NOT FOR BROADCAST OR PUBLICATION BEFORE 00:01, SATURDAY 18 AUGUST The Bank of Scotland House Price Per Square Metre Survey examines the movement in house prices on an average price per square metre (m 2 ) basis in 58 Scottish towns - 479 GB towns in total Average price per square metre is a useful measure for house price comparison, helping to adjust for differences in property size and type across areas. The average price per square metre is calculated by dividing the average house price by the average square metres per property (excluding external space). The price per square metre can be conv erted into price per square foot by div iding by 10.7639104. Go West: West and Central Scotland house prices per square metre fastest growing over last five years Larkhall and Lanark record the biggest price increase since 2013 (33%) Grangemouth has the lowest average price per m 2 at 1,016 Edinburgh is Scotland s most expensive city at 2,669 per m 2 West and Central Scotland have seen the biggest increase in house price per m 2 in Scotland over the last five years but traditional housing hotspots in the East remain the most expensive. New research from Bank of Scotland has revealed that Larkhall and Lanark both saw the largest house price growth per m 2 over the last five years at 33% to an average price of 1,163 and 1,184 respectively, closely followed by Dalkeith, Bathgate and Hamilton (all 32%). (Table 5) In Scotland, house prices per m 2 have risen by 20% since 2013 from an average of 1,320 to 1,579 in. Greater London has experienced substantially faster growth than elsewhere in Great Britain over the same period, with an average increase of 52%. (Table 6) Scotland s most expensive and least expensive towns Unsurprisingly, Edinburgh is Scotland s most expensive town at 2,669 per m 2. Linlithgow in West Lothian ( 2,076 per m 2 ) is the second most expensive town, followed by Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire ( 2,039 per m 2 ). (Table 1) Grangemouth in Stirlingshire is the least expensive town in Scotland with an average price of 1,016 per m², followed by Bellshill in North Lanarkshire ( 1,030 per m 2 ). (Table 2) Graham Blair, Mortgages Director, Bank of Scotland, said: "It can be useful when comparing house prices to use a measure such as house price per square metre as it reflects differences in size and type of properties in different locations. Towns in the East and the North are more expensive than West and Central areas. However, several towns in the West have seen significant increases in the last five years. Despite this, a
clear gap has formed between England, particularly London, and Scotland, Ireland and Wales over the last 20 years Scotland s top 10 most expensive and least expensive towns Of the top 10 most expensive towns in Scotland per m 2, six are in Edinburgh and the Lothians with the remaining four in Aberdeenshire. Whilst it is no surprise that these financial and industrial hubs dominate the house price per m 2 charts, the difference in price per m 2 between Broxburn in West Lothian (one of the top 10 most expensive towns in Scotland), and Grangemouth in Stirlingshire (the least expensive town in Scotland) is only 653 per m 2. (Tables 1 & 2) Whilst this is a fair amount of cash, it shows that Scotland s housing market is less polarised than south of the border, with the difference between Lambeth (one of the top 10 most expensive towns in England), and Nelson (the least expensive town in England) a massive 5,465. (Tables 3 & 4) Eight of the 10 towns with the lowest prices per m 2 are in either central or western Scotland. In addition to Grangemouth ( 1,016) and Bellshill ( 1,030), these include Irvine ( 1,090), Larkhall ( 1,163), Coatbridge ( 1,147) and Wishaw ( 1,159), all in Central Scotland, along with Greenock ( 1,090) and Dumfries ( 1,124) in the West of Scotland. The two towns with the lowest house prices on a per m 2 basis are Lochgelly ( 1,100) and Glenrothes ( 1,167), both in Fife in the East of Scotland. (Table 2) Longer term trend watch The East of Scotland has seen the biggest house price per m 2 increases in Scotland over the last 20 years. Edinburgh grew the most at 207%, followed by Stonehaven (200%) and the two Highland towns of Inverness (179%) and Elgin (177%) also saw substantial increases over the last two decades. Edinburgh is the only town in Scotland to have an average house price per m 2 above the British average of 2,342. (Tables 6 & 7) Scotland s house prices per m 2 growth lowest in Great Britain over last 20 years The average price per m 2 across Scotland has increased by 148% over the past 20 years from 637 in 1998 to 1,579 in. This is the lowest increase of any area of Great Britain, with Greater London experiencing price hikes of 301% and Wales seeing an increase of 180%. The average increase across Great Britain since 1998 is 215%. (Table 8) ENDS
Table 1: 10 most expensive towns per square metre in Scotland Town Edinburgh 2,669 Linlithgow 2,076 Stonehaven 2,039 Westhill 1,991 Aberdeen 1,928 Musselburgh 1,892 Dalkeith 1,851 Penicuik 1,714 Ellon 1,681 Broxburn 1,669 Table 2: 10 least expensive towns per square metre in Scotland Town Grangemouth 1,016 Bellshill 1,030 Greenock 1,090 Irvine 1,090 Lochgelly 1,100 Dumfries 1,124 Coatbridge 1,147 Wishaw 1,159 Larkhall 1,163 Glenrothes 1,167
Table 3: 10 Most Expensive towns per Square Metre in Great Britain Town/ Borough Region ( ) Average size per M 2 Westminster Greater London 9,379 67 Camden Greater London 8,653 78 Hammersmith and Fulham Greater London 7,868 80 Islington Greater London 7,692 78 Hackney Greater London 7,119 75 Wandsworth Greater London 7,033 89 Tower Hamlets Greater London 6,723 72 Richmond upon Thames Greater London 6,521 100 Southwark Greater London 6,461 77 Lambeth Greater London 6,436 81 Table 4: 10 Least Expensive towns per Square Metre in Great Britain Town Region ( ) Average size per M 2 Aberdare Wales 969 121 Nelson North West 971 106 Merthyr Tydfil Wales 980 112 Peterlee North 985 104 Stanley North 997 132 Grangemouth Scotland 1,016 96 Port Talbot Wales 1,024 114 Bootle North West 1,025 101 Bellshill Scotland 1,030 97 Greenock Scotland 1,090 106
Table 5: Biggest price increases per square metre (%), 2013- Tow n/borough Average House Price 2013 5 Year % 5 Year Larkhall 138,048 873 1,163 33% 291 Lanark 160,873 889 1,184 33% 294 Dalkeith 194,315 1,398 1,851 32% 454 Bathgate 166,004 1,057 1,400 32% 343 Hamilton 136,894 1,024 1,352 32% 329 Glasgow 174,953 1,282 1,668 30% 386 Livingston 171,083 1,236 1,604 30% 368 Kilmarnock 139,512 948 1,223 29% 275 Edinburgh 249,535 2,074 2,669 29% 595 Leven 137,639 918 1,181 29% 263 Table 6: Regional house prices per square metre, 2013- Region ( ) 2013 ( ) 2013- change - % Average size per M 2 Greater London 3,374 5,131 52% 93 East Anglia 1,538 2,256 47% 115 South East 2,224 3,215 45% 107 East Midlands 1,299 1,782 37% 116 West Midlands 1,415 1,929 36% 109 South West 1,752 2,338 33% 112 North West 1,261 1,668 32% 112 Yorkshire and the Humber 1,258 1,622 29% 111 Wales 1,150 1,456 27% 121 North 1,136 1,364 20% 118 Scotland 1,320 1,579 20% 111 Great Britain 1,698 2,342 38% 110
Table 7: Biggest price increases per square metre (%), 1998- Tow n/borough Average House Price 1998 20 Year % 20 Year Edinburgh 249,535 871 2,669 207% 1,799 Stonehaven 234,795 679 2,039 200% 1,360 Inverness 192,693 591 1,649 179% 1,058 Elgin 154,470 506 1,399 177% 893 Dalkeith 194,315 672 1,851 176% 1,180 Leven 137,639 429 1,181 175% 752 Linlithgow 244,599 761 2,076 173% 1,315 Musselburgh 190,414 698 1,892 171% 1,193 Larbert 182,120 561 1,510 169% 949 Broxburn 173,955 641 1,669 160% 1,028 Table 8: Regional house prices per square metre, 1998-1998 ( ) 1998- chang e - % Averag e size per M 2 Greater London 1,279 5,131 301% 93 East Anglia 642 2,256 252% 115 South East 940 3,215 242% 107 South West 691 2,338 238% 112 East Midlands 581 1,782 207% 116 West Midlands 668 1,929 189% 109 Yorkshire and the Humber 571 1,622 184% 111 Wales 521 1,456 180% 121 North West 605 1,668 176% 112 North 517 1,364 164% 118 Scotland 637 1,579 148% 111 Great Britain 744 2,342 215% 110
Editors' Notes: All data is from the Bank of Scotland database. "This report is prepared from information that w e believe is collated w ith care, how ever, it is only intended to highlight issues and it is not intended to be comprehensive. We reserve the right to vary our methodology and to edit or discontinue/w ithdraw this, or any other report. Any use of this report for an individual's ow n or third party commercial purposes is done entirely at the risk of the person making such use and solely the responsibility of the person or persons making such reliance." Bank of Scotland plc all rights reserved.