The Highland Council has said early data suggests short term let controls in Badenoch and Strathspey are beginning to influence housing use across the area.
The Short Term Let Control Area, covering Aviemore, Carrbridge, Boat of Garten, Dalwhinnie, Grantown on Spey, Kingussie and Newtonmore, has now been in place for two years.
Introduced to help manage pressure on local housing, the policy requires planning permission for properties to be converted into short term lets where the owner does not live on site.
Initial analysis indicates fewer new builds and property sales are being converted into short term lets compared to other parts of the Highlands.
The number of homes registered as short term lets is also reported to be declining, remaining stable or rising more slowly than the wider Highland average.
Councillors in the Badenoch and Strathspey Committee said the early signs suggest the policy may be discouraging some new entrants into the market while prompting others to leave.
At the same time, members noted that overall visitor accommodation capacity has not been lost and highlighted the need to maintain a balance between tourism and housing for local residents.
The council has said monitoring will continue as more data becomes available, alongside wider assessments of housing need across the region.
However, the findings have been challenged by Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers, which has raised concerns about the strength of the evidence.
Chief Executive Fiona Campbell said:
“We have significant concerns about the limitations of this analysis as there is no rigorous assessment of whether the short-term let control area actually improves housing availability or affordability in practice.
“As this remains incomplete, policymakers should be cautious about drawing any firm conclusions from it.
“A recent ASSC FOI request to Highland Council confirmed that the policy has no comprehensive impact assessment, no defined success metrics, and no review of effectiveness since it was introduced.
“Key housing indicators remain either unassessed or inconclusive, and the Council has not undertaken any analysis of affordable housing supply.
“Moreover, the number of empty homes in the ward has actually increased.
“This points to other drivers of housing pressure that this policy does absolutely nothing to tackle.
“Before any further control areas are designated, we call on Highland Council to undertake a proper holistic review of the control area rather than cherry-picking evidence.”
The debate highlights the challenge of balancing tourism with housing needs in one of the Highlands’ most popular destinations, with questions likely to continue as further evidence emerges.
