Estate agents are predicting an influx of prospective home owners as the property market prepares to reopen for business.
Households across the north and north-east will be able to move house for the first time since March as further restrictions are lifted by government ministers.
During First Minister’s Question time yesterday, Nicola Sturgeon said restrictions on moving house will cease from Monday, June 29, as the country enters phase two of its route map out of lockdown.
Property agents are now predicting an “initially flurry” of potential homeowners in a bid to settle deals previously left in limbo.
Bernadette Walker, manager of Highland Solicitors Property Centre (HSPC), said reopening the market will help meet increasing demand for accommodation.
She said: “The lockdown has halted many property transactions but we and our solicitor firms have been working to help clients as much as restrictions allow.
“Throughout the lockdown phase, we have experienced demand for buying, selling and renting, so we expect to be busy from this period onwards.
“The First Minister’s announcement easing restrictions on house moves in Scotland is encouraging news for the property industry but we await more detail on how the industry as a whole can proceed.”
North-east property developer and chairman of ASPC, John MacRae, believes “human invention” will help overcome any remaining issues in buying and selling homes during the outbreak.
“There will be some who are very anxious to get their house on the market as they have to move and others who are not so eager to have people looking around their homes just yet,” he said.
“I know there have been a lot of stalled transactions in the pipeline – hundreds of deals waiting to go through.
“It is a widespread problem throughout Scotland as planned moves have not taken place yet and it is a little bit uncertain how that will evolve.”
Mr MacRae predicted some of the on-hold deals could be finalised in a matter of weeks, while others could take months for the pieces to fall into place.
He added: “There could be an initial flurry of activity and then a period of settling down until people feel a bit more confident in leaving their homes.
“Most sellers will be encouraged to do virtual viewings. There is tour software available or people might even just video-call people for a viewing around their property.
“Human invention will come up with various ways to overcome this, but you imagine there will have to be a final viewing where people want to see the property in person.”
The announcement comes just weeks after figures revealed Scotland’s property market “all but ground to a halt” within days of lockdown taking effect.
A total of 464 transactions were made across the property market on March 23, however, by the end of the week figures had plummeted to just three, leaving deals worth tens of millions of pounds in jeopardy.
Highland Councillor Andrew Jarvie said the easing of restrictions was the “first brick of many” needing moved to help individuals, such as himself, onto the property ladder.
He said: “It’s certainly welcome to see things are returning but I do have to question why it was left so much longer than in England, when it was quite clearly safe to do so.
“I certainly know myself, as I am looking to buy a house, the biggest issues is the additional requirements banks are putting on lenders.
“They have significantly cut what they will lend and they are asking for even more of a deposit, so there are still some remaining concerns about how many people will be able to physically purchase a new home.
“This is of course if you are lucky enough to not have lost your job or suffered a drop in income.”
