Scottish house prices rising faster than UK

Increases of up to 7.3% in a year

‘Edinburgh is most expensive’

SCOTLAND’S house prices are rising faster than the rest of the UK, defying fears over the impact of Brexit on the property market.

Figures just released by Registers of Scotland show that house prices went up on average by 3.5 per cent north of the Border in November, compared with November 2018.

By contrast, the percentage rise for the rest of the UK was 2.2.

The increase is despite the fact the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax in Scotland is higher than Stamp Duty, applicable in the rest of the UK.

In Scotland, property price increases were seen in 29 of the country’s 32 local authority areas, where huge individual discrepancies were discovered.

The annual rise was 7.3 per cent in the Falkirk area, to an average of £129,550, but prices plunged by 6.4 per cent in Aberdeen to £144,928. Edinburgh remains the most expensive place to buy a home in Scotland – at an average of £277,600.

Registers of Scotland deals only in statistics, offering no reasons why house prices rise in some areas, but fall in others.

The drop in Aberdeen’s property prices has been blamed on worsening fortunes for the oil and gas industry.

The recovery of the price of oil has yet to filter through to the city’s property market.

Scotland’s homes are on average much cheaper than south of the Border. The average UK price now stands at £235,298, £80,500 more expensive than Scotland’s average of £154,798.

The average London property price of £475,458 is more than three times that of Scotland.

Janet Egdell, of Registers of Scotland, said: ‘Scotland’s house prices grew at a faster rate than the UK in the year to November 2019. While house prices in the UK rose by 2.2 per cent over the period, Scotland saw a rise of 3.5 per cent.

‘However, the average house price in Scotland was £154,798, whereas in England the average price stood at £251,222. In London, the average was £475,458.

‘Prices vary across Scotland, with the highest-priced area to purchase a property being City of Edinburgh, where the average price was £277,600, and the lowest-priced area being East Ayrshire, where the average price was £95,941.’

Detached houses showed the largest increase, rising by 4.3 per cent in the year to November 2019 to £266,320.