The Scottish housing market is continuing its recovery with most areas reporting house price increases, according to the latest Scottish House Price Monitor from Lloyds TSB Scotland.

In the three months to 31 January 2010, the quarterly price index for the average domestic property in Scotland grew by 5.9% on the previous quarter. Following seasonal and mix adjusting, the average Scottish house price rose to £160,074.

Though house prices are now rising once more, on an annual basis, Scottish house prices have fallen by 6.8%, Lloyds notes. Following four quarterly price falls and now two consecutive quarterly rises, Scottish house prices have regained the level last seen at the end of 2008. However, the number of house purchase transactions is still around half of the levels recorded before the onset of the recession.

All areas continue to report an annual fall in prices ranging from -2.0% in Dundee to -12.1% in Glasgow. Detached houses had been showing a trend decline in price every quarter for the last two years. This fall has been reversed with an increase in the latest quarter of 12.6%. Lloyds suggests this price rise may have been influenced by the ending last year of the temporary lower starting limit for payment of Stamp Duty Land Tax, encouraging purchases before the year end.

Professor Donald MacRae, chief economist, Lloyds Banking Group Scotland, said: “The Scottish economy entered recession in quarter three of 2008 and has since recorded five consecutive quarterly falls in output with possibly a sixth quarterly fall yet to come. However