According to figures for February 2007, new build property in England and Scotland averaged £187,000 and £185,360 respectively, with house price inflation of 16 per cent in Scotland in the previous 12 months, helping to close the gap between the two nations.
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Imtiaz Farookhi, chief executive of the NHBC, said: “February’s average new house price figure showed a strong year-on-year rise across the UK, particularly in Scotland and Northern Ireland (NI), as the demand for new homes continues to push up house prices. In terms of supply, there was an increase in house building activity during the three months to the end of February, with the largest percentage increases in new starts in Wales, the North East and Greater London.”
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Average new build prices in NI were also approaching those in England.
Between February 2006 and 2007, the price of a new build house shot from £129,000 to £185,000 – a rise of 43 per cent.
However, across the UK, the number of new builds sold in the three months to February was up from 568 a day to 724.
Colin McCallum, chief executive of the Mortgage Intermediary Alliance Scotland, said: “It’s nonsense to compare the two markets as Scotland is quite diverse and while most property north of the M62 won’t be as expensive as areas like Edinburgh, the South East of England will be quite expensive. At the minute, prices in central Scotland are going mental.”
