Surge in Edinburgh townhouse office-to-home conversion sales

The last quarter of 2016 saw Shepherd Chartered Surveyors receive four townhouse instructions in the capital with two sold, one presently under offer and another just brought to market.

Steven Clarke, Commercial Agency Surveyor at Shepherd’s Edinburgh office, said: “The market has seen a flurry of sales of late with principally the demand for townhouse office to residential conversions which has caused our instructions to be very successful with properties being on the market for an average of 4-6 weeks before a closing date is set and achieving prices in excess of quoting marketing figures.

“We expect this high demand for townhouse property to continue into 2017 as the residential end product continues to see increases in value, combined with the on-going requirements from commercial office occupiers.”

Graeme Haywood, Associate Residential Surveyor at Shepherd’s Edinburgh office, added: “Continued overseas investment, shortage of stock and catchment areas are some of the main drivers that have allowed higher end housing prices to remain steady throughout a fairly turbulent year in which a number of residential dwellings are commonly commanding in the region of £4000 - £5000psm.”

One of the properties recently sold by Shepherd was a Category A listed mid-terraced Georgian townhouse at 5 Melville Crescent in Edinburgh’s West End where surrounding properties comprise a mix of consular and professional occupiers. Including a car parking space to the rear and two remote garages, the townhouse had been on the market at offers over £1.35 million.

And just brought to market is a Category A mid-terraced four storey townhouse at 34 Albany Street in Edinburgh’s New Town, an attractive location characterised by period townhouses in a mixture of residential and commercial uses. With car parking for up to eight cars to the rear, this property is currently available for offers over £900,000.