POLL: Marazion is runner up in list of best places to own a second home

Marazion has been named the second most desirable place in the country to own a second home, in a list complied by The Times.
The ancient market town near Penzance has beat off competition from other places in Cornwall such as Mousehole, St Ives and Polzeath, which arguably would have been more obvious choices.
In its explanation of what is great about the town which looks out on St Michael's Mount, The Times says: "A dreamy stretch of white sand that is popular with children and windsurfers".
The newspaper goes on to report that a prospective buyer could expect to pay up to £500,000 for a period house with a seaview.
The only other place in Cornwall to get a mention in the list is Treyarnon Bay on the north coast near Rock, which is described as being popular with families for its "convivial" atmosphere.
Charlotte Somers, who works in Marazion, said it is a good place to be.
She said: "I concur that it is one of the most beautiful places in the UK and its diverse history (one of the oldest chartered towns in Cornwall and an important centre of commerce during the 18th Century with fishing and mine exports) coupled with it being a thriving town of artists, galleries, its own museum and post-office and lovely cafes, pubs and an award-winning restaurant – Ben's Cornish Kitchen – do make it an attractive place to live and work – and that's before we get onto the stunning views."
VisitCornwall boss Malcolm Bell said these types of list did not necessarily help the communities they hoped to promote.
"The danger with some of these lists is people go 'oh, I must buy a home in Marazion or Treyarnon," he said.
"I know these lists are popular but they are often not that well thought through because you do wonder about these two places. I would have thought other locations would have come up earlier and the danger is you create demand that was not already there."
Mr Bell said that there were a number of different types of second home and some could be beneficial for Cornish communities as long as they were not all concentrated in one place.
He added: "If you end up with two many second homes in a place, two things can happen; you tend to push the local community out or strain the local community and they can become ghost towns in winter."

The Times' 30 best places for a second home:
1. Askrigg, North Yorkshire
2. Marazion, Cornwall
3. Ilmington, Warwickshire
4. Combe Martin, Devon
5. Ashbourne, Derbyshire
6. Aviemore, Highlands
7. Hayling Island, Hampshire
8. Cookham Dean, Berkshire
9. Lavenham, Suffolk
10. Painswick, Gloucestershire
11. Freshwater, Isle of Wight
12. North Berwick, East Lothian
13. Loddon, Norfolk
14. Great Malvern, Worcestershire
15. Tenby, Pembrokeshire
16. Porthmadog, Gwynedd
17. Ambleside, Cumbria
18. Rhosneigr
19. Christchurch, Dorset
20. Market Bosworth, Leicestershire
21. Filey, North Yorkshire
22. Whitby, North Yorkshire
23. Sheringham, Norfolk
24. Rye, East Sussex
25. Seaham, County Durham
26. Treyarnon Bay, Cornwall
27. Woolacombe, Devon
28. Brockenhurst, Hampshire
29. Helmsley, North Yorkshire
30. Holy Island, Northumberland