Edinburgh has overtaken Aberdeen as the country’s most expensive place to rent a property, according to new figures from lettings portal Citylets.

Citylets has revealed new data showing that Edinburgh’s Grange district has shot to the top of Scotland’s rental hotpots over the past three months – knocking Aberdeen’s West End, which had previously held the top spot, into second place on the list.

The figures show that the rest of the top ten rental areas in Scotland are made up entirely of Aberdeen and Edinburgh neighbourhoods, while Glasgow’s districts are among the least expensive places to rent in the country.

The data highlights how the average monthly rent for a 2-bed flat in Edinburgh’s Grange currently stands at £1005, compared with the national average 2-bed rent of £614. In comparison, Aberdeen’s West End recorded an average monthly 2-bed rent of £969) while Edinburgh’s West End saw an average monthly 2-bed rent of £933.

At the lower end of the country’s rental market, Motherwell has been revealed as Scotland’s least expensive area to rent property for the second quarter running – with the average monthly rent for a 2-bed property currently standing at £409. Other areas at the bottom of the list include Johnstone, in Renfrewshire, (average monthly 2-bed rent £439) and Govan & Ibrox in Glasgow (average monthly 2-bed rent £444).

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The hotspots were revealed after Citylets collated average rent levels in Scotland during the first quarter of 2011.

Dan Cookson, senior analyst for the Citylets Network - which includes major partner brands such as Findaproperty, S1homes and Primelocation - said that the stats showed how Aberdeen and Edinburgh were still dominating the most desirable locations for Scotland’s rental sector.

He said: “Aberdeen’s West End and Edinburgh’s New Town are always among the most desirable areas to rent in Scotland, but it is a bit of a surprise to see the Grange overtake both of them to take the top spot. There’s clearly been a big spike in demand from tenants wanting to rent properties in this part of the Capital over the last few months, which has seen it shoot up the list.

“Once again, the rest of the top 10 is dominated by neighbourhoods in Aberdeen and Edinburgh, which are continuing to prove increasingly popular among Scottish tenants. Properties in these areas remain at a premium and people are willing to pay high rents to secure them.

“Although Glasgow does not have any entries in the top 10, at the other end of the spectrum we can see that the city has four neighbourhoods listed among the least expensive areas to rent properties in Scotland – although they are still far behind Motherwell, which claims the bottom spot.

“We’ve also see new entries in the bottom 10 list from areas such as Paisley and East Kilbride over the past three months, so is clear more tenants in these regions have been able to secure new rental homes at bargain prices.”

(GK/KMcA)