ESPC House Price Report - August 2012
-
The average house price in Edinburgh between June and August was £215,486 - down 3.2% annually.
-
Small annual falls were also recorded in the average house price in East Lothian and Midlothian.
-
West Lothian and Dunfermline recorded annual rises of 3.5% and 2.4% respectively in the average house price.
-
The number of property sales in Edinburgh and the Lothians over the last three months has risen by 5% annually.
-
Buyers continue to enjoy success in negotiations, with the majority of sales being concluded for less than Home Report valuation.
Latest figures from ESPC - the leading property marketing firm in Edinburgh, the Lothians and Fife - reveal that the average selling price of a property in Scotland's capital in the three months to August stood at £215,486. This represents a fall of 3.2% from the same period last year when the average stood at £222,525.
In East Lothian and Midlothian the average was also lower than that recorded last year. In East Lothian a year-on-year fall of 0.8% brought the average down from £223,347 to £221,549 whilst in Midlothian the average house price now stands at £172,429 following an annual decline of 1.2%.
In West Lothian prices rose slightly with an increase of 3.5% taking the average house price in the area from £173,953 between June and August last year to £180,061 this year. A small rise was also recorded in Dunfermline, with a 2.4% annual increase bringing the average price of a property in the town to £139,967.
Commenting on the results David Marshall, business analyst with ESPC said: "We haven't seen a huge shift in property prices in either direction with prices generally within 3 or 4% of levels last year. Some areas have seen slight increases whilst others have seen similarly sized falls which tends to be fairly reflective of a static market.
"The number of properties being sold is still significantly ahead of the levels we saw last year. In Edinburgh and Lothians there has been an annual increase of around 10% in the number of sales recorded so far this year whilst in Dunfermline sales are up by just over 21% compared to 2011 levels.
"It's worth bearing in mind however that the number of houses is still well below what would have been considered normal levels prior to the credit crunch and the balance of power in the market continues to favour buyers. The majority of properties are still being secured for less than their Home Report valuation. In Edinburgh selling prices are typically around 3% below valuation whilst in other areas properties are being secured for an average of around 5% less than their valuation."
Got a question? Read our House Price Report FAQs.
Want to know about previous months and years? Read our historical house price data.