The property market across East Central Scotland saw a very positive start to 2015, according to the ESPC.
Its latest report shows that there was an 11% rise in house prices for the first quarter of 2015 compared to the previous year, taking the average house price to £207,618.
One section of the market that saw particularly high growth was the Marchmont/Bruntsfield area of Edinburgh, where the average price of two bedroom flats rose by as much as 21%. Dunfermline in Fife saw prices rise by even more, with a 30% increase in the first three months of 2015, compared to the same period the previous year.
Looking at the figures for the individual month of March, they reveal a 9% increase on an annual basis in the number of house sales. There was also an increase in seller activity, with a 7% increase in the number of homes on the market compared to the previous year.
In addition, properties appear to be moving quicker, with an 18% drop in the median selling time compared the first quarter of last year. The positive news continues, with the figures also revealing that 46% of properties achieved their Home Report valuation over the quarter, compared to 38% last year.
“As predicted the percentage of new upper-mid market properties registrations has slowed this month with the change now in place,” commented Paul Hilton, ESPC CEO, referring to the introduction of the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax on 1st April. “We now expect the change to encourage the movement of more affordable properties, with all properties sold for under £333,000 now paying less tax and properties under £145,000 paying no tax all, where previously we saw this threshold at £125,000.”
“Along with these tax savings, new Government initiatives to help first time buyers and also the increased availability of pension funds, means that there is the potential for the buy-to-let sector to contribute to the movement of properties,” he added. “Increased activity at the lower end produces a domino effect up the chain which makes way for a healthy state of the market going forward.”
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