ONS data highlights widening gaps in parts of Scotland, raising questions around valuations, property quality and more
Scottish cash buyers and mortgaged purchasers may increasingly be operating in different parts of the housing market, brokers suggest, as ONS data highlights substantial price gaps between the two groups across parts of the country.
Analysis of the ONS UK House Price Index for February 2026 shows mortgaged buyers in several Scottish local authorities paying significantly more than cash purchasers for residential property. East Renfrewshire recorded one of the widest gaps, with mortgaged buyers paying an average of £313,057 compared with £235,038 for cash buyers.
Significant differences were also recorded in Renfrewshire, East Ayrshire, Inverclyde and North Lanarkshire.
Source: ONS UK House Price Index, February 2026. Premium = mortgage buyer average price minus cash buyer average price as a % of cash price.
The pattern contrasts sharply with England, where the average difference between cash and mortgaged purchases remains comparatively modest.
The figures suggest that cash and financed buyers may increasingly be competing for different types of housing stock, particularly in areas where renovation properties, distressed sales and non-standard construction homes form a larger share of cash transactions.
Euan Stewart (pictured, top left) of Perth Mortgage Centre said the divergence reflected several overlapping market dynamics rather than simply stronger bidding from mortgaged buyers.
“Mortgaged buyers are often competing in a different segment of the market,” he said. “In many areas, financed purchasers are targeting modern, move-in-ready properties with strong EPC ratings and fewer unknowns. These properties attract more competition and therefore higher prices.”
“Cash buyers are frequently focused on older stock, renovation opportunities etc., or properties with quirks that make them less suitable for mainstream lending. These can typically be non-standard construction type properties.”
Stewart said distressed and renovation stock was likely having a significant effect on average cash purchase prices in some Scottish areas.
“A proportion of cash transactions involve properties that would struggle to pass a lender’s valuation or require significant work,” he said. “These sales naturally pull the cash buyer average down, which can make the gap look more dramatic than the reality for like for like homes.”
The findings also raise questions around valuations and the growing importance of speed and certainty for financed buyers.
“In competitive Scottish markets, particularly where closing dates are common, buyers want to demonstrate they can move quickly,” Stewart said. “A fast, reliable DIP gives mortgaged buyers more confidence to offer strongly, and it reassures solicitors and sellers that the deal is secure.”
He added that blended cash and mortgaged transaction data could complicate valuation modelling in some areas.
“When local cash sales include a high proportion of non-mortgageable or heavily discounted stock, it can distort the picture for surveyors relying on recent comparables,” Stewart said. “Lenders and valuers are having to look more carefully at the quality and condition of each comparable rather than relying on headline averages.”
Not all brokers, however, said the divergence reflected their own day-to-day experience. Alan MacKenzie (pictured, top right) of Glasgow-based broker Your Next Step said the data had come as a surprise.
“It’s not something we’ve particularly recognised within our own cases,” he said. “We’re not really seeing examples where mortgaged buyers are consistently paying significantly above cash purchasers in the markets we’re operating in.”
MacKenzie also challenged assumptions that cash buyers necessarily offer greater certainty in Scottish transactions.
“We’ve seen situations where properties have gone under offer to cash buyers and then later returned to the market due to legal or AML-related complications further down the line,” he said.
“From our experience, mortgaged buyers are generally going through a much more structured process from the outset, with lender checks, affordability and AML requirements already forming part of the journey, which can actually create more certainty than some assume.”
The data comes amid continued strength in Scottish housing markets more broadly. Earlier analysis highlighted Scotland as one of the UK’s strongest-performing regions for expected house price growth, with demand supported by comparatively lower borrowing levels and a higher proportion of equity-rich buyers.
The figures may reinforce the importance of presenting decision-in-principle speed and lender certainty as competitive advantages, particularly in markets where closing dates and rapid bidding processes remain common.
