The overall residential market in Scotland has shown continued growth, with an 8% annual increase in the number of residential transactions during the year ending in the first quarter of 2016.

The market was supported by an increase in cash buyers and buy to let purchasers, boosted by increased levels of equity generated from core hotspots, particularly among older buyers, according to the latest analysis report from Savills.

It also says that various Help to Buy schemes and the gently improving economy, leading to increased consumer confidence, are also combining to support the market.

Market growth is continuing to spread out to locations that were lagging following the housing market downturn. These include West Lothian, East Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire and Glasgow City, where the annual growth in transactions was higher than the figure for Scotland as a whole.

Savills is forecasting annual growth of 3% in Scottish mainstream values by the end of 2016. ‘We expect values in city locations and core hotspots to outperform the figure for Scotland as a whole. Stricter lending conditions and a possible rise in mortgage rates could limit capacity for strong price growth and transactional growth. This is likely to keep exposure to risky mortgage debt under control,’ it explains.