254: Property boom sees house prices in west surge £1,000 a month
Navigation trail: / latestnews / archive / 254 - published: 08-01-07
HOUSE PRICES in the west of Scotland soared by 12% last year, according to a new analysis by property experts.
Homes in the Greater Glasgow area gained around £1,000 a month, says the Glasgow Solicitors' Property Centre, despite forecasts year that home values would only grow very slowly throughout 2006. The average price of a property in Glasgow itself now stands at a high of £143,600.
Prices paid in the west Central Belt reflect another booming year in the property market in Scotland, with Edinburgh house price inflation just above 11%. Dundee and Aberdeen homeowners have fared even better with annual increases of 18% and 27% respectively.
Analysts said the feared dampening effect on the market of higher utility bills and interest rates - the Bank of England raised rates by 0.5% during 2006 - had not materialised. The forecast for Scotland as a whole during 2007 is of similar rises.
A spokesman for the GSPC, which covers all of west-central Scotland from South Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire to North Lanarkshire and Argyll and Bute, said: "The pace of house price growth has quickened steadily over the last 12 months, suggesting 2007 may see more of the same - at least in the first half.
"Significantly, annual house price inflation accelerated throughout the year, rising from a muted 2.9% in the first quarter to 3.8% in the second quarter, 8.2% in the third and ending the year up by 12.1%."
Some areas fared better than others, with the south side of the city a particular hotspot, the GSPC spokesman said.
Professor Gwilym Pryce, of Glasgow University's urban studies department, who conducted the analysis, said: "Annual house price inflation had been falling steadily since the middle of 2004, so it is extraordinary to see the market enter another clear upswing so soon. Discounting any unexpected external shocks, the chances are that we will see continued growth in prices in the first half of 2007."
In Edinburgh, the ESPC reported record levels of both sales and total sales value, with more than 11,500 properties - up 13.4% year-on-year - selling for more than £2.26bn (up 26.3%) in Edinburgh alone. The average price of a residential property in the city is just over £195,000, 11% up on 2005.
Source:
JEREMY WATSON - Scotsman.com