Edinburgh & Lothians Property Market Report: December 2019
Although the winter weather has begun to rear its head, there is little evidence that the property market has cooled as 2019 draws to a close. Latest figures from Warners Solicitors & Estate Agents show that activity amongst both buyers and sellers has been at its highest level for over a decade in recent months.
During the three months to November, Warners recorded almost 300 property sales. That represented an annual increase of 43.7% and was also the highest number of sales recorded by the firm between September and November since before the onset of the 'credit crunch'.
As has been the trend throughout much of the last two years, Warners also observed a sharp increase in the number of properties coming onto the market. Over the last three months Warners listed 264 homes for sales in Edinburgh and the Lothians. That figure was almost 20% higher than the number of homes listed between September and November in 2018, and more than 45% higher than the number of listings during that period in 2017.
The number of homes coming onto the market has been steadily rising since the latter part of 2017 and this has helped to ensure that house price inflation has not risen too sharply to the sort of levels seen in the early part of the 21st century. In fact, latest figures from ESPC show that the average property price in the Capital has been almost unchanged over the last year. In the three months to November, the average price of property sold in Edinburgh was found to be £268,325 – almost identical to the figure of £268,404 recorded 12 months ago.
David Marshall, Operations Director with Warners commented: "During 2016 and much of 2017 the market in Edinburgh and the Lothians suffered from a real shortage of properties for sale. As a result, there were usually multiple buyers competing for each property for sale. This left buyers having to pay large premiums over the Home Report valuation in order to secure a property, resulting in sharp house price inflation.
"Over the last two years however there has been a substantial improvement in the number of sellers choosing to put their home onto the market. There has also been a rise in the number of new-build properties becoming available for sale across Edinburgh and the Lothians. This rise in the supply of homes coming onto the market has helped to balance out the high demand for buyers.
"As a result the premiums that buyers need to pay to secure a home are lower and house price inflation has eased. It is still a good market for sellers – the median selling time of a home across east central Scotland is just 22 days and four out of five homes sold over the last three months achieved a price equal to or in excess of the Home Report valuation. That said, there is clearly better balance in the market and this has helped us to avoid a situation where property prices are rising at an unsustainable level.
"As we head into 2020 the prospect of Brexit looms once more. As previous deadlines were approached this year there was, somewhat surprisingly, very little disruption in the local property market. Often people will delay moving home during times of substantial political uncertainty but as each deadline approached in 2019, property sales and listings in Edinburgh and the Lothians remained strong. The expectation is that we will see a similar situation in 2020, and that activity in the market will remain brisk throughout much of the coming year."
If you are thinking of buying or selling a property, contact Warners today on 0131 667 0232 or by emailing property@warnersllp.com and one of our friendly, expert team will be delighted to help you.
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