Annual Impact Report 2024
Long term empty homes in Scotland 2023/24
Figures published by the Scottish Government in December showed that there were 46,217 empty homes in Scotland. Of these, 17,937 had been empty for less than a year, and 28,280 had been empty for 12 months or longer.
Based on previous years, it is likely that the vast majority of the 17,937 homes empty for less than a year will have returned to use, either by being sold or rented since the figures were published.
However, it is equally likely that many of the ones that remain unoccupied will not have been brought back to use by the time our next impact report is published. Where homes are brought back to use more than a year after becoming empty, it is likely that the owner will have received support from an empty homes officer, and that this support will have played a vital role in ensuring the home has ceased to be empty.
The number of homes empty for longer than a year increased by 588 in 2023 from 27,692. This suggests that at least eleven homes a week are passing the one year empty mark. Without the work of EHOs, this figure would undoubtedly have been higher, and many other homes that have been returned to use after several years empty would also have remained unoccupied. The longer a home remains empty, the harder it becomes to bring it back into use.
By the end of June ten local authorities had declared a housing emergency (Angus, Argyll and Bute, Dumfries and Galloway, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Fife, Scottish Borders, South Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire and West Lothian). In total these local authorities have more than 12,000 homes that have been empty for more than a year. All of these areas recognise the role that empty homes can play in addressing the housing emergency. West Lothian became the latest local authority to appoint a
dedicated empty homes officer at the start of the year. Argyll and Bute and Fife have both recruited additional EHOs in the past twelve months. Edinburgh are in the process of appointing a second EHO and ‘increas(ing) the number of empty homes brought into use and allocated to homeless people through the Empty Homes Partnership’ is one of the actions listed in its Housing Emergency Action Plan. SEHP has also established kickstarter projects with support of the local authority and others in Scottish Borders and Argyll and Bute.
While these, and other local authorities, have helped to return record numbers of empty homes to use this year, there is much more that can be delivered through greater resources and strategic approaches that seek to match the supply of empty homes with the demand for social and affordable housing.
The partnership strongly encourages all local authorities to use at least some of the revenue generated through the council tax premium on second homes and empty homes towards bringing more empty homes back into use for social or affordable housing. Examples of this include practical support to empty homes owners through loan and grant schemes or the maintenance and expansion of empty homes services. This will help local authorities meet their housing demand.
| Local Authority | Total LTE Homes | Total 12 Months+ LTE Homes | % of Scotland’s 12 Months+ LTE Homes | % of Scotland’s Homes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen City | 5,594 | 2,615 | 9.25% | 4.57% |
| Aberdeenshire | 2,704 | 1,988 | 7.03% | 4.50% |
| Angus | 1,236 | 986 | 3.49% | 2.14% |
| Argyll & Bute | 1,329 | 915 | 3.24% | 1.81% |
| City of Edinburgh | 7,200 | 2,751 | 9.73% | 9.69% |
| Clackmannanshire | 222 | 102 | 0.36% | 0.93% |
| Dumfries & Galloway | 1,844 | 1,258 | 4.45% | 2.80% |
| Dundee | 1,067 | 485 | 1.71% | 2.80% |
| East Ayrshire | 524 | 369 | 1.30% | 2.20% |
| East Dunbartonshire | 317 | 220 | 0.78% | 1.77% |
| East Lothian | 498 | 334 | 1.18% | 1.92% |
| East Renfrewshire* | 124 | n/a | n/a | 1.50% |
| Falkirk | 817 | 361 | 1.28% | 2.82% |
| Fife | 2,471 | 1,911 | 6.76% | 6.72% |
| Glasgow | 2,696 | 1,395 | 4.93% | 11.92% |
| Highland | 3,390 | 3,334 | 11.79% | 4.54% |
| Inverclyde | 575 | 441 | 1.56% | 1.47% |
| Midlothian | 423 | 423 | 1.50% | 1.62% |
| Moray | 928 | 539 | 1.91% | 1.73% |
| Na h-Eileanan Siar | 688 | 581 | 2.05% | 0.55% |
| North Ayrshire | 1,040 | 554 | 1.96% | 2.58% |
| North Lanarkshire | 1,885 | 1,090 | 3.85% | 5.90% |
| Orkney | 252 | 201 | 0.71% | 0.43% |
| Perth & Kinross | 1,275 | 776 | 2.74% | 2.80% |
| Renfrewshire | 796 | 394 | 1.39% | 3.35% |
| Scottish Borders | 1,580 | 999 | 3.53% | 2.20% |
| Shetland | 629 | 428 | 1.51% | 0.43% |
| South Ayrshire | 816 | 303 | 1.07% | 2.08% |
| South Lanarkshire | 1,630 | 1,493 | 5.28% | 5.83% |
| Stirling | 606 | 465 | 1.64% | 1.58% |
| West Dunbartonshire | 494 | 260 | 0.92% | 1.69% |
| West Lothian | 567 | 309 | 1.09% | 3.12% |
* – number of LTE homes empty for 12+ months in East Renfrewshire was not included in figures published by Scottish Government.