David Alexander

1 month ago | scotsman.com | David Alexander

Property taxes are pretty punishing for most homebuyers, so let’s hope they’re appreciatedProperty taxes are the gift that keeps on giving for the Scottish Government, with revenues continuing to rise and now on the brink of breaching £700 million a year. The latest collection figures for the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) show that £686.5m was raised in the 12 months from March 2024 to February 2025.

1 month ago | scotsman.com | David Alexander

​The rent caps shift and delay to the Heat in Buildings Bill suggests ministers are listening, writes David AlexanderThere are growing signs that the Scottish Government has started to listen and react to the concerns the housing sector has about recently proposed legislation. First there was the welcome announcement by Housing Minister Paul McLennan that rent caps in the private rented sector (PRS) would be suspended until at least 2027.

2 months ago | scotsman.com | David Alexander

Allowing market forces to operate freely is the way to rebalance the private rental sector in Scotland, writes David AlexanderThere are signs that the private rented sector is beginning to stabilise after a period of unprecedented demand over the last few years. The latest UK Market Rental report by Zoopla shows that average rents in Scotland rose by 3.1 per cent in the year to January 2025 at a time when average incomes were increasing by 4.8 per cent.

2 months ago | scotsman.com | David Alexander

​David Alexander says the Scottish Government’s budget increase is welcome – but it won’t help most of the 250,000 Scots on a waiting list for a social homeLast week saw the publication of a report called ‘Still Waiting’ commissioned by the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations and the Wheatley Group which revealed that nearly 250,000 people in Scotland are on a waiting list for a social home.

2 months ago | scotsman.com | David Alexander

It looks like the pandemic fired the starting gun for acceleration in the Scottish housing market, writes David AlexanderIn the previous five years between January 2015 and December 2019 the increase was only 11.4 per cent so there has been a substantial shift in the market since the start of the pandemic. There are, of course, other factors but it does look as if the pandemic fired the starting gun on price growth in Scotland’s housing market.