House prices in Scotland returned to growth in November 2017, rising 0.3% and raising average annual growth in the country to 3.5%, from the 3.3% recorded in October.
That compares with just 0.9% in the same month for England and Wales. Only the South West of England at 5.3%, the North West at 3.9% and Wales at 3.6%, are growing more strongly.
The increase means the average home in Scotland at the end of November was worth £175,882, up £6,016 on a year before. Transaction levels are also strong. Sales in the eight months to the end of August were up 5.4% on the same period in 2016 at 66,786 – the highest number in close to a decade.
Christine Campbell, Your Move managing director in Scotland, said: “The market in Scotland looks strong compared to almost anywhere else in the UK. A lot of that is down to the resilience of the market in Glasgow, but the performance has been good across the board. 2017 proved to be a positive year for the market.”
Alan Penman, business development manager for chartered surveyors Walker Fraser Steele, said: “The level of transactions in Scotland is even more notable than the consistently rising prices. If this is maintained, we can look to 2018 with considerable confidence.”