Property news round-up with Beverley Brown
Statistics published by Registers of Scotland (RoS) for the quarter July to September 2016 show the average property price was £170,309, a miniscule 0.6 per cent rise compared with the same quarter last year – and a long way off the highest 9.7 per cent rise reported in East Renfrewshire, which also showed the highest average price of £246,120. Sales volumes in Scotland were down for the quarter compared to the previous year – but rose by 34.6 per cent in Clackmannanshire, making me now want to find out why. However, for those who pay close attention to statistical data, RoS advises these quarterly figures are based on a different (arithmetic) methodology to the recently published RoS monthly House Price Index, which uses a geometric mean. Confused? Me too. Suffice to say homeowners in East Renfrewshire have cause to be chuffed.
The opening of the Borders Railway a year ago raised expectations for house prices in the vicinity of the three new Borders based stations at Tweedbank, Galashiels and Stow. To date, despite more than a million passengers tripping down the line, it transpires the reality has been a damp squib rather than a property boom.
However, according to chartered surveyors DM Hall, homes that do come on the market are selling faster, making the margin between Home Report valuation and sale price the narrowest for years – and councils are quietly reinforcing the railway effect with a string of developments intended to capitalize on the new line.
Richard Clowes, director of the firm’s Galashiels office, comments: "All in all, the market is performing well, even into the late autumn phase and there has been no significant effect from the UK Brexit vote."
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