The renaissance of Perthshire’s property market is continuing apace, with sales up £10 million on this time last year.
The average price of property sold has also markedly increased, rising from £163,409 this time last year to £181,473.
Perthshire Solicitors Property Centre (PSPC) figures show that member firms have sold almost £33 million worth of homes in little more than three months.
While March is traditionally one of the busiest times for sales — with the winter slump forgotten — that was nonetheless a significant increase on 2016, when the combined value was just over £22m.
Increasing confidence amongst buyers has played its part in the success story, but PSPC manager Anne Begg said it was also important that sellers were being “realistic” with the prices demanded.
“We are absolutely delighted to see, in black and white, the marked increase in sales compared to the first quarter of 2016 and the significant increase in the average price tag compared to this time last year,” she said.
“With winter well and truly behind us, it’s not surprising that March performed particularly well with 82 properties sold at a total value of over £15m.
“We hope that the market continues to improve as we head towards the summer months, or at least retains the current stability we are enjoying.”
This boost in property sales mirrors a recent house price growth in Perth, with the city seeing an increase of 26% over the past five years.
Ms Begg had previously said that properties selling for up to £250,000 in Perth and Kinross were often snapped up “within a few hours,” with the majority meeting their home report value.
“Some properties exceed that value, especially in family friendly areas of Perth and Kinross,” she had said.
