Inside three million pound homes in and around Edinburgh

Edinburgh and the area around the capital are leading the country in £1 million homes, reports Kirsty McLuckie

The performance of the property market in the £1 million and over bracket is an important one to Scotland’s finances.

Even though it accounts for only 0.2 per cent of Scottish house sales, it contributes around 7 per cent of land and buildings transaction tax revenues.

There have been significant shifts in the £1m-plus market in Scotland in recent times, according to Rettie & Co, not least the geography of top-of-the-market transactions.

Increasingly sales are concentrated in Edinburgh and surrounding areas while sales in other parts of the country have declined.

Dr John Boyle, Rettie’s director of research and strategy, says: “Three quarters of the £1million market is in Edinburgh and the surroundings.

“The sheer concentration in rather a small pocket of Scotland has surprised many agents.”

Edinburgh saw 104 house sales above £1m in 2017 while the rest of the east of Scotland, outside Edinburgh, accounted for 24 sales.

In contrast, the figures show that, outside Edinburgh and its environs, activity in the £1m-plus market is sluggish.

In Aberdeen and the shires there were just two sales in 2017, down from nine in 2016 and a high of 25 in 2014.

In Glasgow, 22 homes sold for more than £1m, compared with 28 in both 2015 and 2016, while in 2017 the rest of the north saw five such sales and the rest of the west, two.

The houses

Picture: Rettie

Where is it: 40 Ann Street, Stockbridge, Edinburgh.What is it: A Georgian townhouse in a secluded street with landscaped gardens at the front and back.Good points: With a possible five bedrooms over four floors, plus sitting room, drawing room and dining kitchen, there is plenty of space. The lower ground floor is configured as a self-contained one-bedroomed flat and the outside space is delightful. Beautiful interiors, with plenty of period charm.

Picture: Rettie

Bad points: There is no off-street parking but being this close to the city centre means you could do without a car.Price: Offers over £1.55m.

Picture: Rettie

Contact: Rettie & Co on 0131 220 4160.

Picture: Simpson & Market

Where is it: The Stables, Carlekemp, Abbotsford Road, North Berwick.What is it: A five-bedroomed, three public room period conversion, dating from 1898, with beautiful private gardens.

Picture: Simpson and Marwick

Good points: Close to the beach and golf course, The Stables has been designed to use the central courtyard as an extra room.Bad points: The house has near neighbours but it isn’t overlooked.

Picture: Simpson and Marwick

Price: Offers over £1.19m.

Picture: Simpson and Marwick

Contact: Simpson & Marwick on 01620 892000.

Picture: Knight Frank

Where is it: The Penthouse, Castle Gogar Rigg, EdinburghWhat is it: A four-bedroomed home with five bathrooms and two public rooms.

Picture: Knight Frank

Good points: The spectacular open-plan sitting room, dining room and kitchen with sliding glass doors to a large terrace.Bad points: The pictures are of the showhome, as the penthouse won’t be ready for occupation until mid-May.

Picture: Knight Frank

Price: Fixed price £1.05m.Contact: Knight Frank on 0131 516 3611.

Boyle continues: “The decline in [sales above £1m] in Aberdeen and the shires is to be expected, while Glasgow ticks away at 20 to 30 sales per year at this level, but never much more.”

New-build sales are also playing a much bigger role in this market.

Boyle says: “The rise in sales of new-build properties in Edinburgh over the £1m mark has caught some unawares but it is because developers have targeted that market very successfully.

“One of the reasons for that has been the dearth of second-hand stock in the prime market.

“Sixteen per cent of total sales over £1m are new-build and that wasn’t the case a few years back but it is likely to continue.”

Rettie’s research shows that the market is indigenous – most people buying in Edinburgh already live in the city – and Boyle says that within the city buyers tend not to move too far.

“We find that if you are in the south of the city, you move within that area and the same if you are in the west.”

“If you put a £1m house on the market in Scotland the chances are that it will be sold to a Scottish buyer.

"Less than one in ten will be international, and even those will usually be expats or those with very strong ties to Scotland.”

Savills’ analysis of the data shows that some of highest concentration of £1m activity takes place in Edinburgh’s New Town.

Andrew Perratt, head of Savills residential (Scotland), says: “The latest million-pound statistics are further testament to Scotland’s burgeoning market.

“There is a real sense of confidence north of the Border and our latest research reveals Scotland will outperform London and most other regions of the UK over the next five years, with house prices here expected to grow by 17 per cent.”