£200,000 from the 2024/25 Town Centre Living Fund has been allocated to provide grant assistance for owners of empty properties.
The geographical scope has now been widened for owners of empty properties in town centres to include a total of 47 settlements across the region to help bring them back into use as affordable housing.
A 50% grant rate will be made available to eligible properties with maximum award of £20,000 based on works costing £40,000. The grant will be subject to the standard grant conditions set out in the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006.
This scheme is open to private landlords and private owners who intend to occupy the property subject to the following conditions:
- once works are completed, the property must either:
- be made available for letting at or below the local housing allowance rate for a minimum of 5 years following completion of the works, or
- be occupied by the owner or their family for a minimum of 5 years - for the period of 5 years, following the payment of an empty property grant, the owner must prove to us on an annual basis the property is still being made available for private let at the Local Housing Allowance Rate or being occupied by the owner or family
- properties can be residential or unused commercial space above shops that have previously been used as residential accommodation
- properties need to have been empty for at least 1 year
- 10% of the grant award will be withheld until the landlord provides documentary evidence the property is occupied
Permissions
In many cases, you will also need to apply for permission to carry out works to the building: