House Price Report February 2021
Property market data - key points
- Over the past three months in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders, the average selling price rose by 6.2% year-on-year to £265,446.
- The volume of property sales in these areas during this time was up 42.2% year-on-year.
- From December 2020 to February 2021, the number of new property listings in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders was down 6.1% compared to the previous year.
- The median time for properties in these areas to be placed under offer during this time was 20 days, six days faster than last year.
- In Edinburgh, the Lothians Fife and the Borders, the average Home Report valuation attained over the past three months was 102.7% compared to 102.1% last year.
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Average house selling prices in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders
Number of homes coming to market
House selling times in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders
Average percentage of Home Report valuation achieved
Growth in new property listings slows as selling prices increase year-on-year
Average house selling prices in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders
Over the past three months, the average property selling price in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders was £265,446, up 6.2% compared to the previous year. Properties in East Fife and the Borders saw significant increases in average selling price year-on-year, up 19.2% and 13.7% respectively.
From December 2020 to February 2021, properties in East Lothian experienced a 6.1% increase in average selling price compared to last year while homes in Midlothian saw a 2.8% increase. West Lothian properties had a similar average selling price to the same timeframe last year.
In West Fife & Kinross, the average selling price over the past three months was up 6.8% compared to the previous year. Within this area, properties in Dunfermline saw a significant 13.4% increase year-on-year.
Houses and flats in Edinburgh had an average selling price of £279,593 over the past three months, up 4.5% compared to the same period last year. Properties in the south of Edinburgh saw the greatest growth in average selling price compared to other areas of the city, rising by 11.5% to £331,473.
Two bedroom flats in the seaside locations of Portobello and Joppa experienced a 17.1% increase in average selling price over the past three months.
Three bedroom houses in Blackhall, Davidsons Mains and Silverknowes saw the average selling price drop by 22.4% over the last three months compared to the previous year.
However, these homes are achieving 105.8% of Home Report valuation on average, up by 0.2 percentage points compared to last year. This suggests the main reason for the fall in average selling price is due to lower value homes coming to market.
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Number of homes coming to market
From December 2020 to February 2021, the volume of homes coming to market in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders was down 6.1% year-on-year.
This decline has occurred in January and February – this could be due to a combination of the strong start to 2020 in terms of property listings, the current stay-at-home guidance and impact of home schooling.
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Volume of property sales
However, the volume of property sales was up 42.2% in these areas over the last three months, which indicates how busy the market was towards the end of 2020.
Two bedroom flats in Leith were the top selling property by sales volume, followed by one bedroom flats in Leith and three bedroom houses in Dunfermline.
House selling times in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders
Across Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders, the median time it took for a property to be placed under offer was 20 days, six days faster than last year.
Properties in West Fife & Kinross saw a much faster selling time this year, at 13 days compared to 33 days last year.
Average percentage of Home Report valuation achieved
Between December 2020 and February 2021, the average percentage of Home Report valuation achieved by properties in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders was 102.7%, 0.6 percentage points up compared to the same period last year.
In Edinburgh, properties achieved 102.8%, down 0.7 percentage points compared to last year.
Three bedroom houses in Cramond, Barnton and Cammo achieved 107.2% of Home Report valuation on average, up 1.7 percentage points.
Fall in new property listings as average selling prices rise year-on-year
Paul Hilton, CEO of ESPC, said: “Over the past three months, we saw average selling prices rise year-on-year along with faster selling times, indicating strong demand for homes. Fewer homes coming to market so far in 2021 is likely resulting in increased competition for properties in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders.
“There are a few different possible reasons for the fall in new property listings year-on-year, including the strong start to 2020 in terms of homes coming to market, the current stay-at-home guidance and impact of home schooling.
“However, we are continuing to see strong numbers of property valuation requests, indicating a high level of demand to sell in the near future. With the recent announcements regarding more pupils going back to school during March and the end of the stay-at-home guidance in April, we may start to see more properties coming to market in the upcoming months.
“Those interested in buying or selling a property in the near future should speak to a solicitor estate agent for expert advice on the process and latest Coronavirus guidance on moving home.”
Find out more
Find out average property selling prices for different areas and property types in our house price table.
See data for previous months and years in our historical house price spreadsheet.
Want to find out more about our House Price Reports? Read our House Price Report FAQs.
ESPC is the home of property and we're here to help you with every step of your home buying and selling journey. If you're thinking of buying or selling a property soon, you can make use of our free phone service to be put in touch with a property expert to help answer your questions. Sellers can also get a free property valuation with ESPC agents.
