Scottish property fares better than English

The slump in the housing market has had a less drastic effect on Scottish buyers than it has on their English counterparts, according to new research.

Figures released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) showed that the number of mortgages dished out by lenders in Scotland dropped by 34 per cent year-on-year in the second quarter.

But the English mortgage market contracted by 46 per cent in the same period.

Martin Ellis, chief economist at HBOS, said: "The Scottish market is in a downturn, as it is not immune from the forces causing the decline, but it is less pronounced than in the rest of the UK."

"But we can''t say it''s not a serious," he added.

According to the CML, gross mortgage lending increased by five per cent to £24.8 billion in July when compared with June''s figures, but was down by more than a quarter nationwide compared to July 2007 figures.

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