Scottish residents are positive about the future direction of house prices in the next twelve months, according to the Bank of Scotland (BoS).
According to the bank’s quarterly Bank of Scotland Housing Market Confidence tracker, 28 per cent of respondents believe that prices will rise, while just 22 per cent expect a decline in prices.
Over half the respondents (53 per cent) believe that it will be a good time to buy in the next 12 months, seven times as many as believe it is a good time to sell (8 per cent).
BoS suggested that the housing market would remain subdued in the next year because just 8 per cent of those surveyed felt positive about both buying and selling.
Across the whole of the UK, 61 per cent of respondents said they were put off buying a home due to job security concerns, while other hurdles included raising a deposit (52 per cent) and household finances (36 per cent).
BoS housing economist Nitesh Patel said: “Confidence in the Scottish housing market has weakened a little over the last three months, reflecting the increased uncertainty regarding the economic outlook.
“The public’s confidence in the housing market, however, has been very resilient so far this year. This is consistent with the broad house price stability experienced over the first half of 2012.
“Overall, we expect little change in prices and sales over the remainder of the year, provided that the Scottish economic outlook does not deteriorate significantly.”
