House prices surge ahead across Angus despite Brexit.

PROPERTY: New peak of £184,569 as growth rises to 5.5%, trouncing rest of UK

Scotland’s housing market is in a good position to face any challenges that lie ahead, experts said as the average cost of a home hit a new high.

The latest House Price Index by Your Move/Acadata found the average price in Scotland stood at a new peak of £184,569 in October.

Annual price growth that month rose to 5.5% when compared with the same point in 2017, the highest rate since April.

The growth rate was five times the average price growth of 1.1% seen in England and Wales in October.

Alan Penman, of chartered surveyors Walker Fraser Steele, said: “Despite any uncertainty surrounding Brexit, the Scottish market could hardly hope for a better position from which to face whatever challenges the next few months bring.”

The index attributed the rise to a general gradual increase over the last three years, and “a turnaround that has seen a return to monthly increases after falling prices during the summer”.

Edinburgh and Glasgow were described as contributing significantly to the overall figures in Scotland.

In the capital, prices were up around 10% on the same time a year ago to £285,077, while Glasgow witnessed a yearly jump of around 9% to £164,689.

Overall, 26 of Scotland’s 32 local authorities saw prices rise over the year, with East Dunbartonshire, Argyll and Bute, Angus, Clackmannanshire and the Western Isles among those said to be showing “real strength”.

The report stated: “Despite the growth, the market is not entirely immune to Brexit uncertainty.

“While much of the increase in prices is supported by low mortgage rates, good wage growth and high employment, it is also due to short supply. Buyer demand is strong, but uncertainty means sellers are in no hurry to put their properties on the market.”

Given the uncertainty pervading just about every corner of life at the moment, it is perhaps surprising to learn house prices have hit a new high. While not necessarily good news for first time home buyers desperate to get their foot on the first rung of the property ladder, in general terms a buoyant housing market can fairly be seen as a decent indication of consumer confidence.

Scotland, in particular, recorded a huge annual price growth of 5.5% in October – dwarfing the 1.1% witnessed south of the border.

The average home in Scotland now costs just under £185,000, and prices are on the up throughout Courier Country.

The future may be shrouded in doubt, with some form of Brexit firmly on the horizon, but experts say the housing market “could hardly hope for a better position from which to face whatever challenges the next few months bring”.

Amid all the doom and gloom it certainly appears to represent a welcome piece of good news.

Yet, even among the optimism, a note of caution has also been sounded with a report stating the housing market is “not entirely immune” to Brexit uncertainty. While buyer demand is encouraging, many potential sellers are wary about going to market – thus creating a vicious cycle of stifled supply and inevitably resulting in higher prices.

As ever, there are two sides to every story.