Where are the best places to buy a property in Dumfries?
Homeowners interested in the market town of Dumfries in the Scottish Lowlands County of Dumfries and Galloway will be pleased to hear that the town is officially one of the happiest places to live in Scotland. Indeed, the town even appeared at the top of the list in Rightmove’s comprehensive Happy at Home Index in recent years.
Locals will be unsurprised to hear this of course, since they already know that Dumfries has something for everyone, including plentiful woodland acres, beautiful countryside, charming seaside villages and sandy beaches on the doorstep.
Indeed, the stunning Galloway Forest Park and impressive 90,000-acre Drumlanrig Castle estate are both nearby and in the town itself Dumfries locals have Mill Green Park, Castledykes Park and the Riverside Dock Park and playground.
There are also great local amenities such as the Theatre Royal, Scotland’s oldest theatre still in operation, the Robert Burns Centre Film Theatre, the Loreburne Shopping Centre and the DG1 Leisure Centre, plus various swimming, rowing, squash and horse-rising clubs to name but a few. The town’s residents, known as ‘Doonhamers’ are also a friendly bunch with plenty of social events on the calendar including the family-friendly Doonhame Music Festival, the Dumfries Market Festival and the Dumfries Agricultural Show.
For parents of school aged children and beyond, there are a number of highly rated primary schools locally and four secondary school options within the local catchment area, plus the University of the West of Scotland (UWS), Dumfries & Galloway College and the University of Glasgow for further and higher education.
Dumfries is also only 30 minutes’ drive northwest of the English and Scottish border and offers great transport links via the M74 and M6 to the rest of the county, Scotland and the rest of the UK. Carlise is less than an hour’s drive and Glasgow and Kilmarnock less than an hour and a half each. Dumfries train station also offers regular connections to Glasgow, Kilmarnock, Ayr and Carlisle in 1 hour 45 minutes, 90 minutes and 40 minutes respectively and other destinations besides.
So, Dumfries might be ticking all of the boxes, but where are the best places to buy a property within the town?
According to Yopa, the south and west parts of the town are particularly sought after with homebuyers. If you are after a traditional period property complete with gables, turrets and red sandstone then the city centre is your best bet, particularly to the south near Pleasance Avenue. Central Castle Street is also popular and Edinburgh Road, Lovers Walk and Lockerbie Road provide a great selection of Victoria villas and semi-detached properties with traditional stone terrace homes on Brooms Road.
Suburban Kingholm Quay and Glencaple, which is around 7 miles south of Dumfries, offer a quieter setting on the River Nith with a mixture of traditional stone and more modern homes and are popular with families thanks to amenities like the Castledykes Park and Unity Skate Park. They are also an ideal spot for anyone studying or working at the nearby university.
The quiet village of Lochmaben which is 10 miles east of Dumfries also attracts families thanks to its easy transport access via the M74, great leisure facilities like a sailing club, tennis courts and golf course and a highly rated primary school.
For more contemporary homes, head to the suburbs on the edge of Dumfries like Lochside and Summerhill. Indeed, it is possible to snap up a large 4 bed detached property (modern or period) for less than £350,000. Making the town a tempting proposition indeed!
When it comes to property prices, homes in Dumfries had a very competitive average price of £139,004 over the last year. This is significantly more affordable than the Lowlands region at £182,118 and Dumfries and Galloway (£164,582) overall, especially pricey hotspots Kippford (£344,923) Moffat (£210,873) and Gatehouse of Fleet (£210,377).
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