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Martin Long
Associate Director, Inverness Office
The weekend glossies are constantly tempting us
with holiday homes in the sun at exotic
locations abroad. Attractive as these may be,
the problems of owning a property abroad must
not be underestimated. Distance can cause
management problems and also restrict the
frequency of visits. Reality sets in and it has
been our experience that many people are looking
to the home market to satisfy their needs.
Second homes are popular with people from all
over the UK and particularly Scotland’s Central.
The ease of management and weekend visiting plus
good letting potential, make the home market an
exciting prospect. What sort of property is
attracting purchasers? Water side or coastal
houses are perennial favourites; rural Highland
properties are extremely popular especially if
there is a chance of fishing or other country
sports, either locally or as a part of the
property.
Traditional stone built houses are most popular
with the location being of prime importance.
Crofts, steading conversions, distillery
cottages, large manse style houses and even
estates have been sold as second homes and so
the field is wide open! Bell Ingram recently
sold 11 distillery cottages in a good rural
location in Speyside with purchasers coming from
all over the UK. At the other end of the scale a
large property was purchased together with a
beat on the Spey - a stylish second home but
also one that will generate a good income from
visiting fishing parties.
This trend is set to continue with other
interesting properties coming to the market.
Lentran House north west of Inverness over |
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looking the Beauly Firth was originally built as
the residence for the Lord Provost of Inverness.
It is a splendid baronial mansion that is being
converted into 12 up-market apartments. Its
position allows easy access to the Highlands and
both the east and west coasts. Add to this the
proximity of Inverness airport, it is
anticipated that Lentran will prove to be very
popular with purchasers.
From our Perth Office we have dealt with a
number of properties in this category; namely, a
site at Pittenweem with views out to sea, a
cottage near Kirkmichael with a few acres and
river frontage, a small cottage needing
renovation in a charming village location not
far from St Andrews and a seven acre site with
full planning consent on the edge of Balquhidder
in Rob Roy country – now part of The Trossachs
and Loch Lomond National Park.
Prices for rural cottages can be substantially
in excess of the ‘offers over’ price.
Competition between second home owners and first
time buyers can cause problems for those trying
to take the first step on the property ladder.
Local Authorities are considering ways to assist
the first time buyer which vary from restricting
the number of second homes in an area to the
removal of the reduced rate of council tax for
second homes and even a surcharge on the
purchase price. The recently formed National
Parks are some of the leaders in this initiative
and purchasers are advised to carefully research
the policy of the area in which they are
considering a purchase.
It is important that good financial advice is
obtained so that any tax liability is reduced as
much as possible. Rental income will be subject
to tax and Capital Gains Tax becomes payable
once the property is sold. There are many
expenses that can reduce the liability and it is
essential to enlist the help of a good
accountant.
There are few investments able to provide as
much pleasure as a second home in a good
location. Personal use combined with short term
lets offset expenses and the long term capital
growth is attractive given the traditional
stable nature of the Scottish property market. |
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