'On the first anniversary of the introduction of Home Reports, Housing Minister Alex Neil has said that the system has been ''good news'' for the Scottish housing market. Statistics released today by the Scottish Government show over 75,000 Home Reports have been completed over the last year with the highest numbers in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Fife, Lanarkshire and Aberdeen.

Mr Neil said: "The Home Report has been good news for everyone. It has given would-be buyers - about to take the biggest financial leap of their lives - the best possible information upfront. And it has brought in its gift a host of other benefits.

"Buyers can now keep hold of their savings for deposits, without having to shell out for surveys on properties they don''t get to buy.


"There is also much more clarity about the value of a house, with the virtual end to unrealistic 'offers-over'."

According to Mr Neil it's proving a "great way" for sellers to attract inquiries from potential buyers and guide them on preparing the properties for sale.

Matthew Gray, Property Services Director at Pagan Osborne, said there has been a shift in opinion surrounding the Home Report in its inaugural year as part of the property selling process in Scotland.

"When it was first launched, the property market was going through an unprecedented low period. Confidence had taken a battering and many feared the Report would hit it further. That has not been the case," he said.

"The Report was introduced for a reason and that reason was to bring more clarity to the buying and selling of property and improve the quality of the housing stock. I believe this has worked and we are seeing the benefits. "If a potential seller knows there is an issue, but also knows how it can be resolved, then they will be far more willing to negotiate rather than disregard the property than if issues were to be highlighted with no solution."

(GK)