seaside towns being located on the eastern coastline.
North Berwick is Scotland’s most expensive seaside town with an average house price of £327,518. St. Andrews is the second most expensive at £261,446, followed by Stonehaven at £211,413 and Inverbervie at £202,144.
Quote from PropertyCommunity.com : “The number of first time buyers in Scotland rose in the second quarter of 2012, bucking the overall UK trend, according to new figures released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders.”
The research also showed that eight of the 10 least expensive seaside towns are in western Scotland. Girvan is the most inexpensive in Scotland with an average price of £75,325. All 10 least expensive towns have an average price below £100,000.
Girvan is also the most affordable seaside town in Scotland with house prices, on average, 2.3 times local average gross annual earnings – Girvan is followed by Wick at three and Stranraer on 3.1. The least affordable seaside towns are North Berwick with prices on average 10.2 times local average gross annual earning, followed by St. Andrews at 9.1.
‘Seaside towns are highly popular places to live in Scotland as they offer a unique lifestyle with a typically high quality of life and a healthy environment,’ said Nitesh Patel, housing economist at the Bank of Scotland. ‘A number of seaside towns have recorded substantial house price increases over the past decade, predominately on the east coast. Towns in Aberdeenshire have performed particularly strongly, largely reflecting the strength of the local economy over this period,’ he added.