Bricklaying tools may be in demand soon in Scotland as the property market in the country picks up.
The latest report from the Registers of Scotland revealed that house prices in Scotland increased by 5.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2010 compared with the same point last year, up to an average value of £147,854.
Housing transactions went up in number by 24.3 per cent in the first three months of the year in comparison with the first quarter of 2009, reaching a total of 14,662 sales.
Diane Paterson, property partner at legal firm Russel + Aitken, described recent developments in the national property market as "highly encouraging", adding: "It is generally felt that consumers are feeling much more confident about the property market this year - despite election uncertainty - due to falling mortgage costs and continuing demand for good-quality property, which still remains in short supply."
The latest Purchasing Manager's Index from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply in conjunction with Markit showed that the growing demand for residential and commercial properties is fuelling a recovery in the construction industry.
