Everyone who knows that I live in Dorset and that I am a UK property search agent ask me “did you see the Piers Morgan programme on Sandbanks”. That is the series that ran for 3 nights on ITV and which showed you around millionaire homes and introduced you to many of the Sandbanks estate agents.

The truth is I cannot afford a million pound house or any other Sandbanks property, but not only did I watch it but I made a point of watching it, as did most of Dorset and the UK, who seem obsessed with this small peninsula of Sand, the life that goes on within it and of course the Sandbanks property prices!

So what impact has the three part series had on the area and what effects have we seen?

Well as you can imagine there has been increased interest in the area with people eager to know “is this really the UK’s answer to Monte Carlo?” Are the beaches as beautiful and the views as breathtaking as we saw? Is the lifestyle as opulent as discussed? Well the answer to all these questions is yes.

And this has certainly created more interest at Elite Property Search. Our phone lines have been busier and our website more frequently visited with people wanting information about how they can get a piece of the action on this tiny piece of land. We even took calls for people trying to get hold of Tom Doyle the local agent who claims that he started the phenomenon back in 1991, and whose appearance on this programme as well as the BBC Coast series hasn’t done his or Sandbanks exposure any harm.

But will the programme increase real demand for the area and push process up any higher? Well if you saw Piers almost tumbleweed reaction of unbelief to the prices quoted (and bearing in mind he is used to London prices!) you would probably think not. However it is true that Sandbanks is unique and just like the business man who recently paid £400,000 for the F1 number plate, there are people out there who will pay what may seem to some extortionate and extravagant prices to get what they want. As the old saying goes the value is “what the buyer is willing to pay and the seller willing to take”.

But how many £8 million pound buyers are there out there that would want to live in Dorset and who will pay that much for a house on an acre of land? Well herein probably lies the truth. There are some but very few who could afford to or would want to pay that price. Therefore, the reality is that a house on the peninsula will sell, but it will probably just take a little time.

But the good news for those of us who to live on the peninsula is just a dream, the real beauty of Sandbanks actually lies in what is free. The three miles of golden sanded beach, the views across the world’s second largest natural harbour, the access to a variety of water sports and activities, and the general laid back relaxing lifestyle which is on offer to you whoever you are and whatever your budget.

Max Storey is a director at Elite Property Search, who specialise in exclusive property search across the south of England, London and the Home Counties.