Page 6 - ESPC Premier Living Spring Summer 2020

Premier PROPERTY

DECADE IN

REVIEW

Premier Living launched ten
years ago – how has the property
market changed in that time?

IT’S been a decade of change in the to market and later being retracted, unsold.
Scottish property market, with tax changes, This growing recovery stalled by 2011,
political referenda and even the weather as the market entered two years of
having an impact. There have also been decreasing volumes of homes coming to
many changes and notable events at ESPC, market. The buyer market continued to
including launching Premier Living in 2010. show little sign of increasing confidence.
In this article, we look at how the Demand from buyers escalated sharply
property market in Edinburgh, the from mid-2013, around the time of the
Lothians, Fife and the Borders has Help to Buy scheme launching, making
changed over the past decade, and what’s the process more accessible for first time
happened at ESPC in the last ten years. buyers. It could be that a growing buy-to-
let market also contributed to this demand.
KEY PROPERTY MARKET This demand continued a steady upward
STATISTICS FROM 2010 – 2019 trend until the months leading up to the
• Over the decade, the average selling price EU Membership Referendum of 2016.
in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the This period also coincided with the
Borders increased by 23 per cent from introduction of the Additional Dwelling
£206,144 in 2010 to £253,467 in 2019 Supplement; a tax payable by buyers
• The number of homes coming to purchasing a home in addition to one
market in 2019 was 5.2 per cent they already own. Demand remained high
lower than the volume in 2010 for the rest of the decade, easing slightly
• The volume of sales increased by in 2018, but again returning to strong
55 per cent between 2010 and 2019 demand levels by the end of the decade.
• The average asking price for The volume of homes coming to market
residential properties grew by 17 per peaked in 2015 and entered a subsequent
cent in ten years, from £202,473 slowdown from 2016 which continued for
in 2010 to £237,529 in 2019 most of the rest of the decade. The start of
• The median time for properties the slump in new market insertions occurred
to go under offer significantly around the time the Land and Buildings
decreased, from 71 days in 2010 Transaction Tax (LBTT) replaced Stamp compounded by public focus on the
down to 22 days in 2019. Duty for property sales in Scotland. A slight fourth UK General Election in a decade.
increase in volume occurred in 2018, but Overall, comparing the first year of
SALES VOLUME AND NUMBER the high watermark levels of activity seen in the decade to the last for the whole
OF HOMES COMING TO 2015 remained unchallenged. of Edinburgh, Lothians, Fife and the
MARKET IN THE 2010S In February 2018, it was the weather Borders, the volume of homes coming
The decade began on an upward conditions that affected the local property to market has decreased by 5.2 per
trend with an increasing number of market. The ‘Beast from the East’ caused cent, while the number of properties
homes coming to market, rising to unseasonably low temperatures and heavy sold has increased by 55 per cent.
a peak in 2015. Meanwhile, buyer snowfall in much of the UK. Locally, the
activity was slow for the first half of time period affected by the Beast from the AVERAGE PROPERTY SELLING PRICES
the decade, with a marked increase in East correlated with a 2.4 per cent drop in INCREASE ACROSS THE REGION
competition and demand since 2015. value of homes coming to market in March The average selling price in Edinburgh, the
The first months of 2010 marked the 2018 compared to the previous year. Lothians, Fife and the Borders in 2019 was
initial signs of seller confidence after the The decade closed with a sharp drop 23 per cent greater than 2010, increasing
financial crisis of 2008. Buyer confidence in sales volume trend, potentially due from £206,144 to £253,467. East Fife
had yet to peak, with many homes coming to the regular winter slowdown being experienced the greatest percentage

6 ESPC Premier Living