Housing statistics 2019: key trends summary

Annual statistics up to 31 March 2018 on total new housing supply in Scotland across all sectors, along with information on various elements of local authority housing such as stock, lettings, house sales, evictions, housing lists, and housing for older people and people with disabilities.


Affordable Housing Supply

(As previously reported in quarterly statistics published in June 2019):  In 2018-19, there were 9,554 units completed through all Affordable Housing Supply Programme activity, an increase of 994 units (12%) on the previous year. Approvals decreased by 547 units (5%) in the latest year to reach 11,130 in 2018-19, and starts increased by 303 units (3%) to reach 10,872.

Quarterly affordable housing supply statistics are used to inform the Scottish Government target to deliver 50,000 affordable homes, including 35,000 homes for social rent, over the period 2016/17 to 2020/21, and reflect the number of affordable homes delivered that have received some form of government support through loans, grant or guarantees.

The Scottish Government’s Affordable Housing Supply Programme funds housing for social rent, affordable rent and affordable home ownership. The Programme funds both new build activity and other activity to increase affordable housing supply, for example off the shelf purchases, open market shared equity (OMSE), rehabilitations and support provided to home owners through the Home Ownership Support Fund (mortgage to rent and mortgage to shared equity).

The number of units provided through the Affordable Housing Supply programme are illustrated in the charts below. Approvals are measured when funding approval is granted for all dwellings on a site. Completions are recorded when all dwellings on a site are completed.

Chart 4 shows that in 2018-19 there were 9,554 units completed in total - this is up by 12% compared to the 8,560 completions in the previous year, and is the highest annual figure since the series began in 2000-01. The majority (69%) of these were for social rent, 10% were for affordable rent and the remaining 21% were for affordable home ownership.  

Chart 4: Of the 9'554 units completed in 2018-19, 69% were for social rent

Chart 4: Of the 9'554 units completed in 2018-19, 69% were for social rent

Chart 5 shows that in 2018-19, 11,130 units were approved, representing a decrease of 5% from the previous year. Of those, 68% were for social rent, 11% were for affordable rent, and the remaining 20% were for affordable home ownership.

Chart 5: Of the 11'130 units approved in 2018-19,68% were for social rent

Chart 5: Of the 11'130 units approved in 2018-19,68% were for social rent

Since 2009-10, data on AHSP site starts has also been recorded. There were 10,872 starts in 2018-19 which was up 3% from 10,569 starts in 2017-18.

Over recent years it is estimated that it can take between 1 to 2 years from approval to completion of an entire new build AHSP site (of which the first 3 to 4 months would typically be the time period from approval to starting).  Individual homes, or blocks of homes, might be completed in shorter timescales if parts of the site are completed in advance of the rest.

Link to tables on AHSP: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Housing-Regeneration/HSfS/NewBuild/AHSPtables

Scottish Government Affordable Housing Supply Programme out-turn reports: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/Housing/investment/ahip

Link to Quarterly Housing Statistics for September 2019, which contains further details on affordable housing delivery and on comparisons to other UK countries:

http://www.gov.scot/ISBN/9781839601804

Contact

Email: lyndsey.middleton@gov.scot

Back to top