Friday, October 10, 2008

Beach huts: shedlike atmospheres or luxury boltholes?

Luxury boltholes, according to Alex Wade in The Times. As she says: "Our love affair with all things coastal shows no sign of ebbing away, so much so that even as financial markets implode the world over the humble beach hut still holds its own." However, a more sombre comment is made by Elliot Caldwell, the head of Colliers Capital and expert in property investment fund management, who says:
“Beach huts are wonderful things but in the current market I wouldn't see them as anything other than for family use. They're certainly not an investment product.” Wise words, but if anyone is likely to ignore them, it is the beach hut aficionados of the kingdom by the sea."
Well worth a browse.

2 comments:

  1. God I think it is NUTS to say a beach hut is not an investment vehicle. Given that some of them have sold for HUNDREDS of times their original price, they are loads better than some rubbishy old RBS shares. AND RBS shares don't allow you to have a cup of tea whilst watching the tide come in

    ReplyDelete
  2. Just a word of caution: Mudeford sandbank beach huts fetched over £120,000 five years ago bu the coiuncil took £15k in a transfer fee! This has now reached a £33k transfer feee and huts have started to lose value, a recent one sold for £90k and with the transfer fee might only have realised £60k, half the likely figure achievable in 2003. The transfer fee may be dispensed with as sales have stalled, independently of the credit crunch it is arguable, but the revenue costs or annual fee will maybe be @2.6k as a resuilt. So not such a good investment these days!

    ReplyDelete