Inverness, Kinross shire, Lanarkshire

According to John Bound of CKD Galbraith, however, last year will be remembered as a year of consolidation rather than expansive growth.

“With all the negative stories in the press about the state of the market we had a very sluggish start to 2005 and it wasn’t really until high summer that things picked up,” he says. “July to October was our busiest period last year and that seemed to correspond to the feelgood factor returning after a period of uncertainty. I think people saw the bust wasn’t coming, shrugged their shoulders and simply got on with their original plans.”

With sales at the very top of the Inverness-shire market being driven by English equity and the kind of prime property scarcity that is bedevilling every key Scottish rural market, Bound says that the region has been co-opted into more and more buyers’ thinking, despite its geographical distance from the south.

“We get enquiries on our website every day and the buyers are happy to drive here or fly up within 24 hours for viewings. People’s perception of distance is shrinking every year, as is the perception of seasonal factors.

“We’re doing good business all year round and that can only be good for prices in Inverness-shire. We’re now very much central here to a lot of people’s thinking.”

Land and traditional stone property continue to gather the largest premiums in this part of the Highlands, but, at the other end of the scale, as in most other Scottish regions, bog-standard newbuild homes around the stamp duty threshold of £250,000 are still struggling to make any sort of favourable impression in the marketplace and are moving pretty slowly.

New 1-bed apartment September 2005: £70,000 September 2006: £75,000 September 2007: £80,000 Second-hand 1-bed apartment September 2005: £62,000 September 2006: £65,000 September 2007: £75,000 New 2-bed apartment (Aviemore) September 2005: £150,000 September 2006: £160,000 September 2007: £167,000 Second-hand 2-bed ex-council (Grantown on Spey) September 2005: £80,000 September 2006: £85,000 September 2007: £90,000 Second-hand 3-bed log cabin (Aviemore) September 2005: £80,000 September 2006: £85,000 September 2007: £90,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi (Beauly) September 2005: £100,000 September 2006: £115,000 September 2007: £120,000 Second-hand 4-bed detached (Nethy Bridge) September 2005: £290,000 September 2006: £300,000 September 2007: £310,000 Second-hand 4-bed detached (Tomintoul) September 2005: £165,000 September 2006: £175,000 September 2007: £183,000 4-bed or more detached (Black Isle) September 2005: £245,000 September 2006: £270,000 September 2007: £280,000 Traditional country house in 1 acre (south of Inverness) September 2005: £375,000 September 2006: £395,000 September 2007: £410,000 Modern country house in 1 acre (Black Isle) September 2005: £350,000 September 2006: £380,000 September 2007: £390,000 Converted barn/steading (east of Inverness) September 2005: £350,000 September 2006: £380,000 September 2007: £395,000 Unconverted steading (west of Inverness) September 2005: £120,000 September 2006: £135,000 September 2007: £145,000 (Sources: CKD Galbraith, Rightmove)

Kinross-shire

Median price at August 2006: £154,413 (Perth and Kinross)
General increase since September 2005: 9%
Projected increase to September 2007: 5%-10%

Less urbane than East Lothian, less fragmented than Fife, Kinross-shire is a sleepy county of winding roads, country pubs and stunning lochside views, but, despite our shameless advocacy of its charms, it remains one of the east’s great untapped value markets. Here you can still snare a one-bed flat for £60,000 and a family home for £135,000. The T in the Park music festival at Balado did much to raise Kinross-shire’s profile — if not its prices — and it remains largely unspoilt despite its attractiveness to a smarter commuting set.

The local state school, Kinross High, continues to give the much-admired Dollar Academy a run for its money, and the country setting is ideal for young families.

In general, Kinross tends to attract an in-the-know constituency whose passions include fishing and golf. Don Revie, the former Leeds United and England manager, owned a house nearby and in recent times the area has been attracting some of the more discerning elements within Scotland’s SPL fraternity. It’s an extremely temperate market, according to Alastair Seaton of DM Hall. “Kinross never booms for long, nor does it dip,” he says.

The county has enjoyed two years of steady single-figure growth after a stellar return of 30% capital gains in 2004. With so much in its favour, it amazes us that Kinross-shire’s prices remain, on average, 30% cheaper than equivalent areas within Scotland’s commuter belt. But then we’ve been saying that for years now.

Second-hand 1-bed apartment September 2005: £57,000 September 2006: £60,000 September 2007: £65,000 New 2-bed apartment September 2005: £63,000 September 2006: £75,000 September 2007: £85,000 Second-hand 2-bed apartment September 2005: £68,000 September 2006: £75,000 September 2007: £80,000 Ex-council 3-bed September 2005: £88,000 September 2006: £95,000 September 2007: £105,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi September 2005: £130,000 September 2006: £135,000 September 2007: £140,000 Second-hand 4-bed semi September 2005: £200,000 September 2006: £220,000 September 2007: £240,000 Second-hand 5-bed detached September 2005: £300,000 September 2006: £320,000 September 2007: £350,000 2-bed cottage (outside Kinross) September 2005: £160,000 September 2006: £170,000 September 2007: £180,000 (Source: DM Hall)

Lanarkshire

Median price at August 2006: North Lanarkshire, £117,349; South Lanarkshire, £129,172
General increase since September 2005: North Lanarkshire, 15%; South Lanarkshire, 8%
Projected increase to Sept 2007: 5%-10%

The key, as in most central Scotland locations, is commutability and prices that are still well below equivalent numbers in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

As with Ayrshire towns such as Kilmarnock, the buyers are a combination of locals using their gains to move rapidly through their native markets and relocation by value-seekers priced out of Glasgow’s hot spots. Larkhall and Airdire remain the best medium-term prospects for investors with rail term prospects for investors with rail infrastructure investment placing these towns firmly upon the commuter’s radar.

After a few years of headline- grabbing growth, Coatbridge, as we predicted last time, has shrunk back to previous levels of growth, at about 5% per annum.

Following a rash of new-build development throughout Lanarkshire since 2003, supply issues are being addressed and prices appear to be stabilising.

Perhaps most interestingly, the markets of Uddingston and Bothwell, the apogee of locals’ aspirations, have enjoyed little growth in the past 12 months — suggesting that the stream of wealthy incomers and confident locals may have temporarily dried up.

The local expert Jamie Lonsdale, however, clearly sees the situation as a blip rather than a crisis, and with returns picking up pace in the late summer, he confidently predicts that, having caught its breath, his local patch will be up and running to the tune of 5%-10% growth by 2007.

Airdrie New 1-bed apartment September 2005: £56,000 September 2006: £58,000 September 2007: £65,000 Second-hand 1-bed apartment September 2005: £52,000 September 2006: £54,000 September 2007: £60,000 New 2-bed apartment September 2005: £74,000 September 2006: £76,000 September 2007: £85,000 Ex-council 3-bed September 2005: £59,000 September 2006: £62,000 September 2007: £85,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi September 2005: £94,000 September 2006: £99,000 September 2007: £108,000 4-bed town house September 2005: £148,000 September 2006: £155,000 September 2007: £185,000 (Source: Century 21) New 1-bed apartment (Motherwell/Bellshill) September 2005: £55,000 September 2006: £57,000 September 2007: £65,000 Second-hand 1-bed apartment (Hamilton) September 2005: £56,000 September 2006: £60,000 September 2007: £68,000 New 2-bed apartment (Hamilton) September 2005: £88,000 September 2006: £95,000 September 2007: £105,000 Second-hand 2-bed apartment (Hamilton area) September 2005: £80,000 September 2006: £88,000 September 2007: £97,000 Ex-council 3 bed (Hamilton) September 2005: £80,000 September 2006: £88,000 September 2007: £96,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi (Hamilton) September 2005: £115,000 September 2006: £123,000 September 2007: £135,000 Second-hand 4-bed semi (Hamilton) September 2005: £130,000 September 2006: £140,000 September 2007: £155,000 Second-hand 5-bed detached (Hamilton) September 2005: £250,000 September 2006: £250,000 September 2007: £255,000 2-bed cottage (Motherwell/Larkhall) September 2005: £80,000 September 2006: £90,000 September 2007: £100,000 Town house (Motherwell) September 2005: £150,000 September 2006: £150,000 September 2007: £155,000 (Source: Your Move)

Carluke New 2-bed apartment September 2005: £82,000 September 2006: £84,000 September 2007: £88,000 Second-hand 2-bed apartment September 2005: £70,000 September 2006: £75,000 September 2007: £83,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi September 2005: £100,000 September 2006: £110,000 September 2007: £120,000 (Source: Morison and Smith)

Lanark New 2-bed apartment September 2005: £97,000 September 2006: £107,000 September 2007: £125,000 econd-hand 2-bed apartment September 2005: £90,000 September 2006: £99,000 September 2007: £110,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi September 2005: £109,000 September 2006: £127,000 September 2007: £145,000 (Source: Re/Max)

Larkhall New 2-bed apartment September 2005: £93,000 September 2006: £110,000 September 2007: £130,000 Second-hand 2-bed apartment September 2005: £85,000 September 2006: £102,000 September 2007: £120,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi September 2005: £120,000 September 2006: £144,000 September 2007: £165,000 (Source: Premier Property Services)

Wishaw New 2-bed apartment September 2005: £100,000 September 2006: £110,000 September 2007: £120,000 Second-hand 2-bed apartment September 2005: £82,000 September 2006: £90,000 September 2007: £100,000 Second-hand 4-bed detached September 2005: £172,000 September 2006: £190,000 September 2007: £210,000 (Source: Independents Direct)

Coatbridge New 2-bed apartment September 2005: £95,000 September 2006: £97,000 September 2007: £100,000 Second-hand 2-bed apartment September 2005: £76,000 September 2006: £79,000 September 2007: £90,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi September 2005: £120,000 September 2006: £127,000 September 2007: £135,000 (Source: Century 21)

Lanark New 2-bed apartment September 2005: £97,000 September 2006: £107,000 September 2007: £125,000 Second-hand 2-bed apartment September 2005: £90,000 September 2006: £99,000 September 2007: £110,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi September 2005: £109,000 September 2006: £127,000 September 2007: £145,000 (Source: Re/Max)

Uddingston/Bothwell New 2-bed luxury apartment

(Uddingston) September 2005: £150,000 September 2006: £150,000 September 2007: £163,000 New 2-bed luxury apartment

(Bothwell) September 2005: £185,000 September 2006: £185,000 September 2007: £195,000 Second-hand 5-bed detached

(Bothwell Castle Park) September 2005: £500,000 September 2006: £500,000 September 2007: £525,000 Second-hand 3-bed semi

(Uddingston/Bothwell) September 2005: £135,000 September 2006: £135,000 September 2007: £142,000 (Source: Jamie Lonsdale)