Highland: the market in figures
Highland is in Scotland, so purchases here fall under Land and Buildings Transaction Tax. At the average price of £224,574 a home mover owes £1,591, or 0.7%; a first-time buyer owes £991; an additional property owes £19,557. The HM Land Registry fee does not apply, as Scotland has its own registry. The first-time buyer average of £181,744 is below the Scottish average of £198,397, even though the area as a whole sits above Scotland.
Price-wise, Highland is 83rd of 135 areas and 4th of 15 in Scotland. It is 13.2% above the Scottish average of £198,397 but 17.7% below the UK's £273,037. A rise of 7.4% over the year compares with 2.9% for Scotland as a whole.
The rise since 2016 totals £71,711, or 46.9%. The base was £152,863. Annual gains were modest at first: 3.7%, 2.9%, 2.7% and 1.6% from 2017 through 2020. Then came 7.1% in 2021 before 12.2% in 2022. Small falls of 1.3% in 2023 and again 0.7% in 2025 interrupted the run, but 2026 is the top of the series.
Flats average £126,614 and terraced homes £174,559; semi-detached homes come to £215,076, detached ones to £349,591. Flats trail detached houses by £222,977, a margin of 176.1%. First-time buyers average £181,744, 19.1% lower than the all-buyer level.
All five neighbours cost less than Highland. Moray (£203,371) is 9.4% lower and Aberdeenshire (£200,965) 10.5% lower, though Aberdeenshire's average fell 2% over the year. Fife is 18.8% lower at £182,463, Clackmannanshire 23.8% lower at £171,154, and City of Aberdeen 40.4% lower at £133,782, the lowest average among all 135 areas.
Highland recorded 4,185 sales in the latest sales year, ending May 2026.
Distances in Scotland are long: Moray is 88 km from Highland's centre and Fife 182 km. Fife rose 5.1% over the year and Moray 3.6%, whereas City of Aberdeen fell 5.2%, Aberdeenshire 2% and Clackmannanshire 0.5%. Highland's own rise of 7.4% is larger than any of those five.
Payotte, from the UK HPI and the calculator.
Property professionals in Highland
One firm per trade, selected by Payotte on public data (5 of 5 trades filled in Highland). Companies, never individuals, with a regulator or register you can check with the official body.
| Trade | Firm | Google rating | Reviews | Score /100 | Status | Listing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estate agent | Caledonia Estate Agency | 4.7 | 26 | 61 | Partial | View |
| Mortgage adviser | Pollard Mortgages | 5 | 7 | 52 | Partial | View |
| Conveyancer | BBM Solicitors | 4.4 | 8 | 58 | Partial | View |
| Surveyor | Harvey Donaldson & Gibson Chartered Surveyors | — | — | 50 | Partial | View |
| Valuer | Property and Land Surveys (Highlands) Limited | — | — | 50 | Partial | View |
One firm per trade and per area, chosen on public data and scored out of 100 points — Google reviews (35), age of the company (30), checkable regulator or register (15), local anchoring (15), bonus (5). The ranking is never paid for. No firm can buy its place or its recommendation. How Payotte ranks firms
Calculate for Highland
Frequently asked questions
What is the average house price in Highland?
The average price of a home in Highland was £224,574 in August 2026, +7.4% over twelve months (UK House Price Index).
Have house prices gone up in Highland?
The average price in Highland went from £152,863 in August 2016 to £224,574 in August 2026, a change of +46.9%; +7.4% over the last twelve months (UK House Price Index).
How much Land and Buildings Transaction Tax on an average-priced home in Highland?
On £224,574, Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) comes to £1,591 for a home mover, £991 for a first-time buyer and £19,557 for an additional property, at the rates in force in Scotland.
How much tax when you sell a home in Highland?
None on your main home if it was your only home, lived in for all the time you owned it, not let out and not used exclusively for business (Private Residence Relief). A second home or a buy-to-let pays Capital Gains Tax above the £3,000 allowance (2026 to 2027; rates in the calculator above). Bought at the average price in Highland in August 2016 (£152,863) and sold at the August 2026 average (£224,574), the gain of £71,711 costs a higher rate taxpayer £16,491, before deducting the costs of buying, selling and improving. The tax is reported and paid within 60 days of completion (HMRC).
Is Highland expensive?
Highland ranks 83rd of the 135 areas Payotte covers for the average price in August 2026, from £1,204,072 in Kensington and Chelsea to £133,782 in City of Aberdeen.
Prices by property type, August 2026
| Type | Average price | Scotland |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £349,591 | £365,984 |
| Semi-detached | £215,076 | £226,592 |
| Terraced | £174,559 | £184,396 |
| Flat or maisonette | £126,614 | £138,886 |
| All types | £224,574 | £198,397 |
| First-time buyers | £181,744 | £162,166 |
The UK HPI is a mix-adjusted average (a hedonic model), not the price of the homes sold in the month. Northern Ireland figures are quarterly.
The trend, August of each year
| Year | Average price | Change on the year before |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | £152,863 | — |
| 2017 | £158,488 | +3.7% |
| 2018 | £163,027 | +2.9% |
| 2019 | £167,494 | +2.7% |
| 2020 | £170,194 | +1.6% |
| 2021 | £182,301 | +7.1% |
| 2022 | £204,476 | +12.2% |
| 2023 | £201,889 | -1.3% |
| 2024 | £210,730 | +4.4% |
| 2025 | £209,167 | -0.7% |
| 2026 | £224,574 | +7.4% |
Sources
- Prices and sales: UK House Price Index, file UK-HPI-full-file-2026-08.csv. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2020. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Purchase tax: rates and sources of the calculator (Revenue Scotland).
- Tax when you sell: Capital Gains Tax rates, Tax when you sell your home and Report and pay your Capital Gains Tax (GOV.UK, HMRC).