Sales of Scottish homes for £1 million or more reached a new high of 506 transactions in 2023, up from 504 in 2022, according to property firm Rettie.

The £1 million+ market remains dominated by Edinburgh, which accounts for 50% of overall sales.

However, the west of Scotland has been catching up, with Glasgow and the rest of the west accounting for 134 £1 million+ sales last year, representing 26% of all sales and up by 39 sales on the previous year.

Glasgow and the rest of the West of Scotland had fewer than 30 £1 million+ sales in 2017.

Rettie MD Simon Rettie said: “Most of the growth in the £1 million plus market has been in Glasgow and the west, while sales in Edinburgh have fallen back by nearly 20%.

“This has been due to a combination of higher interest rates and buyer confidence, particularly in the super-prime market which we classify as houses over £2 million.

“St Andrews and East Lothian continue to outperform the market with an increasing number of sales over £1m.

“For 2024, we forecast a gradual improvement in both buyer confidence and the rate of prime sales aligned with a drop in interest rates.”

The EH3 postcode in Edinburgh is the new top location for £1m+ sales in Scotland, with 46 sales in 2023, with last year’s top area EH10 falling to second spot.

Rettie director of strategy and research John Boyle said: “For the Scottish housing market as a whole, 2023 was a difficult year.

“However, the overall outcome was not as bad as some had initially feared at the end of 2022.

“In fact, the average house price was actually up 0.8% for 2023, although market transactions were down nearly 10%.

“What is clear, is that the prime £1m plus market withstood the market headwinds better than the overall market.”