ESPC chief reveals if first-time buyers are leaving Edinburgh for cheaper property elsewhere
ESPC CEO shares his thoughts on the Edinburgh property market
Local property experts ESPC have given their opinion on whether or not Edinburgh's first-time buyers are exiting the city in order to purchase a first home.
The results of the research into the topic are surprising, revealing that 'location, location, location' remains front of mind for buyers starting out, despite rising property prices.
The ESPC examined the sales of one and two-bedroom flats in Edinburgh’s traditionally prime first-time buyer hotspots, covering neighbourhoods such as Leith, Stockbridge, Abbeyhill, Bruntsfield, Newington and Portobello, and compared them to sales of similar properties in popular commuter towns, to see if there really has been a shift in first-time buyers relocating outside of the city.
ESPC CEO Paul Hilton gave his opinion on the situation after looking at the recent trends in Edinburgh and the Lothians.
He said: “With rising house prices across the board, and especially in Edinburgh, it would be a safe assumption that first-time buyers might be exiting the Capital in order to take that crucial first step onto the property ladder.
“This especially feels like the case when we know that over the last few years, commuter-friendly suburban towns such as Musselburgh and Bonnyrigg, and the city of Dunfermline, have seen many buyers relocating there in order to afford that next step up on the ladder, sacrificing a central location for additional space.
“But is it actually the case that first-time buyers are feeling the pinch in the same way? According to our recent research, perhaps not.
“The results were surprising. Headlines would have you believe that house prices are so unaffordable that first-time buyers would have no choice but to exit the city to secure a home of their own, but the figures tell a different story.
“In fact, the story I see is one where first-time buyers will sacrifice space, or save for longer if they need to, to make it possible to buy a home in their ideal location. They aren’t willing to compromise when it comes to where they live.”
Sales of one and two-bed flats in Abbeyhill rose nine per cent year-over-year, and in leafy Inverleith, there was a 19 per cent increase in the number of starter homes sold.
Those figures jump a lot higher when you shift eastwards to Leith: sales around Leith Walk rose 61 per cent, while around Leith Links it was 64 per cent, indicating that first-time buyers were still hunting for flats in these neighbourhoods.
Some areas did see a stark dip in sales volumes, such as around Easter Road, where sales were down by 18 per cent annually, or in Stockbridge, where the figure lay at 27 per cent.
By comparison, sales of one and two-bedroom flats in Musselburgh declined 21 per cent over the same period. However, Bonnyrigg saw sales volumes rise by a healthy 10 per cent for the same type of property.
Summing up the findings, Mr Hilton added: “Overall, it doesn’t appear that affordability pressure has skipped these out-of-town locations, as prices have continued to rise there too, meaning that buyers face the choice of buying a slightly cheaper property with a more expensive commute or paying a higher purchase price for a more centrally located home.
“Of course, you may get more for your money outside of the city in terms of a property’s proportions and overall condition, or added bonuses like gardens or parking spaces, but perhaps that isn’t as important to many young buyers as being in their favourite neighbourhoods in and around the city centre.
”So, wherever buyers are buying, it doesn’t appear that they are currently relocating outside of Edinburgh in particularly large numbers, especially not when sales volumes in ‘rising star’ neighbourhoods such as Gorgie and Dalry are up four per cent over the same period.
“It seems as though, for the time being at least, it remains all about ‘location, location, location’ for buyers starting out, with Edinburgh remaining the goal for many about to take the property plunge.”