More people are buying their homes outright with numbers of sales registered with a mortgage down by more than a third in a decade.

It comes as house prices in Scotland have risen by 20 per cent in l0 years taking the total value of the residential sales market to £148.2bn.

The Registers of Scotland's property market report, which details the trends in the land and property market over the decade’s peak years, said rises came even in the wake of the economic downturn.

There was a drop of 36.9 per cent in the number of sales being registered with a mortgage.

The total number of sales registered with an accompanying mortgage was 78,814, down from 124,837 over the decade stretch.

The average annual volume of residential sales per year was 95,662.

Kenny Crawford, RoS director of commercial services, said the Scottish property market is a significant contributor to the economy north of the Border.

He said: "In 2015-16, the total value of residential sales alone was £16.7 billion.

"We’ve also seen an increase in average house prices over the decade, up 19.7 per cent between, from £139,207 to £166,624."

Bob Fraser, senior property partner at solicitors Aberdein Considine, said more growth is expected.

Over the last decade, all local authority areas recorded an increase in average price, the highest being Aberdeen with an increase of 52.7 per cent, rising from £140,842 to £215,037.

Average prices grew the least amount in Glasgow City, where they rose just three per cent from £133,504 to £137,474.

Edinburgh consistently held the highest average price across the decade, with the exception of 2013-14 when both Aberdeenshire and East Renfrewshire surpassed the Scottish capital with average prices of £218,088 and £217,544 respectively, as compared with £216,950 in Edinburgh.

Over the last 10 years there was a 16.9 per cent increase in the number of residential properties sold for £1 million-plus.

Mr Fraser said: "The oil and gas industry slowdown has cooled this in the past 18 months, but over the past decade, the Aberdeen market has proved to be a fantastic investment.

"It is now a buyer's market in the region.

"However, I think another double-digit growth over the next decade is possible, so now is actually a good time to take advantage of competitive prices and buy.

"Nationally, what I would say is that while we have seen good growth since the recession, the volume of sales still hasn't reached the levels we saw prior to the financial crisis.

"This tells me that there is still room for growth and that we will continue to see prices rise, particularly in places like Edinburgh and Glasgow."

The RoS 10-year property market report draws data from every property transfer in Scotland, including those that do not include a mortgage, making it claim to be the most comprehensive property transaction report in the country.

The news comes as the selling prices for two-bedroom flats in coastal parts of Edinburgh rose, according to a separate analysis.

The average selling price of two bedroom flats in Portobello and Joppa increased by 38.3 per cent over the last three months, according to the latest analysis from ESPC.

The price is now £206,055 and has been driven by sales of flats on Argyle Crescent, Joppa Terrace, John Street and James Street.