Letter: Property prices

I AM surprised at the spin given to the Royal Institution for Chartered Surveyors (Rics) figures, generating the sensationalistic headlines "Scottish housing market faces lost decade" and "Little light at the end of the tunnel for home sales".

While the article acknowledges that Rics member surveyors' own views actually tell a more positive story, this is hidden towards the end of the piece. The emphasis given to the article runs a serious risk of crashing consumer confidence, stalling the market and ensuring today's headlines are self-fulfilling.

Latest figures from Register of Scotland show transaction levels across the whole of Scotland have increased in 2010 compared with the year before, and were up 42 per cent in the prime market (above 400,000).

Prices have stayed more or less level over the past two years, with a slight seasonal fall in winter compounded by a high level of stock on the market. We expect this stable trend to continue. On the whole, sellers now understand that we are no longer operating in an overheated market and are accepting realistic prices.

There is no doubt there is economic uncertainty, and there may be more to come. However, most experts would agree that the major price falls are behind us and we are operating in a far healthier market. It is time to stop obsessing over minimal price fluctuations and to concentrate on the fact that Scottish homeowners now have the confidence to buy and sell again, and to move on with their lives.

Peter Lyell

Savills

Edinburgh