Sponsored by
Funding for empty homes
Ten empty homes in the Western Isles could be brought back into use through funding from the Scottish Government’s Empty Homes Loans Fund.
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar has been awarded £155,000 through their Outer Hebrides Empty Homes Scheme which will aid private owners to renovate empty homes in exchange for them being made available ass affordable housing for at least five years.
Statistics for 2011 showed the Western Isles as having the highest proportion of empty homes in Scotland (13.3%)
Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the funding last week and said: ““Empty homes are a blight on many communities across Scotland. Standing empty these properties are no use to anyone. Renovated, they could provide much needed new homes for hundreds of people.
“That is why more needs to be done to make better use of these existing assets.
“Bringing empty homes back into use makes sense because it is a cost-effective way of increasing the supply of housing available to families across Scotland’s communities.
“The Empty Homes Loan Fund, and wider work being taken forward by Councils as a result of the Shelter Scotland-led Scottish Empty Homes Partnership, can help significantly reduce the number of wasted, empty homes across Scotland.”
Kristen Hubert, coordinator of the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership, which is hosted by Shelter Scotland and funded by the Scottish Government, said:
“It is pleasing and highly encouraging that so many worthy projects have been given the go ahead.
“Having an incentive like a loan to offer owners of empty homes is a key part of getting people to engage with our growing network of Empty Homes Officers and make positive choices about their properties. We will work with the successful bidders to help them make the most of their projects.
“We look forward with excitement to seeing so many empty homes that previously caused issues for their communities coming back to life as affordable housing.”
Councillor Harry McGuigan from COSLA said:
“The fund is a welcome contribution to Scotland’s overall housing stock, and will greatly assist local government’s empty home officers on making real progress locally in relieving housing pressure.
“Encouraging owners to bring housing stock back to the affordable rental market will make a valuable contribution in tackling homelessness, directly and indirectly, and remove what can be neighbourhood blight.”
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Stornoway
Friday 24 May 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 5 C to 10 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 7 C to 12 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: South
