Thousands of empty properties across Scotland could offer a way to ease the housing crisis, with the Scottish Government announcing a further £700,000 to help bring vacant homes back into use.
The additional funding will support repairs and refurbishment work, helping homeowners restore properties that could provide affordable housing or temporary accommodation for people who need somewhere to live.
The money will be shared among ten local authorities, allowing councils to establish or expand grant schemes designed to encourage owners to make their empty properties habitable again.
It brings the Scottish Government’s investment in tackling empty homes to £2 million this year.
The announcement follows new figures from the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership showing that a record 2,285 previously empty properties were brought back into use during 2025/26.
Since 2010, more than 15,000 empty homes have been returned to use through work supported by the partnership.
The latest funding was announced by Social Justice and Housing Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville at the partnership’s conference in Glasgow.
“We want everyone in Scotland to be able to have a warm, safe and affordable place to call home.
“While house building remains the cornerstone of our approach to increase supply, we’re using every lever available to make sure existing homes support the needs of our communities too.
“That’s why this funding matters.
“Temporary accommodation can act as an important safety net, but we also recognise the impact that long-term stays can have particularly on children’s wellbeing and stability.
“This funding may help councils to move households from temporary into settled permanent accommodation.
“Our investment of £5.7 million in the Partnership approach has delivered real results with more than 15,000 empty homes brought back into use since 2010, including a record 2,285 in the last year alone.
“This latest investment will help local authorities turn more empty homes into affordable housing for people that need them the most.”
The approach recognises that increasing housing supply is not simply about building new properties, but also making better use of homes that already exist.
For rural communities, where suitable housing can be difficult to find, bringing a long vacant property back into use can make a meaningful difference.
The Scottish Empty Homes Partnership has welcomed the investment, highlighting the importance of practical financial support for individual restoration projects.
National Manager Tahmina Nizam said:
“This additional Scottish Government funding to support efforts to tackle empty homes across Scotland’s local authorities will be welcomed throughout the sector.
“We know that sustained, targeted investment in empty homes can deliver real and measurable outcomes, with the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership annual survey showing a record 2,285 formerly empty properties brought back into use.
“Rather than lying vacant, these are now providing homes for thousands of individuals and families across Scotland.
“This has only been possible through a step-change in empty homes work.
“Additional investment has enabled not only the expansion and growth of empty homes services across councils, but also the sort of targeted grant support for individual projects that this new funding will help to deliver.
“We look forward to working closely with the Scottish Government, local authorities and others in the sector to ensure that this additional resource can deliver the best possible outcomes, bringing an increasing number of empty homes in Scotland back into use as affordable housing.”
The Government has not yet identified which ten local authorities will receive the additional funding.
For families waiting for affordable housing, the hope is that more of Scotland’s existing properties can be repaired, occupied and returned to the communities around them.
