Acquisition Programme: information

Overarching approach to acquisitions

Rural Key Workers Housing Fund

Up to £25 million is being made available from within the Affordable Housing Supply Programme budget over 2023 to 2028 for the Rural Key Workers Housing Fund. The funding enables local authorities and registered social landlords to purchase existing suitable properties in rural areas which can be rented directly or leased to employers to provide affordable homes for key workers. This can include bringing empty properties back into use or acquiring properties on the open market to increase the available supply of affordable homes for key workers.

Local authorities should engage with a range of organisations in their localities, including public sector employers, key agencies, including Highlands and Islands Enterprise and South of Scotland Enterprise, as well as local businesses and registered social landlords to develop proposals for use of the fund for consideration by the relevant More Homes Division area team.

Local authority acquisition policies and contact details

While many local authorities already have an acquisition policy in place which outlines their strategic approach to supporting the purchases of existing properties, we would encourage all local authorities to consider their policy position on acquisitions and develop an acquisition policy, where required. Where this is in place, each local authority should publish their acquisition policy on their website which, where relevant, should align with their housing asset management strategies.

It is critical that potential sellers have a clear route to bring forward opportunities for consideration in line with individual local authority acquisition policies. Local authorities should, therefore, each identify a single email point of contact for this purpose. Local processes should be established to facilitate the sharing of information between local authorities and registered social landlords, including informing registered social landlords of approaches from private sellers as quickly as possible. These local processes should also ensure that affordable housing providers are not competing with each other for the same properties and that there is an agreed protocol with registered social landlords as to where and what will be primarily targeted for purchase.

Registered social landlord acquisition policies

Registered social landlords should also consider and agree their own strategic approach to acquisitions. If they are keen to utilise acquisitions, they should engage with the local authorities in the areas where they operate to discuss the types of private purchases they have identified as part of their strategic approach, which should align with their asset management strategies. As above, local processes should ensure that registered social landlords are informed of approaches from private sellers through the local authority point of contact. Similarly, where a registered social landlord receives an initial approach from a potential seller, this should be shared with the relevant local authority.

Identifying properties for purchase

Local authorities and registered social landlords that wish to take forward acquisitions are encouraged to communicate with potential sellers of property and their representative bodies through a range of means suitable to their locale. This may include:

• liaising with local estate agents and solicitors to explain the types of properties which may be suitable for purchase, with a view to receiving early notification of properties for sale
• engaging with local authority Empty Homes Officers to identify privately owned homes that could be returned to active use
• advertising in local press/social media
• connecting with local housebuilders
• engaging with Homes for Scotland in order to identify additional opportunities for the purchase of new build private homes
• connecting with individual private landlords and owners about the potential opportunity to purchase property, and
• engaging with private landlord representative bodies.