Property marketing company, ESPC, which represents 140 solicitor estate agent firms in Scotland, has published its House Price Report for the period May-July 2023.

The average selling price of property across Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders held steady in comparison to the same time last year. A marginal increase of 0.4% took the average to £287,820, showing that the property market overall has retained composure during a year of turbulence in the economic climate.

Some areas saw similarly small increases in average selling prices; properties in East Lothian and Midlothian showing increases of around 2%, taking the averages there to £289,387 and £256,027 respectively.

By contrast, West Lothian had the largest decrease in average selling price across ESPC areas, with a dip of 8.2% in comparison to May-July 2022, meaning the average sat at £242,323.

West Fife and Kinross dipped 4.4%, while the Borders’ average decreased by 2.8%.

In Edinburgh, the city centre experienced a 6% decrease in the average selling price (taking it to £341,185), however the suburbs of the South West saw average selling prices rise 7.4% to £380,382.

For first-time buyers, areas including Musselburgh, Gorgie and Dunfermline all offered good options, with a variety of property types and sizes selling on average for less than the LBTT [Land and Buildings Transaction Tax] threshold price of £175,000.
Dunfermline offered the most affordable properties overall, with two-bedroom flats there selling for an average of £143,452.

80.5% of properties for sale in May-July 2023 sold for at least their Home Report valuation, however this figure is down from 93.2% at the same time last year.

Homes achieved on average 103.8% of their Home Report valuation during this period. This is 4.8 percentage points less than the same time last year.

In sharp contrast to previous years, more properties were listed for a fixed price, rather than ‘offers over’. The data shows a 62% increase in the volume of properties listed for fixed price during May-July 2023, compared to the year before.

The market continued to show signs of steadying when it came to the volumes of properties coming to the market and selling. Fewer properties were sold during May-July 2023; the figures show a 10.3% decrease in comparison to the same time last year.

The number of properties listed for sale held steady too – a 1% decrease in the volumes shows that there are still plenty of available homes, and potentially more sellers in the market than buyers at the current time.

One-bedroom flats in Leith sold in the highest volumes, increasing 25% year-on-year.

Dunfermline was the area with the most homes listed for sale, however the figures were just 0.6% higher than last year. Leith had the second highest number of properties for sale, with volumes up 5.7% in this area – perhaps property owners in this postcode have been looking to maximise on the impact of the new tram extension launched in June.

Overall, properties in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders had a median selling time of 19 days during May-July 2023. This is six days slower year-on-year.

Two-bedroom flats in Bonnington sold the fastest overall, with a median selling time of 11 days – this is 13 days faster than during May-July 2022.

There was also a reduction in the percentage of properties going to a closing date. During May-July 2023, 28.6% of homes for sale went to a closing date, down from 37.9% the year before.

Paul Hilton, CEO of ESPC, said: “The start of summer is traditionally a quieter period for the property market, and along with the current financial climate, the figures from ESPC’s latest House Price Report are not unexpected.

“We would expect to see buyers behaving more cautiously, and considering their bids even more carefully than before, so the data showing a steadying of the average selling price, as well as slower selling times, fewer closing dates and a reduction in the amount that buyers are bidding over Home Report is aligned with this.

“It’s clear to see that the market is holding well and while the frenzy of the past few years has slowed, the market is still performing very well overall and we are seeing a return to the pre-pandemic market activity of 2019.”