House prices in Scotland are rising more quickly than the rest of the UK according to two separate reports.
There is a brighter outlook for property sellers after the Bank of England made its first interest-rate cut in more than four years.
Nationwide's House Price Index for September showed a 4.3% rise in year-on-year Scottish prices for the third quarter, compared with 1.4% in the April to June period.
Only Northern Ireland and northwest England had a stronger performance between July and September, while the UK average was 2.5%.
Separately, Scottish estate agent Rettie now expects Scottish prices to rise by an average 3%this year. That is up from the 1.5% guidance it made in December.
John Boyle, the head of research at Rettie, told the Times: “There is a greater sense of stability in the market and market rate cuts are reducing costs for consumers.
"However, Scotland’s housing market performance is still best described as tepid, a lukewarm showing as the market continues to adjust to higher interest and mortgage rates that kicked in during autumn 2022.”
Rettie expects transactions volumes to increase to about 98,000 this year, from the 93,000 recorded last year.