March 2015 saw more than double the sales of properties over £400,000 than in March 2014
March 2015 saw more than double the sales of properties over £400,000 than in March 2014
The latest Strutt & Parker analysis of registered sales in Scotland reveals a massive spike in sales of properties over £400,000 in March 2015 in the lead up to the introduction of the Land and Building Transaction Tax (LBTT) on 1st April this year. There were 644 sales registered in this price bracket during March 2015 compared to just 238 in March 2014. The Strutt & Parker Scottish Research Department have analysed figures on house sales since the beginning of 2008 – graphs are at the end of this release. There were also a remarkable 36 registered sales of over £1m during March 2015, two thirds of which were in Edinburgh. This is the highest number of £1m + sales ever recorded in a single month in Scotland.
Blair Stewart, Head of Edinburgh Residential sales for Strutt & Parker, says: “These figures corroborate what we have seen in the past few months. The massive spike in both Edinburgh and Scotland in the month before LBTT saw the average sale price in Edinburgh rise to £280,000. It had not risen above £240,000 since 2008.”
Blair Stewart continues: “With the general election now over, summer is coming and we are entering the prime selling season. The first couple of weeks of April were definitely a bit slower due to Easter holidays, but since then there has been a surge of viewers and new properties coming to the market in the capital. Last week we agreed sales of two properties of over £600,000 within 24 hours of them being launched to the market.”
Malcolm Leslie, head of Strutt & Parker’s Scottish Country House department, adds: “The first few months of this year saw good activity, with buyers keen to deal before the 1st April. The last three weeks have seen some of the briskest trading conditions I have experienced in the country house market for a number of years and with some exceptional stock due to be launched at the end of this monthy the prospects for the peak summer market look bright.”
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