New data has revealed 45% of Scottish chartered surveyors saw house prices increase across the country during November.

The latest RICS UK Residential Market Survey suggests a long term lack of stock is to blame for slow housing sales.

The Scottish Government is now being called upon to show the same appetite for housebuilding as Chancellor George Osborne, who, in his Spending Review, pledged to build 400,000 homes by 2020.

Sarah Speirs, RICS in Scotland director, said: "I can't recall a set of comments in the residential survey which have so frequently drawn attention to lack of stock on the market. Given this, it is hard not to envisage prices continuing to climb upwards as we move through the early stages of 2016.


"It remains to be seen if the government will set initiatives to drive up the rate of new build and the impact that it will have on the market. We await the Scottish budget announcement on 16 December to see if the government will emulate the Chancellor's emphasis on housing.

"A material rise in the cost of borrowing has the potential to take some of the momentum out of the market, but there is, at this stage, little indication that the Bank of England is minded to take a steer from the US Federal Reserve.

"Moreover, all the signals from the Bank still point to a very gradual upward trajectory for base rates when it eventually decides to move policy in this direction."

(LM)