Accredited official statistics

UK House Price Index Scotland: May 2023

Published 19 July 2023

1. Headline statistics for May 2023

The average price of a property in Scotland was £192,518

The annual price change of a property in Scotland was 3.2%

The monthly price change of a property in Scotland was 3.0%

The index figure for Scotland (January 2015 = 100) was 142.7

Estimates for the most recent months are provisional and are likely to be updated as more data is incorporated into the index. Read the revision policies.

Next publication of UK HPI

The June 2023 UK HPI will be published at 9.30am on Wednesday 16 August 2023. See the calendar of release dates for more information.

2. Economic statement

Average house prices in Scotland increased by 3.2% in the 12 months to May 2023. This was up from 1.8% the 12 months to April 2023 and was faster than the average UK house price annual inflation of 1.9% in the 12 months to May 2023.

On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, average house prices in Scotland increased by 3.0% between April 2023 and May 2023, compared with an increase of 1.6% during the same period 12 months ago. On a seasonally adjusted basis, average house prices in Scotland increased by 2.2% between April 2023 and May 2023.

Comparing the provisional UK HPI volume estimate for March 2022 with the provisional UK HPI volume estimate for March 2023, the volume of transactions decreased by 0.6% in Scotland and by 9.6% in the UK.

In Scotland, detached houses showed the highest annual percentage change out of all property types, increasing by 4.1% in the 12 months to May 2023 to £345,000. Semi-detached houses showed the lowest annual percentage change, which increased by 1.9% in the 12 months to May 2023 to an average price of £202,000.

The highest annual percentage change was in East Lothian, where average house prices increased by 16.1% in the 12 months to May 2023 to £339,000. The lowest annual percentage change was in West Dunbartonshire, where average house prices decreased by 4.0% in the 12 months to May 2023 to £130,000.

As with other indicators in the housing market, which typically fluctuate from month to month, it is important not to put too much weight on one month’s set of house price data. ##3. Price change

3.1 Annual price change

Annual price change for Scotland over the past 5 years

In Scotland, average prices increased by 3.2% in the 12 months to May 2023, up from 1.8% in the 12 months to April 2023.

Annual price change by local authority for Scotland

Low numbers of sales transactions in some local authorities, such as Orkney Islands, Na h-Eileanan Siar and Shetland Islands, can lead to volatility in the series.

While we make efforts to account for this volatility, the change in price in these local levels can be influenced by the type and number of properties sold in any given period.

Geographies with low number of sales transactions should be analysed in the context of their longer-term trends rather than focusing on monthly movements.

Local authorities May 2023 May 2022 Difference
Aberdeenshire £200,682 £202,799 -1.0%
Angus £163,327 £166,682 -2.0%
Argyll and Bute £187,287 £181,640 3.1%
City of Aberdeen £139,551 £145,087 -3.8%
City of Dundee £142,777 £144,882 -1.5%
City of Edinburgh £334,118 £319,320 4.6%
City of Glasgow £168,415 £166,772 1.0%
Clackmannanshire £160,104 £166,015 -3.6%
Dumfries and Galloway £159,490 £159,410 0.1%
East Ayrshire £127,474 £122,149 4.4%
East Dunbartonshire £258,436 £259,441 -0.4%
East Lothian £338,928 £291,811 16.1%
East Renfrewshire £293,102 £281,605 4.1%
Falkirk £160,182 £163,484 -2.0%
Fife £170,117 £162,293 4.8%
Highland £203,960 £200,112 1.9%
Inverclyde £122,785 £109,539 12.1%
Midlothian £230,189 £228,363 0.8%
Moray £188,610 £183,188 3.0%
Na h-Eileanan Siar £157,637 £153,403 2.8%
North Ayrshire £123,988 £124,954 -0.8%
North Lanarkshire £136,810 £131,421 4.1%
Orkney Islands £210,229 £222,396 -5.5%
Perth and Kinross £240,927 £226,791 6.2%
Renfrewshire £159,154 £146,714 8.5%
Scottish Borders £199,552 £194,901 2.4%
Shetland Islands £188,059 £202,501 -7.1%
South Ayrshire £167,856 £163,119 2.9%
South Lanarkshire £163,804 £161,517 1.4%
Stirling £231,865 £234,623 -1.2%
West Dunbartonshire £130,225 £135,672 -4.0%
West Lothian £207,878 £196,395 5.8%
Scotland £192,518 £186,533 3.2%

Average price by local authority for Scotland

In May 2023, the most expensive area to purchase a property was East Lothian, where the average cost was £339,000. In contrast, the cheapest area to purchase a property was Inverclyde, where the average cost was £123,000.

3.2 Average price change by property type

Average price change by property type for Scotland

Property type May 2023 May 2022 Difference
Detached £345,146 £331,680 4.1%
Semi-detached £202,226 £198,520 1.9%
Terraced £162,373 £158,019 2.8%
Flat or maisonette £132,886 £128,669 3.3%
All £192,518 £186,533 3.2%

4. Sales volumes

The amount of time between the sale of a property and the registration of this information varies. It typically ranges between 2 weeks and 2 months but can be longer. Volume figures for the most recent 2 months are not yet at a reliable level for reporting, so they are not included in the report. Published transactions for recent months will increase as later registered transactions are incorporated into the index.

Sales volume data is also available by property status (new build and existing property) and funding status (cash and mortgage) in our downloadable data tables. Transactions involving the creation of a new register, such as new builds, are more complex and require more time to process. Read Revisions to the UK HPI data for more information.

4.1 Sales volumes by local authority

Sales volumes for Scotland by local authority

Comparing the provisional volume estimate for the current month with the revised volume estimate for the corresponding month in the previous year

Local authorities March 2023 March 2022
Aberdeenshire 336 434
Angus 128 183
Argyll and Bute 146 127
City of Aberdeen 381 429
City of Dundee 191 224
City of Edinburgh 788 842
City of Glasgow 913 860
Clackmannanshire 68 86
Dumfries and Galloway 194 178
East Ayrshire 203 179
East Dunbartonshire 133 122
East Lothian 191 174
East Renfrewshire 154 138
Falkirk 200 195
Fife 546 498
Highland 342 363
Inverclyde 84 128
Midlothian 150 145
Moray 124 169
Na h-Eileanan Siar 29 31
North Ayrshire 168 203
North Lanarkshire 472 429
Orkney Islands 18 35
Perth and Kinross 247 219
Renfrewshire 322 351
Scottish Borders 152 171
Shetland Islands 19 20
South Ayrshire 203 164
South Lanarkshire 536 580
Stirling 162 146
West Dunbartonshire 101 98
West Lothian 291 268
Scotland 7,992 8,189

Note: The ‘Difference’ column has been removed from this table as the latest month’s data are not yet complete.

Note: The number of property transactions for March 2023 will increase as more transactions are incorporated into the UK HPI index. See our Revisions Policy for more information.

Comparing the provisional UK HPI volume estimate for March 2022 with the provisional UK HPI estimate for March 2023, volume transactions decreased by 0.6% in Scotland.

UK Property Transaction Statistics published by HM Revenue & Customs (which differ in coverage but are more complete for this period) report that on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, HMRC volume transactions decreased by 0.5% in Scotland in the 12 months to March 2023.

4.2 Sales volumes

Sales volumes for Scotland over the past 5 years

Date Sales volumes for Scotland
March 2019 8,384
March 2020 6,447
March 2021 12,248
March 2022 8,189
March 2023 7,992

5. Property status

Transactions involving the creation of a new register, such as new builds, are more complex and need more time to process. This means they can take longer to appear in the land registers. The volume of new build transactions for the most recent 2 months are not at a reliable level for reporting the breakdown between new build and existing resold property, so they are not included in the report.

New build and existing resold property for Scotland

Property status Average price March 2023 Monthly change Annual change
New build £304,335 2.6% 16.7%
Existing resold property £176,682 1.0% 0.8%

Note: Since the October 2017 release, amendments have been made to our estimation model when calculating our provisional estimate. Find out further information and the impact of this change in methods used to produce the UK HPI.

6. Buyer status

First time buyer and former owner occupier for Scotland

Type of buyer Average price May 2023 Monthly change Annual change
First time buyer £154,366 3.3% 2.8%
Former owner occupier £232,337 2.7% 3.4%

7. Funding status

Cash and mortgage indicator for Scotland

Funding status Average price May 2023 Monthly change Annual change
Cash £175,502 3.3% 2.8%
Mortgage £200,549 2.9% 3.4%

8. Access the data

Download the data as CSV files or access it with our UK HPI tool.

Data revisions

View any revisions to previously published data in the data downloads or find out more about revisions in our guidance About the UK HPI.

9. About the UK House Price Index

The UK House Price Index (UK HPI) is calculated by the Office for National Statistics and Land & Property Services Northern Ireland. Find out about the methodology used to create the UK HPI.

Data for the UK House Price Index is provided by HM Land Registry, Registers of Scotland, The Land & Property Services/Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency and the Valuation Office Agency.

Find out more about the UK House Price Index.

10. Contact for Scotland queries

Anne MacDonald, Land & Property Data Team, Registers of Scotland

Email Anne.MacDonald@ros.gov.uk

Telephone 0131 378 4991