Crisis in Scottish Private Rental Sector deepens says agency

National estate agency group Belvoir says Scotland’s Private Rented Sector (PRS) is in crisis and warns that the situation is set to deteriorate further due to rent controls and a chronic shortage of housing.

Rent controls and legislation aimed at forcing landlords out of the PRS are only exacerbating the situation and making it ‘incredibly difficult for tenants’.

Statistics from the Scottish Household Surveys show that there are some 14% less properties available to rent than the 370,000 that were available in 2016.

RENT CONTROLS

Dorian Gonsalves, chief executive of the Belvoir Group, says: “Rental controls almost always reduce the number of rental properties that are available to tenants, and this follows a stream of legislation clearly aimed at driving landlords out of the market.

“The result, we believe is a very real danger that thousands more rental properties may be lost to the market, which will only exacerbate the problem for tenants. Every property lost from the rental sector is somebody’s home.”

The current situation is incredibly difficult for tenants.”

Andrew Jack from Belvoir Edinburgh adds: “The current situation is incredibly difficult for tenants.

“We recently released two flats to the market, and within 48 hours had received over 1000 enquiries for each of them from potential tenants.”

CHALLENGES

Ron Campbell of Belvoir Northwood Dundee says that the challenges facing tenants have never been as bad as they are at present.

“My team members have to continually deliver bad news to those people who come into our offices day in and day out looking for somewhere to live, only to learn there is nothing available.

“This is a housing crisis that is affecting everyone. From the increasing numbers of foreign students returning to study in Scotland post-Covid, to local families, businesspeople, and refugees.”