Scottish house prices increase by a quarter

HOUSE sales in Scotland have increased by about a quarter in a year, official figures showed today.

Registers of Scotland said 14,662 properties were sold between January and March, compared with 11,799 over the same three-month period in 2009. The figures include all records of sales, including those without a mortgage.

Between the same periods, the average property sale price increased by 5.4% to 147,854. Flats showed the largest increase, up by 7% to 114,444.

The total value of residential property sales in Scotland was worth 2.16 billion – a 30.9% increase on the previous period.

Average annual price rises take into account drops in parts of the country, including 8.6% in East Dunbartonshire and 4.1% in Moray.

The largest increase was in Inverclyde, where prices rose by 27.7% to 130,856.

Other increases included 13.8% in Edinburgh, 18.8% in Argyll and Bute and 12% in Perth and Kinross.

The volume of sales increased in most areas, including a 30% rise in Aberdeen.