Property market defies Brexit concerns

● But increasing anxiety over impact of UK’S exit from EU on value of homes

Scotland’s property market is defying uncertainty over Brexit and is on course to hit a new record value above £18 billion in 2019, according to a new survey.

But the figures come against a backdrop of increasing anxiety over the impact of the UK’S exit from the EU will have on the value of homes, the latest Property Monitor from law firm Aberdein Considine said.

It said a major poll of homeowners found 50 per cent of people in Scotland fear their property will decrease in value after Brexit.

The survey said the value of homes sold in Scotland in the third quarter of 2019 reached £5.3 billion, up £100 million on the same time last year.

More than 28,000 home changed hands during the quarter, bringing the total value of sales in 2019 to £13.3 billion.

Twenty local authority areas saw the value of homes sold rise, with the Western Isles registering the biggest increase, at 24 per cent.

While Edinburgh retained its now customary position as the largest market in Scotland, with some £860 million of sales – a rise of 4 per cent – surrounding areas registered even higher increases.

Midlothian was up 22 per cent at £122 million, West Lothian up 12 per cent at £168 million, and East Lothian rose 10 per cent to £169 million.

Areas beyond the traditional powerhouse markets of Edinburgh and Glasgow also helped boost the sales figures with Stirling up almost 13 per cent, and Dundee rising 3.4 per cent to £107 million.

The market in the North-east continued its emergence from the oil and gas downturn with sales in Aberdeenshire up 4.1 per cent, and the overall value of property sold in Aberdeen and the Shire hit almost £1.2 billion for the year, up £24 million on last year.

Sean Macmillan, Aberdein Considine property partner in Edinburgh said: “There has, over the third quarter of the year, been a sharp increase in the number of Scots who fear that Brexit will result in the value of their home decreasing.

“There is clearly homeowner anxiety around Brexit, but this has yet to be reflected in sales figures, perhaps due to the greater public having little idea what Brexit will actually look like.

“With another extension in place, we would expect to see these fears ease in Q4 as a new Parliament is elected. The make-up of that parliament will have a big say on what market sentiment will be going into Q1 of next year.”

In a further sign of strong demand, Aberdein Considine’s analysis of the new build market showed that the current average new build price is now at its highest level since the financial crisis, £231,686, up 7.6 per cent on 2018. The cost of a new build home in Edinburgh is now £294,577, a 2.1 per cent rise, and both East and Midlothian stood out with respective increases of 12.2 per cent and 10.1 per cent. West Lothian reached £234,250, a 5.1 per cent uplift.

Average prices throughout the country were buoyant, and not just in Edinburgh, which cemented its place as the most expensive place in Scotland, up 2.5 per cent to £273,604.