The average house price in the Dales last year was £350,548, according to the UK House Price Index, compared to £270,733 in the neighbouring High Peak, which is also a tourist hotspot.
And recent figures from Derbyshire Dales District Council show there were 35,595 residential properties in the area in May 2024. In October, 1,053 of these were second homes, while 1,302 were holiday lets.
However, in some villages in the Dales, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) says second homes and holiday lets make up a quarter of all residential units.
The LDRS also recently quoted a report in The Times and Inside Airbnb, which found the district had one of the strongest concentrations of Airbnbs in the Midlands.
Dee says: “Tourism benefits everyone – there’s local jobs promoted by tourism – but at what cost?
“A couple of the houses near us are all holiday homes, so it’s really quiet. There aren’t people at the play group for me to hang out with, because there aren’t people here.
“We have to think about the balance between tourism and people actually living in the villages that give them their soul and heart, because people otherwise are going to be visiting and there will be no village community for them to enjoy.”
She added: “I think we’re at the point of giving up already. It’s really sad to think of, because all our friends are here, and you imagine your child going to the school near where you live.”
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