Scottish housing market 'shows record fall'
Friday, 14th November 2008

The average price of housing in Scotland has fallen by a record four per cent in the last three months to October 31st, Lloyds TSB Scotland has revealed.

According to the bank's statistics, the average price of a house in the country is now £165,398 after what was the biggest quarterly fall in the 16-year history of the index.

Chief economist of Lloyds TSB Scotland Professor Donald MacRae said that although the number of mortgage products available had declined, the cost of borrowing had dropped for a number of mortgage holders and as such, showed a sensible adjustment and not near-collapse.

He continued: "The Scottish economy is entering a significant slowdown with rising claimant unemployment and falling consumer confidence.

"The number of housing transactions has declined markedly since one year ago and the market is adjusting to lower prices and sales."

Last week, Lloyds TSB announced that it would be passing on the full base rate cut to small businesses across the country with immediate effect.