Glasgow’s grit, growth and glory
Savills’ property predictions for the city as it celebrates its 850th year
With Glasgow celebrating its 850th anniversary, the proud city stands at a pivotal moment as it undergoes a transformation grounded in grit and driven by growth, according to property experts.
The latest Savills Property Outlook, delivered on Wednesday, focused on “850 years of Glasgow: What next for the city?”
According to Savills, the transformation of Glasgow’s city centre “is not inevitable – it’s conditional on alignment, investment, and delivery”.
Speaking in the city centre, Clare Bailey, a director in the Savills commercial research team, said: “We’re here to celebrate 850 years of Glasgow.”
Summing up what she thinks as the past, present and future of Glasgow, Clare referred to the “three Gs” of “grit, growth and glory”.
“The city centre is undergoing a massive transformation. It is rooted in the grit, driven by the growth, and is destined for glory,” she said.
Among the topics covered was an exploration of trends in Scotland’s residential markets, impacting everyone from investors to home owners, renters, developers and planners.
Claire Wright, research associate at Savills, delivered an update. She said: “Scotland’s residential sales market has witnessed a positive year so far, despite economic and taxation challenges. From January to August, there were more agreed sales, especially above £300,000, due to better mortgage rates. The average rate was just over 4 per cent in August. In October 2022 it was 6 per cent following the mini Budget”.
She added that it looks like buyer and seller expectations are starting to align and described that as an encouraging sign.
Turning to house price growth, Claire explained that Scotland has outperformed most parts of the UK over the past year. She said that Glasgow city and some surrounding areas performed well.
Claire shared a “hotspot map” showing that the popular areas of Bearsden, Newton Mearns, the West End, and Milngavie have the highest average prices.
Transaction activity in Glasgow has been driven primarily by the secondhand market, highlighting the city’s continued appeal and affordability, according to Claire.
Addressing the new-build family housing market, analysis of four bedroom detached properties with a floorplan of between 1,000 and 1,300sqft revealed a 22 per cent increase in prices over the last five years.
“Affordability constraints mean a wide range of incentives are still a hook and motivator for those buyers seeking attainably priced modern homes, and for house builders to maintain healthy sales rates,” Claire commented.
Looking ahead, she forecast: “I expect price growth we’ve seen so far this year to continue into 2026, with Scotland likely to outperform other parts of the UK. This is largely due to relative affordability.
“There’s potential for even stronger price growth in the medium term as the economy improves and mortgage rates stabilise.”
However, in light of affordability becoming increasingly stretched, Claire predicts a moderation in growth, with house prices becoming more aligned with earnings.
She concluded that people want to “work, live and play” in Glasgow city centre, but planning policy constraints, viability concerns and persistently high build costs remain a significant issue.
“But there are signs of life in the city centre, and I hope to be standing here this time next year talking about cranes in the skyline and bricks on the ground,” Claire said.
In his talk, Cameron Ewer, head of residential sales in Scotland for Savills, started with a look at the UK property market. He described London as being in the middle of a “lightning bolt”, saying it is “having a really tough time”, because, for example, it is not particularly appealing for non-doms. This is also impacting surrounding areas, such as Surrey.
Further away from London, analysis paints a brighter picture, Cameron observed.
On prospects for Glasgow specifically, he told the event that there are still strong rental yields attracting investors to popular areas. He referred to traditional property hotspots across the city, including Bearsden, the up-and-coming district of Dennistoun, as well as the West End,
He added: “The Southside is a very good alternative to the West End, particularly for people looking at schooling.”
Cameron explained that regeneration areas are experiencing rising rents and prices, and new-builds and energy efficient homes are in demand.
Despite challenges, he insisted: “Glasgow remains the fastest transacting city in the UK, with an average sale time of just 25 days. So we are in good shape.”
On the trend of older people freeing up premium properties in affluent areas, such as Glasgow’s West End, Cameron said: “It’s very much felt like a year of the downsizer. Big city houses are going to the market.”