Total volumes of sales including those that did not involve a mortgage for July to September were 24,274, the highest recorded quarterly figure since 2008.
The data also shows that average prices across Scotland rose by 1.5%, making the average cost of a home £161,748. The highest priced properties during the quarter were in Edinburgh where the average home changed hands for £222,759.
Aberdeen recorded the highest percentage rise in prices, with values jumping 9.9% compared to the same period last year, to an average of £210,010. Glasgow also experienced a 19.4% increase in residential property sales when compared with the same quarter last year.
The largest drop in average house price was in East Dunbartonshire, where values fell by 8.6% to £205,122.
‘This quarter's figures are one of the strongest indicators yet of a revitalised Scottish property market. This is the fourth consecutive quarter that volumes have increased, maintaining the upward trend,’ said Kenny Crawford, Registers of Scotland’s commercial services director.
‘There has also been a significant increase in the total value of property sales. Between July and September, the residential market was worth £3.92 billion, an increase of 24.4% on the previous year,’ he pointed out.
‘While sales values have risen by 1.5% across the country, as usual some areas are performing better than others. In the capital, where the highest average price was recorded for the quarter, some 27.9% of all the sales that took place were for homes costing more than £255,000,’ he added.
Detached homes, semi detached, flats and terraced properties all showed an increase in market value of residential sales, with flatted properties showing the biggest increase at 25.7%.
Independent property consultancy, CKD Galbraith, said the figures mirror its own experience. The firm has seen an increase in sales throughout Scotland with the volume of sales agreed being up 30% this quarter compared to the same period last year.
‘The market is still patchy with particular pockets showing very encouraging signs. These include the Borders, Fife and Perthshire where all regions have shown an increase in sales volumes this quarter compared to the same quarter of 2012. The Highlands and Moray are perhaps somewhat flatter but we expect these areas to pick up in line with other areas in the New Year,’ said John Bound, partner at CKD Galbraith.
‘Overall we have experienced an increase in buyer confidence in the Scottish property market with the average number of viewings per property increasing significantly and suggesting a positive forecast for the market going forward,’ he explained.
‘Also of notable interest is that we have seen an increase in the number of buyers registered on our data base moving from the south where a boost in funding availability has appeared to provide an injection of interest in the Scottish property market,’ he added.
Overall CKD Galbraith’s sales teams operating across the whole of Scotland handled in excess of £400 million worth of property in the 2012/2013 financial year ranging from cottages and conversions to country houses, farms and estates.
