House prices rise in Scotland
Prices booming in Ebinburgh
Thursday, 28, Aug 2008 03:03
House prices in Scotland have continued to rise, bucking the national trend, according to the latest figures.
The Registers of Scotland finds in figures released today that the average price for a property north of the border has increased by 3.6 per cent over the second quarter of 2008.
When compared with the same quarter of 2007, prices have increased by 6.4 per cent.
This is in comparison to the largest fall in nearly two decades, of 10.5 per cent, reported earlier today by the Nationwide building society.
As a result of the falls, the average property in Scotland now costs £155,691.
This is just £8,963 below the figures for the UK as a whole, £164,654, which is usually buoyed by higher prices in England. The closing gap illustrates the robust nature of the Scottish property market when compared with the situation south of the border.
However, it is important to note the Scottish figures cover all residential sales, including sales for cash not involving a mortgage. Such sales are unlikely to have suffered such a dramatic impact from the credit crunch, allowing sales to remain stronger.
While the Registers of Scotland did not the volume of sales slowed by 19.4 per cent compared to the same quarter last year, there was an increase of 12.8 per cent on the previous quarter, reflecting an expected seasonal increase.
The City of Edinburgh local authority area has again recorded the highest average residential price at £221,209. This has increased by 6.2 per cent since the last quarter and is up 5.9 per cent compared to the same quarter last year.
The highest year on year increase, at 14.3 per cent, is in the West Dunbartonshire local authority area, where the average house price is now £119,120.
This is up 3.4 per cent from the last quarter.
Finally, the total value of sales across Scotland registered during the quarter was £4.8 billion which is an increase of 16.9 per cent over the previous quarter and a decrease of 15.9 per cent over the same quarter last year.
Chris O'Toole