The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has said the Scottish housing market continues to show further signs of recovery.

According to the latest RICS Residential Market Survey, house prices continued to rise for the month of June, while demand for new properties was sustained.

The report added that 16% more chartered surveyors said prices rose rather than fell for the period.

There was also a positive balance to be found in the number of the RICS' Scottish members reporting an increase in buyer interest, with a gap of 59 percentage points.

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A majority of surveyors said prices had increased rather than fell, but only by a margin of 16 points.

There was also a growing expectation of price rises through the summer, as well as a growing demand for rental properties.

The RICS said the signs suggesting a recovery in the market could be partially explained by efforts to increase the supply of finance through the banks.

Sarah Spiers, Director of RICS Scotland, said: "We are finally starting to see what looks like the beginning of a recovery in the housing market, with a rise in newly agreed sales.

"It is important to remember that activity levels still remain depressed by historic standards but the various initiatives designed to encourage the provision of finance into the market do appear to be paying dividends.

"Despite the continued interest in buying a property, figures continue to show that demand from would-be tenants remains firm and that rents are likely to continue to edge upwards over the next twelve months."

(JP/CD)