LANDLORDS buying up property ahead of tax changes sparked a mini boom in the Scottish housing market which saw sales reach their highest point for eight years.

New figures show that the the amount of property changing hands jumped by 18 per cent compared to last year, with the surge put down to flats and terraced homes being gobbled up by buy-to-let owners.

However, the overall average house price has fallen as most of the property changing hands have been at the lower end of the market, while more higher-value properties were sold at the beginning of 2015.

However, a strong series of sales in the £1m bracket mean that East Renfrewshire is now home to Scotland's most expensive housing market, pushing Edinburgh off the top spot after four years.

Your Move's monthly house price index found that sales grew ahead of the introduction of a 3 per cent Land and Buildings Transaction Tax surcharge on second homes in April.

The move, similar to measures introduced by Chancellor George Osborne, will help raise cash after a £33 million black hole in the revenues expected to be raised by the initial implementation of LBTT on residential property was identified earlier this year.

Rising sales were strongest in March ahead of the 1 April LBTT cut-off date, with a 21 per cent increase on the same month in 2015 recorded by Your Move.

Christine Campbell, Your Move managing director in Scotland, said: “This short-term boost in sales has been fertilised by the

flurry of buy-to-let and second home buyers, eager to purchase before the introduction of the 3 per cent surcharge on Land and

Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) in April.

"The growth has ensured that this has been the strongest March for property sales in eight years.

“While house price growth is down year-on-year, it’s important to remember that this was due to the huge spike in house

prices back in March 2015, following a rush of sales brought forward to avoid the introduction of the LBTT.

"But with buy-to-let landlords opting to buy flats and other more affordable properties, this hasn’t translated into too much price

turbulence."

According to Your Move's figures, the average price of property in East Renfrewshire is now £244,095 - the highest in Scotland and an increase of more than 8 per cent on last year.

In Glasgow, prices fell by 7.8 per cent, to almost £134,000, while the biggest drop was in Aberdeen as the gloom surrounding the oil industry shaved more than £50,000 off the average house price.

Midlothian saw the highest growth in sales during the first three months of the year, jumping 48 per cent, with much of the growth spurred by new build houses and the arrival of the Borders railway line.

Faisal Choudhry Director of Scottish Research at estate agent Savills, said that the area had undergone a transformation in recent years.

He said: "Over the last five years Midlothian has been performing ver successfully in terms of residential sales, fuelled by the new build numbers.

"I remember visiting and there were 20 new build sites on the go. The reason for the demand is people from Edinburgh coming out and looking for more affordable housing than in the city., but still within easy travelling distance.

"And the new Borders railway has definitely made a difference now that it's been completed."