Housing (Scotland) Act 2025: what rural landlords need to know now the Bill has passed

We recently considered some of the potential reforms to the housing sector at Stage 2 of the Housing (Scotland) Bill here.

The Bill since completed Stage 3 on 30 September 2025 and received Royal Assent on 6 November 2025 and so is now the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025. As anticipated, the Act enhances rights for tenants and places additional burdens on landlords in line with the Scottish Government’s aims. However, much of the Act relies on secondary legislation to be fully implemented and so the timescale for implementation of some of these reforms are uncertain, although likely to take place between 2026 and 2028. We have summarised the key provisions of the Act and their likely impact on rural landlords:

Rural rent control

Although rent controls are expected to be used mainly in urban areas, rural properties are not exempt. Landlords should note that:

1. Rent controls will apply only to private residential tenancies and assured tenancies. The Act contains no immediate exemptions for mid-market rent (MMR) and build-to-rent (BTR), but Ministers have pledged that those exemptions will quickly follow in secondary legislation. Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) has been expressly excluded from rent controls and, more broadly, from the scope of the Act. These exemptions are to encourage growth in those sectors.
2. There is a cap on rent increases. The formula for rent increases is set as the Consumer Price Index (CPI) + 1% up to a maximum of 6%.

The rent cap doesn’t refer to the quality, state of repair and energy efficiency of a property or consider if services and utilities are included within the rent paid. This may cause issues for some rural landlords where the cost of operating and maintaining private utilities and private road are absorbed by the landlord while the tenant benefits from a lower Council Tax because these charges are not present. This may be picked up in secondary legislation.

3. Landlords are restricted in rent reviews. Rent increases are capped both during and between tenancies. Rent cannot be increased more than once in every 12-month period with no rent increase being permitted during the first year of any lease.

There is scope for exemptions, but the criteria are not yet clear and would come in secondary legislation. Exemptions are likely to cover landlords who do not raise their rents annually and who upgrade their property in between rents with a view to encouraging longer-term renting and investment to improve housing standards.

4. Local authorities will request information from landlords to report to the Scottish Ministers on tenancies in their areas by 31 May. Failure to comply with reporting obligations may result in penalties.

Evictions

Tenants under private residential tenancies and assured tenancies have additional protections from evictions. The First-tier Tribunal can consider if:

• An eviction would result in detriment to the tenant’s (or a member of the tenant’s household’s) health or financial hardship; and
• There is any seasonal pressure, such as exam periods or times when finding accommodation is harder.

Importantly, these protections won’t apply if the Tribunal is satisfied that the grounds established for an eviction order are one or more of the following eviction grounds:

• the tenant is not occupying the house as their house;
• the tenant has a relevant conviction; or
• the tenant has engaged in anti-social behaviour.

As a counterbalance the Tribunal may consider whether such a delay would cause the landlord financial hardship or have a detrimental effect on their health.

There are increased penalties for unlawful evictions.

Keeping pets and making changes to let properties

Tenants are now entitled to:

1. Keep pets. A tenant can make a request to the landlord. The request must be in writing. The landlord has 30 days to grant consent including imposing any reasonable conditions. If the landlord does not respond then consent is deemed refused.

There may be secondary legislation to specify reasonable conditions (i.e. requiring a higher deposit) and reasonable grounds for the landlord’s refusal.

2. Make alterations to the property. A Category 1 change can be made without landlord consent and a Category 2 change can be made only six months after the start of the tenancy and with the landlord’s consent.

There will be detail to come in secondary legislation of what constitutes a change under each category – although we can safely assume that a Category 2 change will be more invasive – and what circumstances are reasonable for a landlord to refuse consent.

Other enhanced tenant’s rights

The range of benefits to tenants now includes:

1. For private residential tenancies a joint tenancy can be ended by one tenant provided that they give notice to quit in the normal way and prior to that at least two months’ and no more than three months’ pre-notice to the other joint tenants and the landlord of their intention to end the tenancy.
2. On an appointed day assured tenancies and short assured tenancies will convert to become a private residential tenancy. The appointed date will be set out in secondary legislation and there will be more detail needed on the practicality of this change.
3. For private residential tenancies and Scottish secure tenancies, the period for a successor to be cohabiting with the tenant is reduced to six months (from 12 months).
4. A tenant has 30 days (up from 21) to challenge a rent increase from the date they receive the notice from the landlord. A tenant can challenge the rent increase through Rent Service Scotland who will determine if the rent increase is above the permitted rate and a rent officer will determine a rent so far as the permitted rate allows.

Other duties on landlords

Additional duties on landlords have been introduced:

1. Landlords must already comply with the repairing standard set out in the Housing (Scotland) Acts 1987 and 2006. This is being strengthened through the first implementation of Awaab’s Law (named after 2-year-old Awaab Ishak who died from a respiratory condition in 2020 following prolonged exposure to mould in his home) in Scotland. The Act puts duties on social landlords to address all emergency and damp and mould hazards presenting significant harm to tenants.

The proposed Investigation and Commencement of Repair (Scotland) Regulations 2026 would expand Awaab’s Law to include private landlords and a greater range of hazards. There will be timescales to investigate and repair hazards that present a significant risk to a tenant’s health and safety. Careful thought will be needed to account for circumstances where it can be reasonably argued that the source of the damp, for example, is the tenant’s manner of living in the property rather than failures on the landlord’s part. The intended implementation date is 1 March 2026 but this will likely be delayed until the Regulation is approved and guidance published.

2. The Act removes the 100% cap of council tax premiums on second homes and long-term empty properties. It is now entirely at the local authority’s discretion to set the level of council tax for unoccupied dwellings. We are likely to see changes from April 2026.

The Scottish Ministers must review the assessment and classification of properties which could be used as housing in the context of non-domestic rates by 6 November 2027. This is with a view to increasing available and affordable housing stock for locals in communities where there is a high proportion of unoccupied dwellings. It is likely that we will see the definition of unoccupied dwellings expanded to include vacant commercial premises that may be convertible to housing and mixed-use buildings.

Homeless prevention

The duty to “Ask and Act” will only apply to social landlords and other public bodies.

Rural impact

The Scottish Ministers must conduct an impact assessment of the Act on rural and island communities by 6 November 2026. There is no detail in the Act as to the scope of that assessment but it is positive that there is some recognition that the impact of the Act will more than likely differ between rural and urban communities. We may see secondary legislation to make further adjustments.

What now?

Landlords, rural and urban, should keep up to date. The Housing (Scotland) Act 2025 comes into force in phases through regulations. Taken together with the new elements of the repairing standard and the implications of the Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Regulations 2025, landlords should review the properties in their portfolio to ensure ongoing compliance readiness to deal with the practical and cost consequences of the new well-intentioned duties and obligations placed on them.

How we can help

If you feel you may be affected by the upcoming changes to the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025, our team of rural law specialists are able to help. Get in touch here for practical, strategic advice tailored to your circumstances or contact Jennifer Preston  directly if you have any questions on this topic.