The Highland Council has launched a public consultation on proposals to introduce Short Term Let Control Areas across parts of Inverness and rural Highland communities.
The consultation opened on Tuesday 12 May and will run until Tuesday 23 June.
The proposals aim to manage the growth of secondary short term lets in areas where housing availability and local community pressures have become significant concerns.
Two separate control areas are being proposed including an Inverness City control area and a wider Highland Rural control area covering communities across Lochaber, Wester Ross, Skye, Sutherland and parts of Inverness South.
If approved, planning permission would always be required before a residential property could be converted into a secondary short term let where the owner does not normally live in the property.
The proposals would not introduce a ban on short term lets and would not affect second homes, empty properties or purpose built holiday accommodation.
Council figures show some communities within the proposed areas now have particularly high concentrations of short term lets.
In parts of Inverness, Portree, Dornoch and Fort William, short term lets account for more than 20 percent of all homes.
The council also highlighted concerns around housing availability with figures showing that in Skye and Lochalsh, 13.6 percent of homes sold between 2019 and 2024 became short term lets.
Across the proposed Highland Rural control area, 9.5 percent of homes built within the last five years are now operating as short term lets.
The consultation follows concerns raised through local place planning about the impact large numbers of short term lets can have on housing availability, neighbourhood character and local services.
The Highland Council said short term lets are not the sole cause of the region’s housing pressures but remain one contributing factor among wider housing supply challenges.
Around 24,000 new homes are currently estimated to be needed across the Highlands by 2034.
A Short Term Let Control Area has already operated in Badenoch and Strathspey for the past two years with early indications suggesting it has slowed the growth of secondary short term lets.
Convener of The Highland Council, Bill Lobban, said:
“Tourism is vital to the Highlands.
“STLCAs are not a ban on short term lets, and we recognise the important role they play in our visitor economy.
“What they allow us to do is balance tourism growth with local housing need by managing concentrations of short term lets in areas where housing availability or neighbourhood amenity is adversely affected.
“We face a housing challenge in Highland and the availability of local housing for people to live and work in the region is critical to the future sustainability of our communities.”
Drop in consultation events are due to take place in Plockton, Lochinver, Fort Augustus, Inverness, Portree, Fort William and Ullapool over the coming weeks.
To take part in the consultation, and find out more, visit: www.highland.gov.uk/STLCAConsult
