Million-pound home sales in Scotland reach record level in 2021

According to Rettie & Co, this was an increase of almost 50 per cent on 2020, which itself was the highest recorded level since the 2007 market boom.

There was an increase in the proportion of £1m+ sales occurring in accessible towns and rural areas, with urban and flatted sales making up a smaller proportion of sales.

Of these sales, 78 per cent were detached, semi-detached or terraced family homes, an increase from around 72 per cent to 74 per cent in the preceding five years.

This means the proportion of apartments and penthouses making the £1m+ market has fallen back to 22 per cent, from a peak of 28 per cent in 2020. This trend correlates with an increase in transactions in more suburban and rural locations.

Despite this, Edinburgh remains the undisputed king of the £1m+ market in Scotland, with 9 of the 10 most expensive streets being in the capital.

Glasgow’s west end and St. Andrews also make the listings in 8th and 9th place respectively.

In terms of values, the average £1m+ house sale in 2021 was £1,392,000, down slightly from values of over £1.4m in the preceding three years.

This has been due to the volume of units now breaking through the £1m threshold. House price inflation across the market has seen the number of homes selling just £50k over the £1m+ threshold increase by 85 per cent from 2020 to 2021, rising from 12 per cent of the £1m+ market to 15 per cent.

Simon Rettie FRICS, managing director, Rettie & Co, said: “The surge in £1m plus house sales over 2021 has been a notable feature of the post-lockdown housing market. Such sales are now well ahead of their previous peaks and nearly 50 per cent ahead of 2020 levels.

“One response to the post-lockdown world has been people’s willingness to consider more rural areas and accessible towns, and the sharp rise in demand for this type of living has caused prices to surge in some of these areas, pushing the most desirable properties over the £1m mark. This is clearly seen in parts of East Lothian as well as north of Stirling and east of Loch Lomond.

“However, Edinburgh remains at the heart of the Scottish £1m market, accounting for two-thirds of such sales. Nevertheless, here too there has been a greater diversity of such sales, with more pushing out to locations such as Colinton and Trinity, outside previous core prime areas.”