Year-on-year increase in selling prices and sales volume in Scottish property market

The volume of residential sales was up 1.8 per cent compared to the same period in 2017 and the total value of residential sales rose by 5.1 per cent compared to the previous year.

Clackmannanshire saw the largest increase in average selling prices (up 16.2 per cent) and the greatest increase in total value (up 28.4 per cent), during these three months compared to the previous year. East Lothian saw the greatest increase in sales volumes, rising by 21.0 per cent year-on-year.

From October to December 2018, properties in the capital saw the highest selling prices – the ROS data revealed the average selling price in Edinburgh from October to December 2018 to be £272,694, which was an 8.2 per cent increase compared to the previous year.

Glasgow was revealed to be the area with the highest sales volume in Scotland during this period, with sales in the city comprising 11.2 per cent of Scotland’s total sales volume at 3,233, which was a 1.9 per cent decrease on the previous year. However, Edinburgh wasn’t far behind, with the number of properties sold in the capital comprising 11.0 per cent of Scotland’s total sales volume at 3,188, which was a 4.1 per cent decrease on the previous year.

Outwith the Central Belt, properties in the Scottish Borders saw an 8.3 per cent increase in total sales volume compared to last year. The Borders also saw a small decrease in average selling prices, dropping by 4.8 per cent to £178,654. In Dumfries and Galloway, the average selling price rose by 4.1 per cent year-on-year while sales volume increases by 2.4 per cent.

In Aberdeen, the average selling price dropped by 4.3 per cent to £194,219 and the sales volume also decreased by 2.4 per cent. In Angus and Dundee, the average selling price rose by 4.1 per cent and the sales volume decreased by 0.3 per cent.

Paul Hilton, chairman of ESPC Scotland, said: “Over the last three months of 2018, both the average selling price and total sales volume in Scotland showed a small increase in comparison to the previous year. A shortage of properties has limited the market in recent years so the increase in sales volumes indicates more properties coming to market, which suggests that sellers are feeling confident in the current market conditions. However, as the average selling price is still increasing, it would appear that buyer demand remains relatively strong.

“Based on this data, the Scottish property market seems to be reasonable stable as we approach Brexit. However, it will be interesting to monitor the impact of leaving the EU on buyer and seller confidence in Scotland over the coming months.”