Building Briefs – July 18th

Whisky production has returned to the banks of the River Clyde in Glasgow for the first time in 100 years with the completion of the new Clydeside Distillery.

Designed by Hypostyle Architects to combine historical character with contemporary architecture, the new distillery is located within a converted pump house and clock tower, which have been sympathetically refurbished to create a visitor centre and café.

As an impressive focal point, the distillery’s two tonne twin copper stills have been showcased within a glazed modern extension that has been created by Senior Architectural Systems. Senior’s thermally broken SPW 501 aluminium commercial doors, which are ideally suited to high traffic areas, were also specified and installed by GG Glass & Glazing Glasgow for main contractor McLaughlin & Harvey.

Albyn to begin next phase of affordable Dalmore homes

Work is about to start on a new phase of affordable housing at Dalmore in Alness as part of Albyn Housing Society’s ambitious new build programme which aims to bring 750 new homes to the Highlands by 2021.

The £4.6 million Dalmore development is being delivered on behalf of the Society by Compass Building and Construction Services Ltd. It will provide a mix of 32 one, two, three and four bedroom homes for social and mid-market rent, and will be available late 2019.

This latest phase will build on the now growing community at Dalmore, which includes 37 existing homes for rent and low-cost home ownership, as well as the 16 recently allocated FitHomes developed in partnership NHS Highland and delivered by Carbon Dynamic.

To support construction costs, the Society secured £2.4m in funding from the Scottish Government, and £2.2m through its private finance deal with BAE Systems Pension Funds Investment Management Ltd.

Housing minister officially opens Langstane development in Peterhead

Langstane Housing Association has made an addition to its affordable housing provision with the delivery of 15 new-build homes at Harbour Street in Peterhead.

Kevin Stewart, minister for local government, housing and planning, officially opened the new development last week.

The newly-renovated scheme, known locally as the Caley Fisheries Building, is a former Caledonian Ship Chandling warehouse (built circa 1805) situated at Peterhead Harbour.

Comprising fifteen one bedroom social rented apartments, the grade 3 listed building is within easy walking distance to the town centre and falls within the Peterhead central re-generation / conservation area. The design and construction teams have created properties that are well insulated, designed to be affordable to run and low maintenance.

Grant funding for the development was provided by the Scottish Government, Aberdeenshire Council and Historic Environment Scotland. The remaining funding was provided by Langstane Housing Association.

A D Walker Ltd was the contractor for the development and the design team consisted of Michael Gilmour Associates (architect), David Chouman, President, Aberdeen Society of Architects (conservation architect) and McLeod & Aitken (QS).

Langstane Housing Association wished the residents many happy memories in their new homes.

Scottish house prices up 4.9% in a year

The average price of a property in Scotland has increased by 4.9% on the previous year, according to new statistics.

The latest publication of the monthly UK House Price Index (UK HPI) shows that the average price of a property in Scotland in May 2018 was £149,004 – an increase of 4.9% on May in the previous year and an increase of 0.1% when compared to the previous month. This compares to a UK average of £226,351, which was an increase of 3.0% on May in the previous year and an increase of 0.1% when compared to the previous month.

The volume of residential sales in Scotland in March 2018 was 7,861 – a decrease of 16.1% on March 2017. This compares with annual decreases in sales volumes of 21.8% in England and 13.8% in Wales in March 2018, and 12.4% in Northern Ireland in Quarter 1 - 2018.

Average price increases were recorded in the vast majority (26) of local authorities in May 2018, when comparing prices with the previous year. The biggest price increases were in West Dunbartonshire, City of Edinburgh and East Renfrewshire, where average prices increased by 12.9% to £104,989, 9.9% to £251,371 and 9.3% to £225,310 respectively. The largest decrease was recorded in Aberdeenshire where prices fell by 3.7% to £190,115. Decreases were also seen in Angus, City of Aberdeen, Inverclyde and Perth & Kinross, with average prices falling by 0.7%, 3.0%, 3.3% and 1.9% respectively.

Increases in sales volumes were recorded in just three local authorities in March 2018, when comparing volumes with the previous year. The biggest increases were in Highland and West Dunbartonshire, where volumes increased by 3.9% to 395 sales and 2.6% to 118 sales respectively. The biggest decreases were in Aberdeenshire and East Ayrshire, where volumes fell by 29.7% to 289 sales and 26.5% to 158 sales respectively.

Across Scotland, all property types showed an increase in average price in May 2018 when compared with the same month in the previous year. Terraced properties showed the biggest increase, rising by 5.6% to £123,277, while flatted properties increased by 4.6% to £108,414, detached properties increased by 4.7% to £255,133, and semi-detached properties increased by 4.8% to £154,921.

The average price in May 2018 for a property purchased by a first time buyer was £121,183 – an increase of 5.0% compared to the same month in the previous year. The average price for a property purchased by a former owner occupier was £177,349 – an increase of 4.7% on the previous year.

The average price for a cash sale was £137,790 – an increase of 4.8% on the previous year – while the average price for property purchased with a mortgage was £154,195 – an increase of 4.9% on the previous year.