Some coastal towns and villages in Wales have become extreme hot spots, and not only due to the record-breaking summer temperatures. They are locations where property is in high demand, supply is decreasing and prices are rapidly heading upwards.
Most property experts agree that the Covid pandemic has added a sense of urgency for many house hunters, and even prompted people to look for a new home in a dream location who weren't even thinking of moving pre-pandemic.
The property market in Wales has felt the full force of this rush of people entering the chase, looking for a different location in pursuit of a quieter or different lifestyle, or deciding not to wait to fulfil their property location dream such as escaping to the country or being close to the sea.
Some buyers have been panicked into relocating their lives in what was known during the busiest house buying episode in 2021 as 'the race for space' to accommodate extra burdens on their current property, such as working from home.
The combination of these main house hunting factors saw some areas of Wales, once more reasonable slices of the Welsh property market, become over-heated and the nation as a whole continually at the top of the list from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for the region with the highest rise in average house prices in the UK. Find out more about that here.
So, to find a house that still has value to add via a full renovation project in one of Wales' most popular and pretty seaside towns has now become a rarity, and likely to get potential buyers over-excited.
Tenby is one of the gems not just of the county of Pembrokeshire but within the whole of Wales - two beautiful beaches, one attractive and cute harbour, masses of pretty period properties and oodles of history is a winning combination that has tempted people to want to call it their home.
The town that can also boast independent shops and eateries as well as the double beach option also attracts an army of holidaymakers every summer, either using the town as a base to explore the county beyond or as a day out at the seaside to remember.
Properties in Tenby had an overall average price of £277,879 over the last year according to property portal Rightmove, brought down to a lower level by the majority of sales being flats. But don't think a flat is the way to find a bargain home in Tenby; during the last year they were still selling for an average of £248,462 - well above the ONS's Welsh national average price of £213,000 for a whole house.
And if you want a detached property you will need to find on average £421,889, and one of the huge pretty pastel properties on the top of the cliff overlooking the sea will set you back over £1m. Take a peek inside one of these £1m properties here.
If the combination of history, oodles of space and a project that can add value to create a dream home by the sea is a tasty one for you, and you have the hefty budget needed to buy it and update it, then this seven-bed stunner just around the corner from the sea might satisfy your hunger for the perfect Tenby property.
The house has parking, a rear courtyard garden, is close to South Beach and the town centre, and offers an abundance of space over four floors, but surely its main selling point is that it is an exciting renovation project.
A quick rummage on Cadw's website reveals the house, which dates back to the 1800s, doesn't appear to be listed, although double checking with the estate agent selling the house is always a wise move before even contemplating what the spaces inside could become. The house might not have a listing but that doesn't mean it's not special - just one look at the first floor metal balcony with its intricate ironwork and veranda-style roof should get you swooning.
Coupled with the detailed fascia boards and a section of carved frieze below the roofline, the balcony is what makes the facade of the house stand out from the other houses on the street and packs an impressive first visual punch.
The inner front door supports the period property features already offered by the facade with a glorious stained glass design that includes the surrounding door structure - what an absolute gem once it has been restored back to its former glory.
The accommodation starts with a hidden layer - a below ground cellar that is ripe for converting into a fabulous cinema room as it has no windows, or the best party room complete with dance floor, bar and disco lights. Or, you could be very practical and use it for storage or as a workshop, the function that the previous owner of the home used in the cellar.
The ground floor has a sitting room at the front and a large floor-to-ceiling timber single pane bay window as a period feature to shout about, and it's also worth noticing the deep skirtings and the layered cornicing that add extra character.
There might be the possibility of updating the fireplace to add a more period appropriate version as an inner focal point, and if the floorboards are in good order they are worth sanding to add an extra layer of character. Next door, the dining room offers you a view out to the garden down the side of the rear kitchen. This room also has a fireplace ripe for renovation, a timber floor and a single pane window that might be advantageous to change to a set of French doors out into the garden to help the refreshing sea breezes find entry into this space.
The kitchen is a very generous size with a surprise feature fireplace and easily has enough space to add an eating area to create a family-friendly, sociable kitchen diner, and adding doors out to the garden in here too would enhance the room further.
At the end of the ground floor layout is a bonus wet room and a bedroom that has a surprise semi-vaulted ceiling with exposed beams. If the abundance of bedrooms is enough for a new owner in the main section of the house, this room would make a lovely room if bi-fold doors to the garden were installed, or a fantastic home office, away from the potentially noisier areas of the property.
Up to the first floor and arguably the best room - the space that opens out onto the ornate balcony that also has cornicing, deep skirtings, picture rails and a fireplace with boarding that could be hiding a period gem behind it.
This room is listed as the master bedroom but again if seven bedrooms are not required it could be the most attractive room in the house. Imagine the space as a perfect, posh drawing room, offering elevated views to the street and sea at the end of it and classic period French doors to open and connect the sociable space to the bonus outside space.
There are two bedrooms and a bathroom at the rear of this first floor level, plus a separate toilet that is most unusual as appears to be surrounded by a wooden structure with lifting wooden panel that maybe is more reminiscent of a historic Welsh castle than a seaside Georgian abode.
The final floor at the top of the property has four more bedrooms but no bathroom, so again a rethink and reworking of the space is an option here to create maybe two incredible bedroom suites with ensuites, or a standard double bedroom and a master bedroom with ensuite and a walk-in wardrobe and dressing room.
However a new owner decides to renovate, restore and transform this incredible property, it's a diamond embedded in one of Wales' coastal location crowns that, once polished, will make a shining and pretty dream home by the sea.
The house is for sale for offers in excess of £585,000 with estate agent Birt & Co - call the Tenby branch on 01834 842204 to find out more. And don't miss the best dream homes in Wales, renovation stories, and interiors - join the Amazing Welsh Homes newsletter, sent to your inbox twice a week.
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