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Publication - Statistics

Housing Revenue Account (HRA) statistics: local authority housing income and expenditure 1997-1998 to 2019-2020 (near actuals) and 2020-2021 (budgeted estimates)

Published
26 February 2021
Topic
Building, planning and design, Housing
ISBN
9781800047143

This annual publication provides information on trends in the balance of HRA housing income and expenditure; the amount Scottish councils earned from housing and other council stock, how they spent this income and whether there was a surplus or deficit at year end.

View supporting documents Supporting documents

Rents lost due to empty properties (void losses) (charts 8 & 9) (tables 14 & 15)

29. Councils lost £22m due to un-let all types of properties held on their HRAs in 2019-20. From 2008-09 the statistics collected from Local Authorities have separately identified rents lost from un-let dwellings. For Scotland as a whole rents lost amounted to £17m in 2019-20 representing 1.4% of total rent income on these dwellings.

30. The percentage of rent on dwellings lost through voids in 2019-20 was highest in Aberdeenshire and (3.7%) and lowest in North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire and the Orkney Islands (0.6%). Levels of rent lost may be strongly influenced by factors such as different levels of demand for properties, different void management practices and targets, decanting for improvement or investment programmes or the inclusion of properties awaiting demolition.

Chart 8: Rents lost through un-let properties as % of standard rental income 1, Scotland, 1997-98 to 2020-21 (estimates) 1,2,3
Line chart showing rents lost on all properties through voids as a percentage of standard rental income, in Scotland, from 1997-98 to 2020-21. Trends in current and constant prices shown.

Source:

Current prices: Scottish Government, Communities Analytical Division - based on Housing Revenue Account return provided by Scottish Local Authorities. Constant prices: ONS Consumer Price All Items Index on which 2015 = 100.

Notes:

1. Six councils transferred their housing stock to the housing association sector, therefore HRA information is not available for them.

2. Vertical lines indicate breaks in comparability following transfer of housing stock as follows:

  • From 2003-04 transfer of housing stock from Glasgow City, Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders,
  • From 2006-07 transfer of housing stock from Argyll and Bute and Na h-Eileanan Siar,
  • From 2007-08 transfer of housing stock from Inverclyde.

3. Figures for 2019-20 may have been impacted on by the COVID-19 Pandemic restrictions. Consideration should be given to the impact of these restrictions when making any comparisons with other years.

Chart 9: Rents lost as a result of unlet dwellings as a percentage of gross rental income 1, Scotland, 2019-20 (actual) and 2020-21 (estimate) 2
Line chart showing rents lost on dwellings through voids as a percentage of standard rental income, by local authority, in 2019-20 and 202-21.

Source:

Scottish Government, Communities Analytical Services Division - based on Housing Revenue Account return provided by Local Authorities.

Notes:

1. Six councils transferred their housing stock to the housing association sector, therefore HRA information is not available for them.

2. Figures for 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 may have been impacted on by the COVID-19 Pandemic restrictions. Consideration should be given to the impact of these restrictions when making any comparisons with other years and between local authorities.

Contact

Email: chma@gov.scot

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