Falling house values and sales have wiped £85 million off the north-east property market over the first half of this year– but property experts believe the area could avoid the national trend and improve in the next quarter.
New research for Aberdein Considine’s Property Monitor report has shown prices rising in all of Scotland’s main cities, with the exception of Aberdeen, where the average cost of a house is down 1.2% at just under £200,000, and the number of sales have decreased by almost 10%.
And according to the report, Aberdeenshire’s property market is similar to the Granite City – average prices have dipped 2.5% to just under £211,000, with the sale volume down 1.7%.
Last night Bob Fraser, a senior partner at Aberdein Considine, said: “We’re continuing to see a fall in prices across Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire, and that’s really tied in to the tail end of the oil and gas recession.
“In terms of the local economy, there’s fairly good empirical evidence that we have bottomed out in terms of lack of confidence in the oil and gas sector, and there’s a growing realisation that there’s probably more positive times ahead of us – albeit not at the levels we have seen historically in the area.
“So I think on a local level, the property market has bottomed out and the future of the local economy, taken in isolation, looks more favourable for the first time in a long time.
“Nationally, it’s more of a grey picture than we have locally due to the uncertainties of Brexit. I imagine in the next quarter, the national trend will be worsening, and the local trend in the Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire are improving.”
He added:“In Moray and the Highlands, the market looks good. In terms of pricing, that’s going up, and in terms on volume, that’s more of a mixed result caused by uncertainty in the general national economy.
“Moray average prices are up 6.2%, but the sale volume is down about 6%, and the overall market value has gone up 3.3%.
“In Highlands it’s a similar story, average prices are up 5.2%, and sale volume is down 1.7%, with the overall market value down about 0.2%.
“I think this reflects the general uncertainty of people not sure whether to sell or not, but the positive news is that those that are selling, are achieving better prices.”
