£1m homes hot property in Covid boom
BUYERS in Scotland are snapping up £1 million houses as the coronavirus crisis sparks a rush for top-end property.
Before Covid-19 restrictions in March, homes worth more than £500,000 were typically slower to sell north of the Border.
However, since house sales resumed at the end of June, the market has been turned on its head and luxury homes sell fastest.
Industry insiders report huge interest from London buyers and expats living in Hong Kong. One leading estate agent even described the housing market as ‘explosive’.
A red sandstone villa in Glasgow’s Newlands went on sale on August 11 for offers over £950,000 – and was sold for more than £1 million by the end of the month. Website Zoopla has suggested that Scotland’s homes are the fastest-selling in Britain, often within two weeks.
But it seems prime properties are being snapped up even faster. In Edinburgh, a stylish mews house at offers over
£1.25 million attracted a buyer within three days. And St Catherine’s, a seven-bedroom, six-bathroom mansion at Cairndow, Argyll, sold within days of being advertised for £675,000. Another trend emerging is the high number of cash buyers. When one
Art Deco property went on the market last month in Newton Mearns, Renfrewshire, for £630,000, ten of the 12 people who viewed it offered cash. Owner Kathie Reid said: ‘It went on the market on Monday lunchtime and by Wednesday we had accepted a written offer.’
Borders estate agent Ron Hastings said: ‘I have never seen anything like it. In August, we sold 42 properties, our highest figure ever.’