Flintshire, located in the north of Wales, was an historic county until it was reallocated to become one of several unitary authorities on 1 April 1996 under the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994. It borders the counties of Denbighshire, Cheshire and Wrexham County Borough and has a population of around 215,000 people. With its coastline on the Irish Sea, Flintshire includes major tourist resorts in Rhyl, Prestatyn and Llandudno while being in close proximity to Snowdonia National Park and Offa’s Dyke Path. In 2009/10 there were 136,355 households in Flintshire. Of these 92% (124,510) were owner-occupied, 4% (5,935) were rented from social landlords (local councils or housing associations), and 2% (3,095) were rented privately. The average household size was 2.0 people. In Flintshire, 90% of homes are semi-detached or terraced houses.