Recession hits Salcombe.....

The recession has arrived in Salcombe with a bang! In the past few weeks Salcombe has lost:

Jack Spratts
Simply-Salcombe
Restaurant 42
Marine Hotel (for the winter)
Kingsbridge has lost The Kings Arms Hotel.

The housing market has practically died on it's feet with virtually no sales in Salcombe since July.

The Marine Hotel closing for the winter is not really a surprise as summer must have been a total wash-out. I had a friend staying there for the red arrows and he managed to book a sea front room at a weeks notice. Apparently Christmas bookings were 60% down on last year! It's a shame for the effected staff as jobs are in short supply in the surrounding area.

Surely the new owner should have got his act together and used this downtime to start the redevelopment? Incidentally I am still unconvinced by the proposals....

Put all this against the increase in car park charges and boat park prices and you have to ask what the council are doing to help this situation????

Lets hope the Christmas period brings a few people into the town.

New Owners for Salcombe's Restaurant 42

The lease on Restaurant 42 has been sold to the owners of the Salcombe Delicatessen. It's not a restaurant I have been to so I can't pass comment on it's quality and if it's demise is a bad thing, but the prices suggest it should have been very very good! However prices are often misleading ...especially in Salcombe where most things are overpriced!

I am hoping it won't follow in the footsteps of the Delicatessen which has become far too poncy for it's own good.

The name is apparently going to be "Dick and Will's Waterside Bar" which to me suggests it may be somewhat pretentious...however, I will reserve judgment.

Let's hope it adds to Salcombe for everyone and not just the wealthy...not since the early days of "Spinnakers" has this restaurant had a decent reputation in the town. Is that about to change? I have my doubts...

Property Prices Plummet in Salcombe & Surrounding Area!

I know the press are doing their best to talk us into recession - which they appear to have done - but plummeting house prices are doing little to allay our fears.

Take for example this property on the sought after Curlew Drive in West Chalreton, just up the estuary from Salcombe.

This house started out at £2.65m about 18 months ago. The original property was bulldozed to make way for this monstrosity which was put up by the same developers that were responsible for the redevelopment of the Bolt head Hotel in Salcombe.

The land was purchased for £1.1m and the development costs for this 6 bed house must have come in at £400,000+ as they had an army of builders on site for at least 10 months.

With the price now at £1.7m (and still no takers) profit margins look pretty small for the developers!

This is a great lesson in the same kind of arrogance that has bought down some of the worlds major banks. Why would anyone pay £2.65m for this truly awful property...no thought was given to making the house fit in with the surrounding properties or what the property may look like from the estuary, the developers just jumped on the Salcombe/South Hams property gravy train by creating a property that would only be attainable to the truly rich. However, this time it appears to have been a painful lesson is pure unadulterated greed!

What a shame eh???