A leading UK bank, Lloyds TSB, has announced as at 31 October their Scottish House Price Monitor showed the average property in Scotland dropped in value by 4% in the quarter August to October 2008.
The bank has stated this is the largest fall since their monitoring system was introduced 16 years ago.
However, overall prices have risen by 4.9% this year which is down on the 9.3% increase reported last year. The average price for a Scottish home is now £165,398.
Interestingly the market is becoming more differentiated with Glasgow actually reporting a quarterly rise while Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh are all show falls this quarter.
The rise in Glasgow has been put down to healthy sales of lower-priced properties. Areas around the main cities are showing modest rises while other areas have all experienced quarterly falls.
Looking at types of homes, detached house prices fell by 5.6% and semi-detached prices fell by 3.5% for the quarter while flats are continuing to show the best performance with a fall of only 1.1% and holding an annual increase of 4.7%.
The number of houses sold has decreased by 43% when compared to the same period one year ago.
With the drop in the base rate in November of 1.5% and a further 1% in December, it is hoped the market will show signs of improvement soon.
The government is putting pressure on mortgage lenders to pass on these rate cuts in full in its attempts in reinvigorate the market.
The reduction in base rate is exactly what the market needs with the slowing Scottish economy and the rising claimant unemployment.
If you are interesting in getting your first house you can use the services of a mortgage broker,
one that’ll search the whole market, to find out what is on offer and what your options are in terms
of getting a mortgage whether you are in after a Dundee Mortgage or a mortgage for a home in Durness.
Although there are now less products available on the market and larger deposits are being asked by mortgage providers it is worth searching the market to ensure you are getting the best deal for you.
