The average house prices in Scotland are on the rise
Scotland is experiencing its strongest property market for almost a decade despite the general election, Brexit, higher taxes and a chronic lack of supply, proving difficult for buyers to secure a new home.
The latest figures released by Registers of Scotland (RoS) indicate that the average price of a property in Scotland in July was £149,185 – an increase of 4.8% on July in 2016 and an increase of 2.8% when compared to the previous month.
The RoS also said the volume of residential sales in Scotland in May was 8,241 – an increase of 13.7% on May 2016, and an increase of 3.5% on the previous month.
Commenting on this increase, Registers of Scotland’s Business Development and Information Director, Kenny Crawford, said: “Average prices in Scotland continued their upward trend in July with an increase of 4.8% when compared to July 2016. This represents the biggest percentage increase year-on-year since March 2015.
“While average prices have been steadily increasing each month since March 2016, when compared with the same month of the previous year, sales volumes figures have been more changeable over the 12 months to May. May 2017 showed an increase in sales volumes in Scotland of 13.7% when compared with May 2016; however, volumes in May 2016 were lower than usual, a possible effect of the introduction of changes to the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax that came into effect on 1 April 2016.”
The top five local authorities in terms of sales volumes were the City of Edinburgh (1,094 sales), Glasgow City (899 sales), Fife (565 sales), South Lanarkshire (506 sales) and North Lanarkshire (396 sales).
Average price increases were recorded in 30 out of 32 local authorities in July 2017, when comparing prices with the previous year. The biggest price increase was in the City of Edinburgh, where the average price increased by 9.6% to £243,920. According to ESPC, the median selling time in Edinburgh is only 15 days! The biggest decrease was again in Aberdeen City, where prices fell by 7.7% to £166,836.
Across Scotland, all property types showed an increase in average price in July 2017 when compared with the same month in the previous year. Detached properties showed the biggest increase, rising by 5.6% to £255,993.
The average price in July 2017 for property purchased by a first-time buyer was £120,630 – an increase of 4.1% compared to the same month in the previous year. The average price for a property purchased by a former owner-occupier was £178,766 – an increase of 5.5% on the previous year.
If you are thinking of selling your property, please do get in touch with us by calling 0131 524 9797.