Is Badenoch and Strathspey set to become Scotland's first short term let control zone?
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Highland Council has launched its consultation on turning Badenoch and Strathspey into what could be Scotland’s first short-term let (STL) control zone, with one senior councillor stating he hopes any new rules could be applied retrospectively to existing holiday accommodation.
If established, all houses and flats within the entire strath used for secondary letting, could be required to obtain planning approval to continue to be used as short-term lets.
The move comes after local Highland councillors expressed serious concerns over the huge number of properties being used for Airbnb, booking.com and other commercial rentals.
The local authority itself has described the proposal as “bold” and has revealed some of the startling statistics behind the bid aimed at helping to tackle the chronic shortage of local affordable homes.
These include:
• House prices in Badenoch and Strathspey being on average £42,600 higher than the rest of the Highlands and £42,756 higher than the Scottish figure.
• 17 per cent of potential housing stock being lost to “tourist” accommodation in the strath.
• The local council housing waiting list increasing by 40 per cent in the past five years. The rate is much higher than the rest of the Highlands.
Highland Council convener Bill Lobban (Independent) has been instrumental in driving the STL control zone plan forward.
He lives in Aviemore – the community hardest hit in the Cairngorms National Park, with locals losing out to those with extra buying power – and has heard at first-hand from affected families and workers.
Local businesses are also struggling to attract staff due to the limited availability of housing to let or buy.
Quizzed by the Strathy on how the system would operate, Councillor Lobban said the exact details will have to await the outcome of the consultation and any decisions made thereafter by the council.
But he said: “As far as I am concerned it should be retrospective, as that is what we discussed prior to me proposing it.
“Being pragmatic I would expect there will be a cut-off point, so that if an individual has a ‘historic’ property which has been a short-term let for many years I would support an exemption.
“But if the speculators think that they can rush in and buy a home and operate it as a holiday let, then they should think again.”
However, Strathspey MSP Fergus Ewing (SNP) said his view is “that there are not too many second homes, but that there are just not enough first homes” and he has reservations.
He said the most important step required to tackle the chronic housing shortage is for more new housing to be granted by the Cairngorms National Park Authority (CNPA).
Mr Ewing said: “I am unconvinced that regulation by itself will have the desired effects. Moreover, there is a further risk of unintended consequences.
“If people cannot let out a property they may have no option to sell it – and that may then be sold to someone as a second home.
“In fact, one strath constituent who is widowed, told me that if she cannot continue her Airbnb she will have to sell and move away. It is her main income.”
Mr Ewing said he was keen to hear more constituents’ views on this and the wider housing issues they face.
He added: “It is well intentioned, and I know that many people believe that it will work.”
Fellow local MSP Kate Forbes, who represents Badenoch, said: “I recognise that there are strong views on all sides of the housing debate, and that’s why it’s really important that as many people as possible respond to this consultation.”
Gavin Miles, the CNPA’s head of strategic planning, said “The CNPA broadly welcomes this as another potential tool that could be used to help ensure appropriate housing remains accessible to people working and living in the park.”
He said a paper on short-term lets will be discussed at the CNPA’s next board session on February 25.
The whole of the strath is proposed for designation to prevent the problems of short-term lets being “dispersed to the immediate surrounding rural areas” from current hotspots.
The Scottish Government introduced new legislation in 2021 to allow councils to designate all or part of their area as a Short-Term Let Control Areas.
The local initiative got the back of the wider council in December. The next stage is this formal public consultation which is open until March 7.
While it is a council decision to designate a control area, it must be approved by Scottish ministers.
If a control area is approved, a dwelling house used for secondary letting on a short-term let basis will be deemed to be a “material change of use” requiring planning approval.
However, the council has stressed there is no ban on short-term lets.
Nor will it change the planning requirements around long-term rentals, B&Bs, second homes or accommodation built specifically for holiday purposes such as pods, annexes and holiday chalets.
A council spokesperson said: “This mechanism will allow planning policies to be used to assess applications which change the use of a dwelling house to this form of use and allow communities and individuals the right to make representations through the planning application process.”
It has said the move will also help them tackle problems caused by “party houses”.
Edinburgh City Council is also following a similar path for short-term lets.
Highland Council’s consultation is not related to the recently agreed Scottish Government legislation for all forms of short-term lets to be licensed by April 2024.
