Gimme shelter: boom time for second homes

The number of second or “holiday” homes in the UK has grown in the last year despite a tough economic climate, a study has found.

Cornwall has the largest number of second homes in the UK, while South Hams in Devon has the highest proportion of such homes at almost one in ten, said PrimeLocation.com.

The total number of holiday or second homes across the UK rose from 246,026 in 2010 to 246,494 last year.

Nigel Lewis, a property analyst at the website, suggested that low returns on savings could be encouraging people to try to pick up a bargain in the hope that the value of their second home will rise more strongly in the longer term.

He highlighted “the poor rate of return being offered by more traditional investments such as bank deposits, stocks and shares and even Isas, leading many to see a second home as a more promising place to invest in the medium- to long-term”.

Tower Hamlets in London featured in the top ten, with those behind the study suggesting this area was popular with City workers looking for a weekday base.