Property prices soar by 16.2% as Scotland outstrips rest of UK
HOUSE price inflation doubled in the year to April, boosting the cost of an average home in Scotland to another record high.
Prices soared by 16.2 per cent over the 12 months, almost double the 8.6 per cent annual growth seen up to March.
The inflation outstripped the UK average and brought the cost of a typical Scottish home to £188,000, according to latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Rents also increased the most of anywhere in Britain, by 3.1 per cent in the year to May.
ONS house prices statistician Chris Jenkins said: ‘Wales and Scotland saw the highest growth, with London, again, growing the slowest. Rental prices continued to grow steadily overall.’
But while Scottish house prices have rocketed, they still remain lower than the UK average of £281,000. Buying in Scotland is also more affordable as wage increases have outpaced those of the UK.
Average Scottish earnings have risen by 6 per cent, compared with the UK figure of 2.7 per cent since the start of 2020, Bank of Scotland revealed. So while Scotland has seen record prices of late, the house price to earnings ratio is also more favourable.
On average, buyers need around five times the average annual salary to purchase a home, compared with seven times for the UK.
Renfrewshire is the most affordable place to buy property in the UK, costing around three times a year’s wages. In Edinburgh, prospective buyers need almost seven times their annual salary.
Meanwhile, West Lothian was the only region to see affordability worsen compared with 15 years ago, according to the bank.
Graham Blair, mortgages director at Bank of Scotland, said: ‘With the average Scottish house price hitting an all-time high in recent months, in one sense it’s never been more expensive to move home or take your first step onto the property ladder. With Scotland facing the same cost of living pressures as other parts of the UK, we’d expect the rate of house price growth to slow later this year.’