Over the years, he watches as the lanes around his shop and smokehouse are gradually conquered by the holidays. With the mouth of the River Esk on one side and the Gothic ruins that inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula on the other, it is easy to see why. But, says Brown bluntly, there are now so many cottages “the city has been destroyed.” Lack of parking is a common complaint. the skyrocketing cost of real estate is different. The average home price here was 5 245,405 last year, according to RightMove – an increase of almost 30 per cent from 2019. For those accustomed to London prices, this may seem quite affordable. But for anyone working in the tourism sector that drives Whitby’s economy, the cost of buying is prohibitive and, they say, there are few properties available for rent. The hospitality bosses complain that the situation is exacerbated by staff shortages. “People out of town want jobs here, but there’s nowhere to live,” said Darren Harrison, director of The Bridge Inn. And those whose properties here are not their main residence will not look for local work. If the problem persists for a while, Whitby’s popularity among second homeowners skyrocketed during the pandemic. Last summer, real estate agents saw a shopping frenzy. “We probably had 20 [buyers] is interested in every property “, says Alison Conn to Jacksons Estate Agents. Out-of-towners made offers without even seeing the houses. “They were selling maybe .000 15,000 more than the asking price.” Some of the buyers were Londoners, but many were from the so-called Golden Triangle of Leeds, Harrogate and York. Few had buyer regrets. “Some cottages are back on the market now because there are staffing problems and the owners can’t get people to serve them,” says Conn.
