10% Of Us Own Second Home

According to a recent study by Nationwide 1 in 10 people own a second property in the UK and a further 14% would consider buying one.They added that if all those considering actually bought an additional home, then almost 1 in 4 Britons would own a second property, which makes the Chancellors decision to cut capital gains tax from 40% to 18% good news for many.

The most popular reason for buying a second property was as a buy-to-let investment, cited by 55% of people, while a third bought a second place for personal use and 7% let out their second property as a holiday home.

Just under a third of buyers looked at proximity to shops and entertainment, 22% opted for somewhere close to relatives, 19% said having a property that was on the coast was important and 18% looked for a natural beauty spot.

The most popular place to buy a second property is the South East of England at 17%, including locations such as Kent and Hampshire, followed by the South West at 14%, particularly Devon and Cornwall.

Nationwide senior economist Martin Gahbauer said: "Purchasers of second homes, be they for personal use or to let out, are an important source of housing demand and have probably helped push up prices in many areas of the country."