Midlothian is the area that borders Edinburgh to the south and, as such, can offer a cheaper alternative to buying property within the Scottish capital. With its good transport links into the capital it's certainly ideal for those who are prepared for a slightly longer commute into the city and wish to buy property for a cheaper price.
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Apart from apartments and detached houses being on offer, Midlothian has a large variety of new build properties for sale. Dalkeith is the biggest town in the area and is typical in having a number of new homes on offer for competitive prices. Dalkeith is only seven miles from Edinburgh and has a major supermarket as well as a retail park that includes a number of high street stores. It also has a sports centre whilst Dalkeith Country Estate provides ample green space for outdoor relaxation or pursuits. The Pentland Hills Regional Park is also nearby.
One of the major developments for this area and for Midlothian in general was the opening of the new Borders Railway line which means, from the new station at Eskbank, a journey into Edinburgh takes less than 20 minutes. In turn, it's why this area has seen such a surge of new houses being built and with Help to Buy Scotland available, first-time buyers have every opportunity of getting onto the property ladder here. In addition, Lothian buses run services through the county. For travel further afield, Edinburgh Airport is one of the fastest growing airports in the country and has flights to many destinations across Europe.
As for the buy-to-let market, it's slowly gaining ground after being quite lacklustre in the past. A sign of this has been the number of buy-to-let mortgages reaching its highest level since 2008 with the number of lenders increasing as well. As the demand for property in Edinburgh increases so many are looking to Midlothian for rental properties. It's another reason why Midlothian is potentially lucrative for buy-to-let opportunities.
As for employment in Midlothian, it's still dominated by what's happening in its big city neighbour but there are certainly some major local employers to be found such as Dobbies, the garden specialists, having their headquarters here and IKEA having a major store at Loanhead. Midlothian's open spaces plus excellent choice of property being available make it an ideal setting for bringing up a family. Overall, Midlothian does live up to its promise of providing cheaper prices for all types of new houses whilst being conveniently situated for getting into Edinburgh on a daily basis.
Other towns that potential new home buyers should include in their Midlothian property search are Roislin, Penicuik, Gorebridge and Bonnyrigg.