House-hunters are viewing more waterfront properties while these types of homes in the region command the largest premiums, according to new research.
South Cerney, Bourton-on-the-Water and Gloucester Docks are all proving popular in the county as the number of waterfront viewings across the UK rose 43 per cent year-on-year for the first four months of 2013.
A waterfront setting in the South West can result in an uplift of as much as 66 per cent, Knight Frank's annual Prime Waterfront Index shows.
In South Cerney, properties at Cotswold Water Park, can cost between £389,995 and £815,995.
In Bourton-on-the Water the average property value is £313,000 compared to £273,908 in Cheltenham, according to Zoopla.co.uk.
The average asking rent at Gloucester Docks is £789 per month, compared to £723 per month elsewhere in the city, the property website's estimates show.
However, Nicola Hughes, office manger at Steve Gooch estate agents in Newent, said while waterfront properties could be popular, it was important to consider flooding. "That's a real concern here," she said.
Prime waterfront properties in the UK are worth an average of 54 per cent more than their inland counterparts, Knight Frank research shows.
Waterfront settings in East Anglia and in the South East come next on the list after the South West, with uplifts of 43 per cent and 42 per cent respectively.
Christopher Bailey, head of Waterfront department at Knight Frank, said the waterfront market was performing well and was increasingly price sensitive.
He said: "Early indications in 2012 suggested that the UK waterfront market was beginning to bounce back and this proved to be correct. Since the latter half of 2012 demand for waterfront properties improved definitively.
"So far, 2013 has shown clear signs of continued growing buyer sentiment, reflected by an increase in viewings of waterfront properties across the UK between January and April
"Across the whole, waterfront market buyers are still prepared to pay premiums for their lifestyle choices but the market is increasingly price sensitive. "
He added accurate and realistic pricing was key to the successful selling of these types of properties. The estate agency has seen an increase in the number of sales agreed between £750,000 and £1.5 million, where properties were realistically priced and Christopher said he expected this trend to continue into 2014.
He added buyers and sellers were taking increased stamp duty levels into account. The tax rate on properties over £2million for general home-buyers rose to seven per cent last year.
Properties situated on estuaries command the largest premium in terms of waterfront location, with an average uplift of 82 per cent compared to equivalent properties a few miles inland, the research reveals.
Properties situated next to a river have an added value of 53 per cent, while lakeside homes see an average uplift of 37 per cent, up from 28 per cent last year.
Homes situated with direct access to water, such as moorings and pontoons, can double the value of a home.
