Sales records from estate agents on Alto’s software have revealed the ten UK seaside locations where buying a holiday home makes the strongest investment.
Topping the table was picturesque Southwold in Suffolk, comfortably outperforming the rest as values rose 94% in a decade, moving from £231,236 to £448,106.
Runner-up was Sandbanks in Dorset, often dubbed the millionaires’ playground, where prices leapt 93% from £664,655 to £1,282,565.
North Yorkshire’s Saltburn-by-the-Sea finished third, with an increase of 75% lifting values from £129,363 to £227,022.
The study comes from Alto, a provider of property management software whose system connects with more than 6,000 estate agents across the country.
Beginning with a list of the UK’s favourite coastal holiday home hotspots, the firm then narrowed it to the ten showing the sharpest price growth over the last decade.
Rental values in these ten spots have risen by broadly similar margins.
The complete figures, together with an explanation of how the ranking was put together, are published on the Alto website.
Commenting on the findings, Riccardo Iannucci-Dawson, CEO of Alto, said: “Seaside holiday homes can still be a great investment if you pick the right place.
“The best reason to buy a seaside home is to have a wonderful place where you can relax with your loved ones and earn good rental returns when you are not there.
“They can be a fantastic investment if you look at the data carefully and pinpoint where prices and rental yields have grown most over the last decade.
“Southwold narrowly beat the more famous Sandbanks because its percentage rise was greater but all the locations in the top ten would make good investments and will provide a good return in the long-term.
“Prices shot up for seaside homes during Covid as people looked to escape cities for a simpler life.
“There was a correction after that and holiday home taxes in the form of punitive second home council tax charges in some popular areas have also affected the market.
“But global warming is making many parts of Europe too hot in the summer and British coastal resorts are an increasingly attractive option for many holidaymakers.
“Alto data allows agents to analyse long-term sales and rental data, going back decades, to highlight the very best holiday home investment opportunities.”
Created with estate and letting agents in mind, Alto is Britain’s number one AI CRM software, combining sales, lettings, property management and client accounting within a single platform.
The system is relied upon by around 35% of UK estate agents, with users cutting their paperwork by an average of 10 hours a week.
UK’s top performing seaside holiday locations over the last decade
- Southwold, Suffolk: up 94% from £231,236 in 2016 to £448,106 in 2026
- Sandbanks, Dorset: up 93% from £664,655 to £1,282,565
- Saltburn-by-the-Sea, North Yorkshire: up 75% from £129,363 to £227,022
- Croyde, Devon: up 68% from £439,975 to £740,747
- West Wittering, West Sussex: up 63% from £598,788 to £977,282
- Padstow, Cornwall: up 60% from £443,396 to £711,458
- Falmouth, Cornwall: up 59% from £226,217 to £360,332
- Burnham Market, Norfolk: up 56% from £457,050 to £715,452
- Margate, Kent: up 54% from £202,276 to £312,195
- Salcombe, Devon: up 53% from £539,950 to £828,630