100 miles off the coast of northern Scotland, you’ll find Shetland – which, on top of being the windiest place in the UK, has seen the highest percentage growth in house prices over the last year. As per new research, the average house price in Shetland is now £215,170, which marks a whopping increase of 21% since 2023 and 22% since 2019.
![[Houses and harbour.]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/GettyImages-148552068.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
However, recent statistics from the Registers of Scotland suggested an even starker uptick, placing the growth at 30% since 2018. This marks a considerable difference from the mainland, which has seen comparative increases of 23%. Unsurprisingly, it isn’t just Shetland that’s seen house prices skyrocket in recent years.
![[Northern gannets in flight over breaking waves]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/GettyImages-599366031.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
As per estate agent Hamptons findings, Cherwell in Oxfordshire was in second place with an average house price of £367,770, marking a year-on-year increase of 9.3% and a five-year increase of 30%. Elsewhere, East Renfrewshire in Scotland has seen prices jump up by 8.9% – placing them at an average of £303,980 – while Blaenau Gwent in Wales has undergone an uptick of 8.4%.
![[Common seals resting on shoreline rocks]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/GettyImages-596039589.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
For starters, it’s no secret that the islands are breathtakingly beautiful – which no doubt is a push point in influencing people to relocate there. Between 1971 and 1981, the population rose considerably – by 31% – on account of the oiling industry. However, since the 1980s it’s stayed relatively stable, increasing from just 22,000 to 23,000, as per data from the Shetland Islands Council.
![[Shetland sheep at clifftop edge]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/GettyImages-596039553.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
And, as the UK’s most northerly inhabited place, Unst – a North Isle of the Shetland Islands – is often referred to as the ‘real life’ Treasure Island because the location heavily inspired the book’s author, Robert Louis Stevenson, who famously visited in 1869.
