Village survey reveals extent of holiday lets

A survey has revealed that almost 50 per cent of properties in Alnmouth are second homes or holiday lets.
Alnmouth. Picture by Jane ColtmanAlnmouth. Picture by Jane Coltman
Alnmouth. Picture by Jane Coltman

In March, the parish council undertook a study of the village’s housing stock to establish how many houses and flats are permanently occupied.

Of the privately-owned properties, the survey found that second homes and holiday lets accounted for 49 per cent of the total.

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Following the results, newly-elected parish council chairman Shaun Whyte said: “The parish councillors felt that is was important that the council and the village should be aware of the situation and they intend to monitor future trends.

“To be honest, I wasn’t surprised by the extent of the situation, but during the survey, a lot of residents expressed concerns about the likely outcome.

“There is quite a big parking problem in the village and a large percentage of holiday lets don’t have any or adequate parking.”

While the survey shows that the village is being dominated by second homes and holiday lets, Coun Whyte concedes that a solution to the problem isn’t an easy one.

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He said: “The strategy is fairly limited to be honest. There is limited scope for new housing and I can’t think of any available plots, but there is a lot of speculative investment in the village and the parish council feels strongly that if a planning application is submitted which will add to the amount of accommodation or the value of the property, then we would like to see a 100 per cent residency condition attached to the planning permission.”