HOUSE hunters face paying more than a quarter of a million pounds on average to buy a house in three of Scotland’s council areas, research shows.
A surge in property values in East Renfrewshire and East Dunbartonshire – home to the upmarket suburbs of Newton Mearns and Bearsden respectively – and Edinburgh means the price of a typical home reached £250,000 this year.
Fewer homes going on the market and a rise in demand from buyers saw prices rise across Scotland, including a jump of 5.5 per cent in Glasgow.
Prospective homeowners can now expect to pay £166,155 on average – the highest figure registered this year – to buy a home in Glasgow, according to estate agents Aberdein Considine’s Property Monitor.
Meanwhile, the effect of the downturn in the oil and gas industry has been laid bare in separate figures that showed 20% was wiped off the property market in Aberdeen at the worst point of the crisis.
Edinburgh remains the most expensive place in Scotland to buy a home, with an average price of £267,035, a rise of 3.8% compared to last year.
East Dunbartonshire rose by almost 10% to hit £251,547, with house prices in East Renfrewshire seeing a 1.4% uplift to £265,240.
Douglas Telfer, partner at Aberdein Considine in Glasgow, said: “While we are still very much in the early stages of the oil and gas recovery, it’s great news, and, hopefully, this will continue to filter through to the rest of the country.
“High demand in Glasgow and the surrounding areas saw strong demand for all types of property, with the south side and west end as desirable as ever.
“Given the shortage of stock and level of competition, we are seeing a definite willingness among buyers to pay over Home Report Valuations, in some cases by up to 30%, and this is pushing up average prices.”
He added that continuing political uncertainty could put a brake on further rises, but this could be evened out by a pick-up in the fossil fuel sector.
Mr Telfer said: “We can’t ignore the ongoing turbulence in relation to Brexit,
as well as the corresponding uncertainty this is causing to both businesses and
homeowners, but, hopefully, any boost from the energy sector will provide some insulation against the challenges we might face over the next few months and years.”
An analysis of the north-east by Savills also found the property market was improving, despite the impact of the crisis in oil and gas in 2014.
Simpson Buglass, head of the estate agent’s Aberdeen office, said: “Four years on since the oil price crash, the Aberdeen area residential market has undergone a period of severe adjustment. From peak to trough, the annual number of residential transactions fell by 31% and the average house price in Aberdeen City dropped by 20%.
“There are signs of cautious optimism. An increase in the price of oil has supported a stable residential market for much of 2018. With hopes of moderate economic growth over the next few years, the market is ripe for recovery."
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