THE housing market in Scotland has turned a corner as the number of properties changing hands and their values have both increased, says a report.
Estate agent Rettie and Co said house sales were up 13% in the three months to September, compared with the same period last year, and the past 12 months have also seen a 1.5% rise in the national average house price from £160,000 to just over £162,000.
The author of the Scottish Residential Market Quarterly report predicted a surge in property values of more than 20% in the next five years. It also anticipates housing sales will increase almost 50% over the same period.
Dr John Boyle, director of research at Rettie and Co, and one of the report's authors, said: "2013 is clearly the year that the housing market has turned the corner, breaking out of subdued conditions. The fundamentals are in place to ensure this recovery is on a steady footing, with higher levels of economic growth expected together with less restricted lending and improving consumer sentiment."
The figures suggest that although house values are up over the year, there have been large variations across local authorities.
The Shetland Islands benefited from a 25% increase in average house prices compared to 2012, the largest increase in Scotland. However Clackmannanshire's property values decreased 11% over the same period.
The report falls into line with similar findings from other recent housing surveys, including the Royal Institution Of Chartered Surveyors Residential Market Survey, the Halifax House Price Index and the Registers Of Scotland report, which have also shown an increase in prices and the number of transactions.
This year has been cited as a turning point in the housing market by many of these reports, due in part to the Government's Help To Buy scheme, which gives improved access to mortgage finance and is thought to be increasing demand among first-time buyers.
Simon Rettie, managing director of Rettie, said: "I have not witnessed such a major end to a year before. In particular, confidence in the main Scottish cities continues to build and transactional volumes increase. We anticipate this confidence continuing into next year."
Although the general trend across Scotland's housing sector is that of improvement, the country is still behind the rises noted in property hotspots such as London and the south east of England, where there have been fears of a housing bubble.
Housing prices in these areas continue to soar, with 75% of London's properties alone seeing an increase in value last month by 0.8%. The city's prices are expected to rise a further 32% over the next five years.
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