The Walker Fraser Steele October House Price Index reveals that Scottish house prices have shown minimal change since May 2023, contrasting with the more significant price drops seen in England and Wales.
As of October, the average house price in Scotland stands at £223,354, marking a slight decrease of 0.3% from September and a modest annual increase of 0.4%. This marginal change of a £80 decrease since May contrasts with a £5,500 fall in average prices in England and Wales during the same period.
Transaction volumes in Scotland have seen a more noticeable decline, being 11% lower than in 2022. Despite this overall trend, three Local Authority areas in Scotland continue to report record average house prices.
Scott Jack, regional development director at Walker Fraser Steele, comments on the trends: “Our data shows that in October, the average house price in Scotland decreased by around -£650, or -0.3%, to £223,354. Scotland’s average house price has actually barely changed over the last five months, hovering in the £223,000 range. To put this in context, we need only compare to Wales and England, where average prices have decreased by £5,500 over the same period of time.”
He adds: “There were price increases in just 12 Local Authority areas and of particular note is Stirling which saw the largest gain in average prices, and saw a surge in students at the beginning of the academic year, which contributed to an increase in the cost of apartments in the neighbourhood. Fife, by contrast, experienced the largest fall in prices in the month on a weight-adjusted basis, with all property types showing a fall.”
John Tindale, Acadata senior housing analyst, provides further analysis: “Scotland’s average house price fell by some -£650, or -0.3%, in October, and now stands at £223,354. In fact, looking at Table 1 above, it can be seen that for the past five months, from May onwards, Scotland’s average house price has remained in the £223,000s, with only minor fluctuations over the period. This contrasts sharply with England and Wales, where average prices have fallen by £5,500 over the same timescale.”
