Whether you are selling your property or looking to buy a flat, semi-detached residence or a house, the latest statistics from the UK House Price Index Scotland – March 2023 make for interesting reading.
The big picture
If you are selling your home, you may welcome the latest statistical findings – released on 24 May 2023 – that show the average price of a home in Scotland in March 2023 was £184,877 – a 3% increase over the past 12 months. Furthermore, on a ‘non-seasonally adjusted basis,’ analysis reveals that average house prices in Scotland increased by 0.7% between February 2023 and March 2023. However, if figures are calculated for ‘seasonal adjustment’, there has been a 0.1% decrease in average property prices between February and March this year.
Property type
In recent blog posts, I’ve highlighted the consistent demand for detached homes in Scotland. While there are regional variations in property values – see below – the latest statistics continue to suggest detached houses enjoy the highest annual percentage change across all property types. The latest UK House Price Index Scotland: March 2023 reports an increase of 4.9% to an average detached property value of £339,717 over the past 12 months. Notably, semi-detached properties have recorded a 4.9% average annual price increase over the same period to £199,073 (in March 2023).
This is likely to be welcome news if you are planning to sell your property.
Though a more modest increase, the same source reports that flats and maisonettes have recorded a 1.7% annual percentage change, increasing to an average price of £124,952 over the 12 months to March 2023.
Depending on your circumstances, this could be news you read with delight or dismay. Certainly, a lower increase may help the likes of first-time buyers from an affordability perspective. However, as I outline below there are definite variations in pricing depending on the location in which you hope to buy.
Regional variation
The highest annual percentage change was in East Lothian, where average house prices increased by 8.6% in the 12 months to March 2023 to £317,000. By contrast, the lowest annual percentage change was over 100 miles north in the City of Aberdeen. The ‘Granite City’ has seen average house prices decrease by 6.9% in the 12 months to March 2023 to £132,000. Further analysis reveals that the City of Edinburgh continues to be the most expensive area to purchase a property, with an average price of £324,000. By contrast, the cheapest area to purchase a property is Inverclyde, where the average annual cost (to March 2023) was £110,000.
A glance of other local authority areas reinforces the importance of buyers carefully considering the pro’s and con’s of their preferred location and in particular in the context of affordability.
For example, analysis of the annual price change by local authority shows that in addition to East Lothian, the Northern Isles and Outer Hebrides (Na h Eileanan Siar), several other local authority areas have recorded over +5% increases in average property price over the past 12 months. This includes East Ayrshire (5.2% increase to £126,284), Argyll and Bute (5.8% increase to £191,050), Perth & Kinross (8.4% to £244,396) and West Lothian (7.5% increase to £205,526).
By contrast, the likes of the City of Dundee (1.6% increase to £141,344), Falkirk (0.4% increase to £158,855) and Fife (2.1% increase to £168,224) have shown more modest increases. Note that the City of Glasgow has recorded a 0.7% decrease (to £163,791) in average property price.
While these statistics are interesting and can offer you as a buyer or seller an indication of the strength or otherwise of property prices in your geographical area, statistics should just be treated as a guide. Furthermore, from a seller’s perspective, it’s important to remember that every property is unique and will command its own selling points.
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