Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

House prices fell in Aberdeen in 2022 but rose in Aberdeenshire

Savills' annual property outlook event at the Marcliffe attracted a big turnout. Image: Scott Baxter/  DC Thomson
Savills' annual property outlook event at the Marcliffe attracted a big turnout. Image: Scott Baxter/ DC Thomson

House prices in Aberdeen fell 1.3% in 2022 but homes in Aberdeenshire grew 4% in value, new figures show.

Property giant Savills said sales volumes rose in the Granite City.

But the decline in value left average prices 26% off their peak of 2015.

Aberdeenshire prices continued to pick up, despite a drop in sales volumes, and are now just 2% less than their peak in 2015.

It’s been a rollercoaster of a ride…, with lifestyle choices driving demand then economic shocks putting downward pressure on the market, including in the north-east.”

Faisal Choudhry, Savills

Savills held its annual Scottish Property Outlook – Aberdeen event at the Marcliffe Hotel and Spa at Pitfodels yesterday.

Faisal Choudhry, the firm’s head of residential research in Scotland, delivered his latest analysis of local markets to 200 property professionals, developers and investors.

Is the trend for country living over?

He reported “demand shifting towards homes in urban areas that are close to local services and places of work”.

This marks a reversal of a recent trend for people seeking homes with more space in rural locations in response to the Covid pandemic.

Aberdeen is benefitting, with sales in the city showing “continuous recovery” since 2020, guests were told.

Faisal Choudhry, head of residential research for Savills in Scotland. Image: Scott Baxter/DC Thomson

Mr Choudhry also reported an expected 1.4% increase in average house prices in the city over the next five years, compared with growth of 9.5% throughout Scotland.

The Aberdeen market will be “more subdued” due to “modest economic recovery and lingering high levels of mainstream stock”, he said.

Granite City house prices are now “adjusting” after several years of outperforming the wider Scottish market, Mr Choudhry said.

The equity-driven “prime” market of homes worth £400,000-£600,000 is driving change, he added.

Luxury homes in demand

Upmarket areas like Bieldside, Cults and Broomhill “performed particularly well” last year, he said.

He continued: “Aberdeen’s prime residential market tends to be driven by equity rather than debt.

“Whilst it won’t be completely immune to the economic pressure facing the wider market, price adjustments are likely to be less severe.”

The Aberdeen market was also boosted by healthy sales of homes worth more than £1 million last year.

There were 29 of these – the biggest annual tally for seven years – during 2022 in a north-east market taking in Moray, Angus and Tayside, as well as Aberdeen city and shire.

Demand for luxury homes like this one on Rubislaw Den South boosted average selling prices in Aberdeen last year. Image: Savills

Mr Choudhry said house prices across Scotland at the end of 2022 were 20% higher than before the pandemic,

Sales outperformed the pre-pandemic market until October, before the mini Budget and subsequent mortgage market disruption, he added.

He continued: “It’s been a rollercoaster of a ride…, with lifestyle choices driving demand then economic shocks putting downward pressure on the market, including in the north-east.”

‘Cause for optimism’

“Our most recent survey suggests a more positive long-term outlook among buyers across the UK.

“And the fact 14% more buyers registered with Savills to buy a property in the north-east last year, compared to before the pandemic, also provides cause for optimism.”

Experts expect the Bank of England base rate of interest to hit 4% in the coming months and stay at that level until the end of the year.

Mr Choudhry said: “Beyond 2023, subject to inflation being tamed, we expect an improvement in mortgage affordability which will  gradually bring more buyers into the market.

Couple looking at energy bill.
Fast-rising energy bills are increasingly a factor in house sales. Image: Shutterstock

Fiona Gormley, head of residential for Savills in Aberdeen said:  “Whilst we anticipate a price sensitive market this year, established patterns of hybrid working are upholding the demand for more space in both city and country areas, including a separate space to work.

“In addition, the cost of refurbishing a home has risen significantly over the last few years, with a rapid rise in the price of materials and labour.

Fiona Gormley, head of residential for Savills in Aberdeen. Image: neil@aberdeenphoto.com

“Consequently, well-presented properties tend to be in greater demand. Meanwhile, given the rapid rise in utility bills, the energy efficiency of a property is now higher up buyers’ requirements.”

Reporting another regional trend, Ruaraidh Ogilvie, head of residential for Savills in the north-east said: “The number of properties we have sold to buyers from outside Scotland has increased by a third, compared to the period before the pandemic.”

Conversation