An eight-foot wooden beach hut could fetch up to �15,000 after it was put on the Dorset property market.

The hut, on Monmouth Beach at Lyme Regis, is one of a row of similar properties and is the fourth to go on the market.

The others, all of which are "day huts" and cannot be used for overnight stays, went for prices ranging between �10,000 and �15,000 - three times their value five years ago.

Estate agent Owen Davies, from Palmer Snell, said his firm has a list of more than 50 people waiting for the huts to come on the market.

Area feature

"There is a limited number of them, and in this financial climate, there are lots of people with spare cash who want them as a kudos thing," he said.

Five years ago the huts, which have been a feature of the area for more than 100 years, were selling for up to �3,500.

A larger two-bedroomed chalet nearby was recently sold for �69,000.

While in east Devon, a tiny wood and brick hut which was converted into a home, has been put onto the market for �59,950 and is said to be under offer.

The 15-foot by 10-foot home in Sidford - called The Cabin - has one main room with a kitchenette and shower extension and an upstairs mezzanine bedroom, which is four feet at its tallest.

Last month, a former public toilet in Dorset sold for �37,000.