Buying A Beach Hut

Where To Look For Beach Huts
Buying A Hut

When Tracy Emin sold her Whitstable-based beach hut to Charles Saatchi for £75,000, the world suddenly looked afresh at beach huts, and wondered what all the fuss was about. But should you buy one?

By Dave Amos

The History Of Beach Huts

Once the reserve of grandparents, beach huts have officially become hip once more. Their origins lie with the functional and wheeled Victorian 'bathing machines' - there to protect the modesty of their occupants and hide them from the prying eyes of paddlers and seaside donkeys.

The slightly less uptight Edwardians, enjoying mixed bathing, had them de-wheeled and planted into the sand, merely as somewhere to change, and hang up their stiff collars and whalebone corsetry. It was about then that people recognised how pretty and picturesque a line of beach huts was. Their cute dimensions and candystripe colours somehow epitomised British seaside culture.

It's hard to imagine any other country in the world where you could you sit - with no sense of irony whatsoever - outside a linoleum floored shed containing a kettle and a Gaz camping stove, and have a name plate boasting the word 'Shangri-La' or 'Dunroamin' above the door. There is definitely something quintessentially British about sitting outside what is essentially, a shed, with a flask of tea and sandy sandwiches, with a look on your face that says, 'we've arrived'.

Where Will You Find Beach Huts?

Though there are a few beach huts in Scotland and Wales, the majority can be found lining the coasts of the south and east coasts of England.

Four red, white and yellow beach huts on a beach

How Much Will One Cost?

Despite the downturn, Southwold in Suffolk is probably the most celebrated of 'beach hut towns', with prices ranging from £8,000 to £40,000. Ridiculous as those prices may seem for a dwelling, which you may well lose forever in a brisk wind, the record is currently held by a Mudeford hut.

Mudeford Spit is a sandbank, bordered by Christchurch Bay on one side, and Christchurch Harbour on the other.

There are about 300 beach huts situated on the sandbank, and they are unique because from March to November it is possible to sleep in them overnight. This goes some way to explaining the £100,000 price tag, though with no toilet, you'd still have to walk along the beach for a wee just like everyone else.

Can You Hire A Hut?

Ownership of some beach huts has been passed down through generations and is now, understandably, being held onto tenaciously. Huts can be hired, though renting one could mean a wait of anything up to six years.

Before You Buy Or Hire

Look into the beach's rules on the beach hut's use. For instance, are you able to stay overnight in yours once in a while? Can you put solar panels on the roof? What colour can you paint it? Are there any extra hidden fees? Check, too, what the local facilities? Where are the nearest loos? Bear in mind that a beach hut usually has no water or electrical supply, too.