Your Move has carried out their latest Scotland House Price Index. Last week Your Move released their Index that illustrates the average house price is £173,862. This average figure is a 3.3% increase from last year and means that the price of houses has risen by 1.4% since February. It is thought that a restricted supply of houses is pushing the price of property up.
The Your Move Index has shown that the average property prices for Scotland are nearly at a two-year high. The Index also shows that the house prices has grown 3.3% in comparison to the 3.1% rise that has been found in England and Wales. The average level of property is at their highest since March 2015 at £173,862. It is thought that the property price growth is down to the performance of Edinburgh and Glasgow. Scotland’s largest cities have seen a property price increase of 8.4% over the course of a year. Due to the lack of housing supply in this area, the price of property has increased significantly. The price increase has also been caused in part by the interest and investment from overseas buyers that are working to try and create affordable student housing. Other areas that have seen a steep increase in their housing prices are Stirling, Angus, The Shetland Islands and South Lanarkshire. Stirling has reached a new peak after a 6.6% increase in February meaning that property in the area has grown 12.2% annually. Angus has seen an annual increase of 7.2%, The Shetland Islands has an increase of 9.4%, South Lanarkshire of 8.2%.
The cause for this property increase is not certain, there could be a range of different reasons the housing prices have gone up including the supply and demand of property on the market. First time buyers in Scotland are still boosting the price of property, as flats have seen a 5.1% annual growth. The increase of the housing prices in Edinburgh and Glasgow has also led to an increase in the time it takes to sell property in these areas. This is because of the imbalance of the housing supply and demand.
