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Scotland and the North of England have avoided much of the downturn in business premises prices faced by companies in the rest of the country, says a leading commercial property magazine.

Growing demand in the North means that the market is relatively stable, according to Property Executive magazine.

Joint director of property Steve Georgiou says Scotland and the North are growing in popularity because there is land there for expansion, should a company wish to grow.

Availability of land is 'the biggest factor' in Scotland's commercial premises success, he adds.

Some businesses from the South of England are carrying out a proportion of their work north of the border.

The commercial property slowdown seen at the end of 2007 did not hit the North of England too badly, Georgiou says.

'There's definitely a cross-culture between the North of England and Scotland, there's a lot of business being done between those two areas,' he comments.

According to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors quarterly Commercial Property Survey in January 2008, demand for commercial property fell significantly in the final quarter of 2007.

In the third quarter of the year two per cent more surveyors reported a fall in demand for property than reported a rise. But in the final quarter, twelve per cent more Rics members reported a fall in demand than reported a rise.

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