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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
National
Benjamin Roberts-Haslam

House prices keep rising in village that could be underwater by 2050

House prices continue to rise as demand grows to live in a village that could be underwater in the next 30 years.

Hightown is a popular village with more demand than supply despite the risk of it being submerged by water by 2050.

Just 14 homes were sold last year in Hightown, with an estimated 1,000 houses, and not all of them were on the public market.

READ MORE: Audi crashes into house after being driven on wrong side of road

Non-profit news organisation Climate Central has highlighted the severity of rising sea levels caused by the continued melting of the polar ice caps.

According to the organization, large parts of Merseyside will feel the devastating effects of climate change with coastal areas becoming submerged under sea level by 2050.

Climate Central claims the risk of flooding could be three times higher than previously predicted.

In the report, a map showed that Sefton is one of the worst affected areas in the region, and Hightown looks as though it could be lost to the sea in less than 30 years.

Despite this, the Ewemove director of Hightown explained that 99% of houses in the village are at low risk of flooding according to insurance providers.

Julie Hopkins, Ewemove director of Hightown, told the ECHO: "We check our properties before putting them on the market to see what flood risk they are. 99% of properties in Hightown in terms of insurers are low risk for flooding.

The areas of Merseyside set to be underwater by 2050. (Climate Central)

"We haven't come across any difficulties with it having sold properties on some of the roads closest to the sea. I did check before as well, there are just three properties on the market in Hightown so they're getting snapped up."

Julie, who has lived in the village for 12 years, also explained that the area has gone from the "poor sister" of Formby to its own exclusive village.

She said: "There were 14 houses sold last year in Hightown. We used to be the poor sister of Formby and Crosby but our average house price was £348,300 and yes, Formby's house price was higher at £353,300, but interestingly Crosby's average was £300,800 so we've outstripped Crosby in terms of prices.

"What's attracting people is the changes to people's lives post covid. People can be further out from the city centre.

"I think with Formby and Crosby getting busier, lots of buildings, people talked about getting that village appeal with Hightown as it's seen as what Formby was 40 years ago.

"There are roughly a thousand houses but it is a more exclusive postcode, L38, and whilst the demand outstrips what supply there is I can only see prices maintaining or rising. Nationwide, I was reading, pointed out this is the fastest pace rise for 17 years. I think it's 11.2% year on year.

"That could slow as it is going up faster than people's wages and affordability could become an issue but whilst the demand is there and there's not the supply of properties those prices are going to continue to rise."

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