Property Market Update June 2017

Scottish property market shows resilience as house price growth and sales fall across the rest of the UK

This month, the BBC and various other news outlets reported the latest Halifax House Price Index which showed an easing in the growth of property prices across the UK as a whole, with year-on-year house price increases dropping from 3.8% in April 2017 to 3.3% in May 2017.

The latest monthly house price index from Registers of Scotland paints a slightly different picture of activity north of the border, however.

Registers of Scotland’s latest publication shows that the average price of a property in Scotland in April 2017 was £145,734. This represents an increase of 6.8% when compared with April 2016 and an increase of 5.4% when compared to the previous month. These figures may give comfort to anyone who is currently thinking of selling their property but who was concerned with the recent UK media tide of reports of a house price growth slowdown.

Registers of Scotland’s Corporate Director, John King, commented:

“Average prices this April showed the highest year-on-year increase since March 2015, when the average price increased by 10.4% compared to the year before, and there have been increases in every month since March 2016 when compared with the same month of the previous year.”

When looking at volumes of sales, Registers of Scotland reported that the volume of residential sales in Scotland in February 2017 was 5,662, representing an increase of 2.8% on February 2016 but a decrease of 10.2% on the previous month. By contrast, annual decreases in sales volumes of 18.2% have been experienced in England, 8.8% in Wales and 28.5% in Northern Ireland. This is the third consecutive month that sales volumes in Scotland have bucked the trend of the rest of the UK.

As we have previously written about in this Blog, our own experience is of a continued shortage of supply versus demand. This has continued to keep competition for properties fierce and has also led to a reluctance amongst potential home sellers to put their own property on the market before they secure their next home.

What’s been happening in your local property market?

According to the latest report released by ESPC, property prices across East Central Scotland increased by 3.3% year-on-year for the period of March to May 2017, from £214,511 to £221,522. This annual percentage increase is the same the period fro February to April 2017.

Their statistics seem to back-up our own experience, with the number of fresh properties coming to the market falling by 6.7%, annually, between March and May 2017, compared to a drop in sales of just 4.6%, annually, in the same period.

Further evidence of the continuing sellers market can also be seen in the decrease in selling times across East Central Scotland, with the median selling time down from 23 days to 18 days, while in Edinburgh the median time is down to just 15 days.

This only serves to reinforce the continuing fierce competition between potential buyers, as well as the fantastic results, in relatively short time frames, that can be experienced by anyone who takes the plunge and sells their property in these market conditions.

It is understandable that the current market could be daunting for those looking to buy their next property, prompting them to hold-off putting their own current home on the market until they have secured their next one. If you find yourself in that position at the moment, there are steps you can take to reduce the potential impact of selling before you buy whilst still benefiting from the fantastic selling conditions of the current marketplace and will find a load of helpful tips here in our YouTube video.

We’re Here to Help

If you are thinking of selling your home or investment property in 2017, please do get in touch with us by calling 0345 646 0208 (Option 1) or by emailing [email protected] to organise a free valuation of your home or to get a full, transparent breakdown of the costs of selling your home.

Our expert Valuation Department can help you with suggestions to maximise the appeal of your home to buyers and get the best possible price if you are selling, can discuss selling before you buy, or help with any other property sale related questions you might have.

For more tips about preparing for a property valuation, you can also check out our YouTube video, Getting the Best Possible Property Valuation.