Three of the best luxury central Edinburgh flats for sale now

A low-maintenance small flat can be the ultimate Edinburgh luxury purchase, finds Kirsty McLuckie.

Whether it is a place to stay during the working week to avoid a daily commute or a luxury purchase to allow monthly theatre and shopping trips, a pied a terre is the dream of many who live outside the city.

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In Edinburgh, they are hotly contested properties, with interested buyers coming from other parts of Scotland and the UK, and the rest of the world.

Retaining a foothold in the Edinburgh market is highly prized by Scottish expats, particularly those who still have family living in the city or children being privately educated here.

Freelance relocation agent Louise Ferguson says that clients on the lookout for these types of properties often want something low maintenance, with the added security of an onsite factor or concierge service.

She says: “Buyers are looking for somewhere to spend a month of the year, perhaps to get away from the heat of the Middle East, for example, but they do not want the bother of upkeep year round.

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“Many will have children at school or university in the area and want a place to stay, that isn’t a hotel, when they are visiting.

"But you are competing, as a buyer, with companies who want to invest in a corporate flat for employees and those wealthy overseas families who are buying for their student children.”

Picture: Rettie

Currently top of the small dwelling offerings on the market in the city is the City & Country conversion of the historic Playfair at Donaldson’s building on Wester Coates.

While the larger flats in the building are sought-after by downsizers looking to live in them year round, the one-bedroomed properties and studios available are very much seen as the ideal pied a terre.

Picture: Rettie

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The Playfair at Donaldson’s is an impressive period building, a Victorian school conversion which is seven minutes’ walk from Haymarket station and seven miles from Edinburgh Airport, another plus point for those journeying from elsewhere.

Picture: Rettie

Each property has secure underground parking, access to a concierge service and the use of the beautifully maintained landscaped grounds in which it is set.

These are very much luxury properties with a price tag to match.

Picture: D J Alexander

The Quartermile development, which combines new-build apartments with conversion of Victorian hospital buildings on the edge of the Meadows, is also popular with those in the market for a pied a terre, although here buyers are competing with parents purchasing for students.

Picture: D J Alexander

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Yasser Albassam of DJ Alexander says: “Buyers are attracted to the concierge service and extras such as landscaping, window cleaning and a parking place included in the factoring charge for a low-maintenance home which they can lock up and leave.

Picture: D J Alexander

“But as well as families of students accessing the bank of mum and dad, they attract young professionals and the investment market because of their central location and popularity with renters.

“One and two-bedroomed apartments in the new buildings sell particularly well.”

Picture: Murray and Currie

A new-build at St Vincent Place in the heart of Edinburgh’s New Town also hopes to tap into the high-end pied a terre market.

Picture: Murray and Currie

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AMA Homes is putting the finishing touches to seven open-plan studio apartments on the lower ground level of a fully factored building with patio.

At a glance

Picture: Rettie

Where is it: Playfair at Donaldson’s, Wester Coates, Edinburgh.What is it: A chic studio apartment with luxury fittings in an iconic period building.Good points: There can’t be many studio flats with access to beautiful landscaped gardens in the heart of the city. Walking distance to Haymarket and easy access to the airport. The studio has quirky interiors with a stone vaulted ceiling, rather than the grandeur of the rest of the building.Bad points: The apartment is set low in the building so you are unlikely to have the best views and it doesn’t offer a huge amount of interior space.Price: Fixed price £247,500.Contact: Rettie & Co, 0131 624 4209.

Picture: D J Alexander

Where is it: 33/6 Simpson Loan, Edinburgh.What is it: A one-bedroomed new-build apartment in the Quartermile development.Good points: Designed by Sir Norman Foster, the building is impressive and the flat is spacious with a separate bedroom, sitting room, kitchen and bathroom.Bad points: On the fourth floor the expanses of glass in the bedroom and living room will put off those suffering from vertigo.Price: Offers over £285,000.Contact: DJ Alexander on 0131 652 7313.

Picture: Murray and Currie

Where is it: Flat 2, 5A St Vincent Place, New Town, Edinburgh.What is it: A very chic studio flat with open plan kitchen and sitting room on the lower ground floor of a brand new building.Good points: Smart, compact apartments with a communally shared terrace in an excellent location. More than one available to choose from.Bad points: The kitchen isn’t huge.Price: Fixed price £280,000.Contact: Murray & Currie on 0131 226 5050.