A HELENSBURGH housing specialist has suggested the future for the town's property market may not be as bleak as some analysts have forecast, but only if coronavirus restrictions are removed soon.
The Scottish Government followed its UK counterpart in putting an effective freeze on the housing market at the end of March, advising buyers and sellers to delay prospective moves until the threat from the Covid-19 pandemic has passed.
Since the government guidance was issued - and the Registers of Scotland closed the Application Record for the completion of property transactions - there has been, unsurprisingly, a marked decrease in both the volume of property sales and the number of homes coming to market.
Some experts have predicted a drop of more than a third in house sales in 2020 in other parts of the UK, however the Scottish market is believed to be more resilient after a strong start in the first few months of the year.
And Helensburgh-based chartered surveyor and registered valuer Jim Aitkenhead, who is a director of Allied Surveyors Scotland, says there is still hope that things can return to normal.
Writing on the Allied Surveyors Scotland website, he said: "Smarter folk than me have expressed their views on the likely future for the property market, however I believe there is no reliable crystal ball, and all is dependant upon the length of time restrictions remain in place and to what extent.
"If we look at the market BC (before coronavirus) based on my knowledge of Helensburgh, West Dunbartonshire and South/mid Argyll, there was a strong effective demand with prices bolstered by lack of stock in the most popular areas.
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"It was common to see a property feature on Rightmove with an accompanying 'under offer' or 'sold' sticker almost simultaneously.
"Somewhat surprisingly, talking to agents I have recent tales of continued requests to view or market property.
"If restrictions can be safely relaxed, allowing the market to come out of hibernation fairly soon then I think the pent up demand to both buy and sell could see the market return to close to where it left off in some areas."
With lockdown set to continue until late May at least, Mr Aitkenhead admitted that an air of uncertainty remains in many sectors.
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He added: "If restrictions are prolonged, most parts of the economy will be significantly affected, businesses may not survive and many people will become unemployed.
"Consequently, demand will be reduced for housing together with competition, resulting in fewer transactions and a fall in property prices.
"This is not rocket-science and the real honest answer to the question 'How do you see the future of the property market in Helensburgh?' is I do not know.
"What is obvious is that the quicker we emerge from this crisis the better the outcome will be for nearly everyone."
READ MORE: Catch up with all the latest news headlines from across Helensburgh and Lomond here
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