Dartmouth is one of the top 20 most expensive places to live in the South West.

The town boasts three separate property hot spots – all commanding prices around the £1m mark – in the latest nationwide survey of the most sought- after streets in the country.

Warfleet weighed in at number 11 in the South West region with an average house price of £1,099,000.

Just around the corner Castle Road came in at number 13 with an average house price of £1,077,000, while Sandquay Road, with its exclusive waterfront properties, took the number 20 slot with an average price of £934,000.

Estate agent Bob Hollies said he was not surprised Dartmouth was in the top 20 towns for house prices and pointed out he had recently valued one property at over £2m.

'People do fall in love with the town. It's a place to fall in love with.

'It has a pull that very few port towns have and the history here is phenomenal,' he said.

But district councillor Hilary Bastone said that while the town has some hugely expensive homes, it still boasts Townstal, one of the most deprived areas in Devon.

'It does show that there is a real contrast here between the rich and the poor, although it doesn't mean that the two communities don't work well together,' he said.

Mayor Paul Allen said it was no surprise the town has a huge property mark-up.

'If you look at the local estate agents over a number of years there has been a steady increase in prices,' he said, which has left the town way above the national average when it comes to house prices.

But he also pointed out: 'Dartmouth is a day to day working town and I think you get bits on the edge of any town that are like the icing on the cake.

'Houses like this are not just in Dartmouth.'

He said the town council was concerned about affordable homes for local people, particularly with the proposals to build hundreds of new homes on the edge of the town.

But he added: 'It's a fact of life that some people can afford more than others.'

The Lloyds TSB survey put London at the top of the most expensive streets tree nationally with homes in Holland Park going at around £5m.

In the South West, the town of Poole comes out tops with six of its streets featuring in the top 10, with the most expensive average house prices at £2m-plus.

Mr Hollies said that in the South West 'everyone talks about Dartmouth, Kingswear and Salcombe'.

In Dartmouth especially, people are prepared to pay high prices for homes by the waterfront 'with these exceptional 360 degree views up to the naval college and out to sea,' he said. 'These are the ones that really do fetch the money.'

Cllr Bastone added: 'It really is no surprise. I have been here since 1974 and in that time I have seen the rise in house prices.

'Dartmouth is a special place.'