Why are house prices in Scotland rising so fast?
04-26-2018
Average Scottish property values are growing at six times the rate of those in England and Wales
By Ele Clark
The average house price in Scotland in February was £182,936 – up an impressive 7.3% on the same period in 2017.
This signifies a much stronger performance than in England and Wales, where house prices only increased by 0.7% year-on-year. Of the 32 local authorities in Scotland, 28 saw average property values grow year-on-year. Prices also reached record highs in 10 of those areas, according to the Your Move Acadata Scotland House Price Index.
This means that Scotland is now seeing its highest year-on-year house price growth since April 2008 (which was at the end of the last housing boom). So what’s causing it? If you’re considering buying a property and want expert, impartial advice on your mortgage options, call Which? Mortgage Advisers on 0800 2942 849. What’s happening to Scottish property prices? Over the past year, Edinburgh has been responsible for 28% of the increase in Scottish house prices.
In part, this may be explained by the number of properties for sale being well down on previous years, making for a competitive market for buyers – and, as a result, higher prices being paid.
The Glasgow market is also performing well, with properties there accounting for 14% of house price growth in Scotland. But it’s not just the big cities that are booming. In terms of year-on-year increases, East Renfrewshire has seen the highest house price growth in Scotland, up by 15.1% (£35,740, on average). In total, seven areas saw double-digit growth. You can see activity for each local authority in Scotland in the table below.
| Rank in 2017 | Rank in 2018 | Local authority area | Feb 2017 | Jan 2018 | Feb 2018 | Monthly change | Annual change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | City of Edinburgh | £250,810 | £260,446 | £279,521 | 7.3% | 11.4% |
| 3 | 2 | East Renfrewshire | £236,643 | £254,335 | £272,383 | 7.1% | 15.1% |
| 2 | 3 | East Dunbartonshire | £239,512 | £256,958 | £261,582 | 1.8% | 9.2% |
| 6 | 4 | East Lothian | £204,922 | £230,964 | £228,289 | -1.2% | 11.4% |
| 4 | 5 | Aberdeenshire | £212,748 | £216,738 | £217,150 | 0.2% | 2.1% |
| 8 | 6 | Midlothian | £197,897 | £203,822 | £212,121 | 4.1% | 7.2% |
| 5 | 7 | Stirling | £207,183 | £198,494 | £200,497 | 1.0% | -3.2% |
| 7 | 8 | Aberdeen City | £200,271 | £198,230 | £197,841 | -0.2% | -1.2% |
| 9 | 9 | Perth and Kinross | £191,012 | £190,851 | £193,601 | 1.4% | 1.4% |
| 11 | 10 | Scottish Borders | £170,614 | £194,155 | £192,122 | -1.0% | 12.6% |
| 10 | 11 | Highland | £172,634 | £181,403 | £185,956 | 2.5% | 7.7% |
| 14 | 12 | Argyll and Bute | £158,419 | £162,186 | £168,399 | 3.8% | 6.3% |
| 12 | 13 | Angus | £161,014 | £158,108 | £166,365 | 5.2% | 3.3% |
| 16 | 14 | Moray | £153,185 | £162,809 | £165,515 | 1.7% | 8.0% |
| 13 | 15 | Shetland Islands | £160,773 | £169,798 | £165,498 | -2.5% | 2.9% |
| 18 | 16 | Fife | £146,880 | £162,425 | £165,319 | 1.8% | 12.6% |
| 17 | 17 | West Lothian | £151,856 | £166,652 | £164,201 | -1.5% | 8.1% |
| 20 | 18 | Glasgow City | £144,971 | £158,695 | £160,076 | 0.9% | 10.4% |
| 15 | 19 | South Ayrshire | £153,224 | £153,743 | £152,342 | -0.9% | -0.6% |
| 19 | 20 | South Lanarkshire | £146,212 | £152,832 | £151,796 | -0.7% | 3.8% |
| 26 | 21 | Falkirk | £132,138 | £145,083 | £149,303 | 2.9% | 13.0% |
| 22 | 22 | Renfrewshire | £135,770 | £147,493 | £146,910 | -0.4% | 8.2% |
| 21 | 23 | Dumfries and Galloway | £137,784 | £143,041 | £143,634 | 0.4% | 4.2% |
| 23 | 24 | Orkney Islands | £135,385 | £150,644 | £142,495 | -5.4% | 5.3% |
| 25 | 25 | Clackmannanshire | £134,568 | £134,692 | £142,278 | 5.6% | 5.7% |
| 24 | 26 | Dundee City | £134,872 | £138,948 | £137,183 | -1.3% | 1.7% |
| 27 | 27 | North Lanarkshire | £121,906 | £128,076 | £131,293 | 2.5% | 7.7% |
| 28 | 28 | Inverclyde | £119,771 | £116,779 | £122,499 | 4.9% | 2.3% |
| 30 | 29 | North Ayrshire | £113,595 | £117,074 | £118,021 | 0.8% | 3.9% |
| 32 | 30 | West Dunbartonshire | £106,452 | £118,497 | £116,359 | -1.8% | 9.3% |
| 31 | 31 | Na h-Eileanan Siar | £107,709 | £109,097 | £116,309 | 6.6% | 8.0% |
| 29 | 32 | East Ayrshire | £117,155 | £112,113 | £114,901 | 2.5% | -1.9% |
| Scottish average | £170,534 | £178,909 | £182,936 | 2.3% | 7.3% |