House prices in Edinburgh showed a 3.4 percent year-on-year rise for the third quarter, July to September, according to the latest Knight Frank index.
The estate agent said the figures were in contrast with those across the UK where average house prices have fallen by 1.7 percent.
Although house price growth in Edinburgh was down from 10.5 percent annual growth at this point last year, said Knight Frank.
Knight Frank associate, Oliver Knight, said: “Political rhetoric has ramped up in recent months, and has moderated price growth. So has a lack of urgency among some buyers, though agents report encouraging sales activity, particularly for properties that are considered best in class.”
Houses in Edinburgh showed a 4.2 percent rise in contrast to flats where the increases were more modest at 2 percent for the third quarter.
Transaction figures for homes worth more than £500,000 showed a 4.5 percent increase in the 12 months to July 2019, according to the latest figures from the Registers of Scotland.
There was an 11 percent rise in sales between £750,000 and £1m and a 24 percent growth in sales above £1m.
Buyers outstrip sellers in the Scottish capital
Knight Frank said its data showed in the third quarter there were 7.5 new applicants for every new instruction, up from 5.7 for the same period last year. The strongest demand was in the market up to £750,000, where there were 8.7 buyers per new instruction.
Mr. Knight said: “A shortage of available properties being listed for sale means the imbalance between supply and demand in the city is likely to continue, especially given the cautious approach being employed by some vendors as uncertainty surrounding Brexit mounts.
“Buyer demand remains strong, however, evidenced by the continued growth in prime sales volumes, and competitively priced stock will continue to trade well.”
Commercial Loans by HZA
Finance brokers, Hank Zarihs Associates, said development finance lenders were keen to offer construction loans and fast commercial bridging loans for new builds in the city.
