HOUSE sales rose slightly last month as a higher number of first-time buyers looked to make purchases before the end of a duty concession, according to a report.

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Scotland said the looming end to the current stamp duty holiday partly lay behind a small increase in newly agreed sales in January.

From March 24, first-time buyers purchasing homes worth between £125,000 and £250,000 will no longer be exempt from paying the 1% duty.

However, despite the findings, Scottish sur-veyors said they did not expect the withdrawal of the two-year duty amnesty to create a huge rush from buyers.

The details were contained in RICS's latest UK housing market survey.

In other findings, surveyors recorded a steady increase in the number of new buyer enquiries in January and reported prices and sales are expected to remain steady going into spring.

In addition, the number of surveyors who reported homes were coming on the market rose to its highest level since April last year, which RICS said suggested sellers were feeling more con-fident about the housing market.

RICS Scotland director Sarah Speirs said: "The good news is that sellers are returning to the market after the usual end-of-year break and surveyors in Scotland expect house prices to remain fairly steady."