Falkirk district is eighth-best Scottish council area to live in for return on property value, study finds

Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures suggest UK house sales have increased by 160 per cent since January.

As many look to leave the cities, a Homedit.com study has revealed the places in Britain where sellers have received the highest amount for their homes in the past five years.

Homedit used the ONS House Price Index (HPI) to find the average increase in property value for every UK local authority and compared the findings to the average increase in British property value (£250,397).

The results showed the best place to live in for a return on house value in Scotland is the Outer Hebrides.

Since 2016, its house prices have risen by 38 per cent on average, 14.4 per cent above the UK's average increase. Despite ranking best in Scotland, the Outer Hebdrides came 27th out of all 377 UK local authorities.

Second is Glasgow, which placed 46th overall in the UK. The city’s house prices have gone up by 35.2 per cent, 11.6 per cent higher than the UK average.

Falkirk district ranked eighth, with the value of its homes rising by 25.5 per cent, 2.2 per cent above the British average.

Clark Gillespie, director of Clyde Property in Falkirk, conceded the stats didn’t surprise him.

Having worked here for 25 years, the estate agent is well-placed to explain why it’s a seller’s market.

He said: “There’s been a big disparity, with huge shortages of sales and huge over-demand caused, in part, by Covid.

“Demand for two years outstripped supply and that was sending values higher. When the market was shut, effectively all supply of property to the market was turned off and demand was way higher and continued to grow.

“People separate, people pass on, people move jobs and people working from home need more space. The whole gamut of life went on over the first lockdown – you end up with demand so out of kilter.

“When we finally opened in July, it led to 70 or 80 viewers for a property.

“Very little comes to the market in December. Over January and February, a shortage of property again sent prices higher.

“More stock has started to come on the market because of the positives of light nights and 50 million vaccinations bringing confidence.

“House values are at an absolute all-time high. The premiums people have been paying have been huge, frequently as much as 20 per cent in Falkirk and the surrounds.”

Offering his wisdom, Mr Gillespie said: “If you’re a seller and wanted to sell at a peak time, that’s undoubtedly been recently.

“Be aware, however, that market will change. When the furlough scheme stops, the 5 million jobs being supported won’t exist.

“Unemployment kills the market. I’m hard-pressed to think the market will be better this year than last because the government won’t have a furlough scheme.”

He added: “Buyers need to have the confidence.

“Offer the maximum you can afford to pay without bankrupting yourself. You’ll either get it and be happy or you must draw a line under it.

“The market doesn’t remain the same month in, month out. Buyers need to keep their noses to the ground and have faith.”

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