Edinburgh house prices increased in August

The boost contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 10.6 per cent annual growth.

The average Edinburgh house price in August was £314,042, Land Registry figures show – a 1.6 per cent increase on July.

Over the month, the picture was similar to that across Scotland, where prices increased 1.7 per cent, and Edinburgh underperformed compared to the 2.9 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Edinburgh rose by £30,000 – putting the area 27th among Scotland’s 32 local authorities for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in the Scottish Borders, where property prices increased on average by 29.4 per cent, to £195,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in the Shetland Islands gained 3.7 per cent in value, giving an average price of £156,000.

Owners of semi-detached houses saw the biggest improvement in property prices in Edinburgh in August – they increased 2.1 per cent, to £436,730 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 14 per cent.

First-time buyers in Edinburgh spent an average of £250,000 on their property – £22,000 more than a year ago, and £69,000 more than in August 2016. By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £387,000 on average in August – 54.8 per cent more than first-time buyers.

Buyers paid more for properties in Edinburgh than anywhere else in Scotland in August.

The average price paid would buy 2.8 homes in East Ayrshire (£114,000), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.

Across Scotland, property prices are higher than those across the UK, where the average cost £264,000.