Scottish housing secretary Mairi McAllan has focused stopping “unacceptable” ranges of empty properties within the nation.
She that she was going to fund extra empty properties officers to carry privately owned homes again into use.
McAllan mentioned: “Bringing properties again into use is an important a part of our plan to deal with the housing emergency – when too many households are struggling to search out someplace to stay, it’s unacceptable to me that so many homes are mendacity empty for lengthy intervals.”
Officers work on the £2m a 12 months Scottish authorities funding within the Scottish Empty Properties Partnership (SEHP).
This organisation seeks to determine empty properties and encourage homeowners to carry these properties onto the market. There are already empty properties officers throughout many Scottish councils, and the organisation has introduced just below 11,000 properties to the market within the fifteen years because it was established.
Figures revealed by the Scottish Empty Properties Partnership (SEHP) acknowledged that in 2023/24 there have been 46,217 properties empty for six months in Scotland, however this determine falls to twenty-eight,280 for properties which were vacant for greater than a 12 months.
Focusing on empty and second properties are usually not the reply to Scottish housing shortages, in accordance with Scotland’s largest letting and property company DJ Alexander.
David Alexander, the chief government officer of DJ Alexander Scotland, mentioned: “There’s little doubt that regenerating and reviving properties which have been empty for a considerable time period will be helpful for an space.
“A property that’s an eyesore in a village, city or metropolis can solely be improved by renovation.
“The priority is that by conflating the problem of the present housing scarcity in Scotland with nearly simply over 28,000 properties empty for a 12 months misses the purpose that even when all of those homes are put available on the market instantly this may do little to alleviate the accrued issues the nation at the moment faces.
“As well as, a property being vacant for 12 months can imply nearly nothing as this may be for a number of causes as conceded by SEHP.”
The best variety of properties empty for greater than a 12 months was in Highland which had 3,334, Edinburgh was subsequent with 2,751, and Aberdeen had 2,615.
On the different finish of the dimensions East Renfrewshire solely had 62 vacant properties for six months and isn’t listed on the official statistics for longer than a 12 months, presumably indicating there have been none for the total 12 months.
Clackmannanshire had 102 and East Dunbartonshire 220 vacant for greater than 12 months.
