Three key figures for May 2021:

• £171,448
  The average price of a property in Scotland
• 12.1%
  The annual price change of a property in Scotland
• 5.4%
  The monthly price change of a property in Scotland

Estimates for the most recent months are provisional and are likely to be updated as more data is included. The house price index for May 2021 reflects transactions that took place up to the end of May. Some caution is needed when interpreting the latest annual price increases given the low numbers of transactions in May 2020.

The latest provisional statistics from the UK HPI show that the average price of a property in Scotland in May 2021 was £171,448, an increase of 12.1 per cent on May 2020.

Comparing with the previous month, house prices in Scotland increased by 5.4 per cent between April 2021 and May 2021.

The UK average house price was £254,624 which was an increase of 10.0 per cent on May 2020 and an increase of 0.9 per cent on the previous month.

The volume of residential sales in Scotland in March 2021 was 11,968, an increase of 99.5 per cent on the original provisional estimate for March 2020. This compares with increases of 71.1 per cent in England, 24.2 per cent in Wales, and 41.8 per cent in Northern Ireland (Quarter 1 – 2021 compared with the same quarter in the previous year).

The provisional sales volume in Scotland in March 2021 was the highest number of residential sales transactions recorded in the month of March since 2007 (when compared with both original provisional estimates and the final revised volume figures), while the volume of sales in March 2020 was comparatively low due to the introduction of government measures to reduce the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). In addition to a strong housing market, the rise in sales volumes in March 2021 is likely to have been influenced by both the temporary increase of the nil band of the Land and Building Transaction Tax (LBTT) coming to an end on 31 March 2021 and changes to the fees charged by Registers of Scotland coming into effect from 1 April 2021. These changes are likely to have contributed to a peak of application submissions in the weeks prior to the changes coming into effect.

Commenting on the house price figures in Scotland, Accountable Officer Janet Egdell said:

“Prices continue their trend upwards in May, and the number of transactions has reverted to a more normal pattern in the first couple of months of this financial year.  Volumes for the whole of last financial year recovered significantly in the second half, to reach 94% of the 2019-20 levels.”

In Scotland, Terraced properties showed the largest increase in average house price, rising by 13.4 per cent in the year to May 2021 to £145,290, although this figure may have been affected by the low numbers of transactions recorded in May 2020. Flatted properties showed the smallest increase, rising by 10.4 per cent in the year to May 2021 to £121,088.

Average price increases were recorded in all 32 local authorities, when comparing prices with the previous year. The largest increase was in Inverclyde where the average price increased by 20.2 per cent to £111,911. The smallest increase was recorded in Angus, where the average price increased by 1.7 per cent to £151,789

In May 2021, the highest-priced area to purchase a property was City of Edinburgh, where the average price was £300,450. In contrast, the lowest-priced area to purchase a property was East Ayrshire, where the average price was £106,775.

Further information on HPI Scotland by local authority, property type, first time buyers and cash sales can be found in the latest HPI Scotland publication.

As with other indicators in the housing market, which typically fluctuate from month-to-month, it is important not to put too much weight on one month’s set of house price data. This has been particularly important over recent months, as COVID-19 has affected the volume of transactions within the market, making trends between months more volatile than usual and will continue to be important over the coming months as the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on the housing market and the economy becomes clear.