Property news roundup: Home insurance premiums down nearly 10 per cent

Plus, waterside properties in the South West

One bedroom property for sale by auction on July 17 2014: The Toll House, 47 Temeside, Shropshire SY8, on with Allsop at a guide price of £75,000

Average home insurance premiums are now £124 or nine per cent lower than in spring last year.

The new report from MoneySupermarket indicates that homeowners in Bolton and Brighton have seen the biggest falls in premiums, by 23 per cent and 14 per cent respectively. There were also double digit falls in Southampton, Colchester and Exeter.

According to the figures, the cost of home insurance has fallen in all 121 postal areas over the past year and is at its lowest in more than four years, falling by more than a fifth since 2010.

Waterside properties in the South West

Following the reopening of the mainline railway at Dawlish after the winter storms, increased confidence in the market and the launch of a number of new developments, the south west is now back on the map for second home buyers, according to local property experts.

"Our research shows that some of the previous waterside ‘new home’ buying trends are now returning, with buyers for the North Devon and North Cornwall coastlines tending to come from Bristol, the Midlands and South East, whereas for the East & South Devon coast they tend to from the Home Counties," said James Gibbs, Land & New Homes Director from agents Jackson Stops. "With the launch of a variety of new waterside development schemes in key locations there is an increasing interest from out of region buyers."

He added that the number of new build second home buyers is also increasing and pointed to the Sails new build scheme at Dartmouth as an example of a property overlooking an estuary.

Tony Dowse, Chairman of Environ Communities, the developer of Sails said: "Waterfront properties on an estuary like Sails are in a sheltered position, yet still benefit from the lifestyle of living on the water. The constant ebb and flow of the tide also creates a wonderful environment for wildlife, making it a very idyllic place in which to live."