Scottish property prices hit post-Brexit high

Residential property prices in Scotland rose 0.6% month-on-month in September, taking the average price above £170,000 for the first time since the vote to leave the EU, according to the latest Your Move/Acadata House Price Index.

The average price of a home in Scotland now stands at £170,762, which is more than £1,000 higher compared to August, while on an annual basis, property prices have grown by 2.5% since last September’s figure of £166,622.

The rise in property prices was fuelled in part by a sharp increase in transactions, with data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealing that 8,620 housing registrations were completed in June, up 20.9% month-on-month.

There was strong growth at both the top and bottom of the Scottish housing market in the year to September, with no fewer than three areas recording property price growth of more than 10% in the last year.

House prices in East Dunbartonshire grew by 10.3% to reach an average of £229,240 while prices in East Renfrewshire increased by 10.2% to hit £245,122.

At the other end of the scale, properties in East Ayrshire are now worth an average of £119,991, which is 10.1% more than a year ago.

On a monthly basis, Dundee City was home to the biggest house price growth. Prices in the city grew by 4.5% between August and September to reach £139,405.

The City of Edinburgh remains the most expensive place to buy property in Scotland. Home prices in the capital rose by 3.1% between August and September to reach £250,477.

Na h-Eileanan Siar remains the cheapest place to buy a home in Scotland, despite impressive growth of 7.6% in the past year. The average house price on the islands is now £102,455.

Christine Campbell, Your Move managing director in Scotland, said: “The Scottish housing market continues to show its resilience, despite facing a number of challenges in recent months.

“Tax changes earlier this year prompted many buyers to bring their house purchases forward, while the uncertainly surrounding Brexit could have shocked the market, but the overall picture remains very positive.” 

While most areas of Scotland saw house prices grow, some areas did experience a softening in prices. The Scottish Borders saw prices decline by 4.7% and in Aberdeenshire they fell by 4.2% year-on-year but overall only seven of the 32 local authority areas of Scotland saw prices drop on a yearly basis.

Alan Penman, business development manager for Walker Fraser Steele, one of Scotland’s oldest firms of chartered surveyors and part of the LSL group of companies, said: “While some areas face a specific set of challenges due to the ripple effect caused by the troubles of the oil industry, it looks remarkably like business as usual in the rest of Scotland.

“Transaction levels and house prices are performing well across all other areas of the country, for both high and low value properties.”