Bigger homes are in huge demand following the Covid-19 pandemic – pushing up house prices to a record high.
Market analysts say the cost of the average home in Scotland now stands at £211,029, thanks to a boom in the sale of homes worth more than £ 750,000.
It comes as families seek larger properties where they can work from home.
Up to August, a total of 648 homes north of the Border had sold for more than a £250,000.
According to property firm Walker, Fraser Steele, this eight-month sales total was equal to all sales of this value in the whole of 2020 – the highest ever recorded.
All parts of Scotland experienced the “race for space” with each of the country’s 32 local authorities registering house price increases.
Borders recorded an astonishing 12-month rise of 28.4 per cent.
Alan Penman, of Walker Fraser Steele, said: “At the end of July, the average Scottish house price stood at £207,344 but by the end of August this figure was £211,029 – reaching a new record high, with a rise of £3685, or just under two per cent in the month.
“The race for space continues to support the prices of larger properties.
"The scarcity of this type of stock, coupled with the continued high demand, means prices remain strong.”
Different organisations use their own calculations for recording average house prices.
Halifax earlier this month suggested that the average
Scottish house price stood at £188,525. The latest estimate from Registers of Scotland puts the figure at £171,134.
Walker, Fraser Steele says its “average” price has been dragged up by the high-value sales at the top end of the market.
Penman added: “Property at the top end has performed well throughout 2021 and there is no sign of any imminent let-up.
"We noted last month that the exceptional performance of larger properties was likely to continue and this month we have more evidence to support that view.
“People’s preference for more space and working from home has meant buyers have often sought properties that can accommodate new lifestyles.”
The 12 per cent house price inflation figure to August this year is the highest since March 2016, just before the Scottish Government introduced the Additional Dwellings Supplement of three per cent to its Land and Buildings Transaction Tax.
Aberdeen appeared in the list of the top five local authorities for higher prices after experiencing a dip for several years.
The city’s housing market has been badly hit by the down-turn in the oil and gas industries but an increase in energy prices appears to have helped fuel a housing recovery.
All property types in Aberdeen City experienced increases in their average prices in August, with the largest rise being seen in flats, up from an average £115,000 in July to £121,000 in August.
Some 16 council areas witnessed a new high when it comes to the average price of local homes.
They include East Renfrewshire, where the average house rose from £249,741 in 2020 to £298,443 this year. There was a rise of almost 20 per cent in Dumfries and Galloway, where the “average” home leapt in price from £143,572 last year to £172,116 now.
Significant increases were also recorded in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perth and Stirling.
