Demand for bungalows doubles in Scotland as property firm sells £300 million worth of homes

The estate agency, which is part of Tayside-headquartered law firm Thorntons, sold 1,341 properties overall in 2025, valued at more than £300 million, compared with 1,240 in 2024.

The firm said the rise reflected an overall increase in property sales across the UK and an expansion of its business. In April, Thorntons Property launched its first Inverness-based sales team as part of its ambitions to offer a “Scotland-wide, end-to-end residential property service”. It now has a presence in 11 areas across the country, including Edinburgh, Dundee, Angus, Fife and Perth.

Peter Ryder, managing director, Thorntons Property, said: “At Thorntons, we experienced an exceptionally successful year in 2025, selling over 1,300 properties valued at more than £300m. This achievement has solidified our position as one of the top estate agents in the country.

“We were also thrilled to expand our reach by opening an estate agency in Inverness in April 2025, marking an important step toward our ambition to have a presence across the whole of Scotland.”

Ryder revealed that the number of clients seeking bungalows had doubled over the past 12 months, with bungalow sales often going to a closing date. He said demand was being driven by an ageing population seeking more accessible single-storey homes.

Ryder also noted an uplift in first-time buyer activity. According to research, those buyers now account for almost two fifths of sales UK-wide compared with just 28 per cent ten years ago.

He added: “We expect a steady increase in housing stock and a healthy demand for homes to help maintain property prices in Scotland, with a projected price uplift of around 3 per cent to 4 per cent in 2026.

“The market is already showing signs of improvement with more competitive two- and five-year mortgage options becoming available, along with better mortgage affordability. Coupled with decreasing inflation, this creates a positive economic environment that is likely to foster a ‘feel-good’ factor for buyers next year, encouraging them to enter the property market.”