Bournemouth was very sparsely populated and the haunt of fishermen and smugglers (allegedly) until 1810, when Lewis Tregonwell officially founded it as a health resort/spa town. The arrival of the railway in the mid-18th century boosted it further until it was officially recognised as a town in 1870.

It has notable Victorian architecture – parts of the splendid Royal Bath Hotel were built in 1838 abd St Peter's church was completed in 1879. Its growth continued in the early 20th century and two art deco theatres were built as well and the Bournemouth Pavilion was built in 1925.

Although Bournemouth didn't suffer extensive bombing in the 2nd World War, the sea front was heavily fortified which meant destruction of buildings and original fixtures such as lampposts.

There has been substantial redevelopment in Bournemouth and it now has a university; this has brought even more people to the town. You can find 20th century properties from every era in the town, particularly semi-detached homes and there are very recent developments and plans for more home building.

Bournemouth contains Sandbanks, a very rich enclave, which has some huge modern detached properties, many of which are unique, architecturally. The Christchurch area has older period properties and some detached houses with thatched roofs. 

There are plans to build 875 new homes at Roeshot Hill in Christchurch and for 35% of these to be affordable, from small starter homes to large family homes.