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Category: Policy

Short-Term Letting and the Housing Crisis

Short-Term Letting and the Housing Crisis

In recent times, the self-catering and short-term letting sector has been used as a convenient scapegoat for longstanding failures in housing policy. However, the challenges facing Scotland are far more multifaceted than the existence and growth of short-term and holiday lets alone.

There have been concerns raised over the impact of increasing tourism and the growth of short-term lets on the housing market, particularly on some communities within City of Edinburgh Council and Highland Council areas. In response, the Scottish Government has announced proposals to regulate short-term lets, including the introduction of a licensing regime.

In taking forward measures to regulate the sector, the ASSC argue that any policies must be based on accurate, reliable and empirical data given the importance of tourism to the Scottish economy. That has always guided our approach.

In February 2020, the ASSC launched a paper: Short-Term Letting and the Housing Crisis, which builds on our commitment to ensure that housing challenges are viewed in a balanced and holistic context. Our paper highlights the following:

  • The number of self-catering units registered on the Business Rates Roll compared to those on the Council Tax Register in two key areas, or indeed ‘hot spots’: Edinburgh and Skye.
  • Data from Airbnb, the industry leader in terms of accommodation platforms in Scotland, who have provided background on their number of listings.
  • Finally, information on the number of second and empty homes in Scotland.

As the leading trade association for the traditional holiday and short-term let sector, the ASSC values the opportunity to engage in holistic and evidence-based discussions about housing in Scotland.

The ASSC supports sustainable tourism and the managed growth of the short-term letting sector in Scotland. Short term rentals are not new and have a long history in Scotland but recent political and media scrutiny has been almost exclusively negative in tone and does not provide an accurate picture of our sector and the role it plays in the tourist economy.

As our research has demonstrated, there are almost five times as many empty homes than self-catering units across Scotland and Airbnb represents only 1% of the housing stock in Scotland. There is a lack of quantitative evidence demonstrating that short-term lets are a significant or primary driver of increased rents, are affecting housing supply, or are pushing up house prices. When housing demand and the level of empty housing is set against the number of self-catering units, it suggests self-catering activity is not of a scale sufficient to affect housing supply issues in Scotland.

Overall, the ASSC maintains that more needs to be done to address the problem of empty homes in Scotland when policymakers focus on tackling Scotland’s housing challenges. Ultimately, building too few homes remains the core cause of Scotland’s housing problems, not the holiday let sector.

Read the full paper: Short Term Letting and the Housing Crisis

Forward Together: A Collaborative Approach to Short-Term Letting

The ASSC is delighted to have launched a policy proposal paper: Forward Together: A Collaborative Approach to Short-Term Letting. This has now been given a Covid-19 overlay (August 2020).

Contrary to the current media narrative, short-term lets are not a new phenomenon. Given that the ASSC has acted as the trusted voice of the self-catering sector for over forty years, we are well aware that short-term lets have always formed a crucial supportive part of Scotland’s rich tourism offering.

The self-catering sector brings around £723m of economic activity to Scotland each year. With such figures in mind, it is little wonder that the Scottish Government have welcomed the economic benefits of our sector, as well as the development of new models of short-term letting to Scotland.

Building on previous policy recommendations and engagement with the Scottish Government, the ASSC set out a series of solutions to the main issues identified in the consultation process and which can assist the Scottish Government as they take forward the details of the scheme and help inform the regulations.

This paper seeks to support the Scottish Government’s commitment to regulate the short-term rental sector in Scotland. Overall, it aims to:

  • Ensure the responsible growth and sustainability of the self-catering industry
  • Strike an appropriate balance for the tourist economy, visitors and local residents
  • Provide a proportionate, evidence-based and future proofed solution for national and local government
  • Provide consumer protection for visitors using short-term lets in Scotland.

Everyone that works in the short-term let industry supports health and safety for all guests. Of course they do! Commercial operators have worked within a pre-existing legislative framework for decades. We have specific legislation in place concerning fire and other safety regulations. We also have specific legislation in place for anti-social behaviour.

The ASSC is delighted to be working in collaboration with NoiseAware and Quality in Tourism to deliver robust initiatives to respond to problems highlighted by local communities in Scotland, and to extend existing legislation to all operators in the sector.

If adopted, it would address several of the concerns that have been raised about short-term lets by balancing the rights and interest of local communities with those of the short-term letting industry.

Covid-19 underlines the need for regulation of the short-term lets and the ASSC intend to replicate the responsible and industry-leading approach taken with sectoral reopening to the issue of regulation overall.

The ASSC developed a comprehensive and robust set of policy recommendations that was shared with the Scottish Government back in January 2020. These policy recommendations on licensing and planning control areas provide a proportionate, evidence-based and future-proofed solution for national and local government in Scotland.

Furthermore, due to Covid-19, this takes on even more relevance due to the economic con- sequences for cash-strapped local authorities – who will have to take on the burden of licensing – and the impact any disproportionate system could have on the recovery of the Scottish tourism. The ASSC therefore wish to work with policymakers to make the regulations work for communities and the tourism industry.

It is the aspiration of the Scottish Government to lay the regulations in December 2020 in order that they can become law by Spring 2021; and prior to that, there will be a short period of stakeholder engagement commencing in Autumn 2020.

This engagement provides an opportunity to properly assess and refine the detail of the regulations to ensure that there is an appropriate balance between the needs of local communities and Scotland’s important tourist economy.

Read the paper: 2020_ForwardTogether

In addition, the ASSC has published a policy paper (August 2020) looking at the pros and cons of registration and licensing. Licensing or Registration.