A shortage of properties in the Glasgow area means the number of houses being sold has decreased — but high demand for available properties means they are selling faster than in previous years.

The GSPC House Price Report for July to December 2016 showed the median time to sell a house across west central Scotland is down from 39 days to 33 days, while in Glasgow the median time to sell is even less at 29 days.

Across west central Scotland, properties marketed as “offers over” sold for 4.9% above the asking price, up 2.1% from the previous year, while in Glasgow, properties sold for 7% above the asking price, roughly the the same as the previous year.

The average selling price of properties sold across the region between July and December cooled down slightly with a decrease of 1.8%.

The property types and areas showing the greatest increases in average selling prices compared with the same period in the previous year were three bedroom houses in South Lanarkshire, with a selling price increase of 21.6%, and three bedroom houses in North Lanarkshire showing an 11.8% increase.

In Glasgow, two bedroom flats continue to be popular, particularly in the East End, which has seen a 4.4% increase in selling prices, and the West End, which has seen a 2% increase.

GSPC said both these areas are popular with students.

Glasgow’s southside has seen a decrease of 4.1% in average selling prices.

Austin Lafferty, director of GSPC, said: “While selling prices are levelling out across west central Scotland and average selling prices are slightly down, the property market is still favourable to sellers who can sell in quicker times and are more likely to achieve over their asking price.

“We are finding that flats are still popular in Glasgow due to the student population, despite the supplementary tax on second homes introduced by the Scottish Government in April 2016.

“With average selling prices remaining steady, Brexit has not shown a negative impact on the property market in Scotland. I would like to encourage people that now could be a good time to sell your property, particular as the shortage of stock is creating demand among sellers.”

GSPC covers the areas of Glasgow, West Dunbartonshire, East Dunbartonshire, North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire, Inverclyde, Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire, Ayrshire and Argyll and Bute.