Welcome to the Housing section of the Highland Council website.
Notice for Landlords and Creditors
From 1 April 2009, all landlords who raise proceedings in a court of law to recover possession of their property from their tenants have by law to inform their local authority. This also applies to creditors who raise notices or proceedings to eject owners who are in default with their mortgages. You can get more information on the Guidance to landlords and creditors page
Homelessness Strategy
We have consulted on Highland's 3rd Homelessness Strategy, which sets out our proposed approach for tackling homelessness. You can view the summary and action plan on the Homelessness Strategy, Procedures and Reports page.
Thanks to eveyone who took the time to give us their views.
Consultation on the Tenant Participation Strategy & Action Plan
We had a very good response to this consultation and want to thank everyone who took the time to read through the documents - especially to those who have a specific interest in this aspect of our service development and either completed the questionnaire, and/or made an additional written response.
One of the things that the responses reinforced was the need for the council to report back the outcome of any consultation. Will anything change as a result ? Has anything new been identified? Has it improved our understanding of what tenant’s think? Has it provided an opportunity to better explain some of the work of Housing & Property Service?
You can go to the Feedback from Consultation page to view the results of this consultation. The feedback has also been sent to all Registered Tenants Organisations and all individual tenants who have signed up to be more involved in Tenant Participation.
As well as a providing a summary of the responses to the questionnaire we sent, the feedback also contains a summary of your questions with our responses. We hope this 2 way feedback is useful for you. If we can be of help with any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me by phone or email, or make an on-line enquiry through the council’s web-site.
Highland Housing Register
The six main providers of rented accommodation in the Highlands have joined forces to make it easier for applicants on housing waiting lists to access housing. The Highland Council together with the five housing associations operating in the Highlands - Albyn, Cairn, Lochaber, Lochalsh & Skye and Pentland - have produced a single housing register, which is now fully operational.
This means that people who want to be housed by the partners in the Highland Housing Register in the Highlands only have to fill in a single form. Previously applicants had to complete separate Housing Application Forms for each landlord.
For more information on this, you can go to the Highland Housing Register page.
Highland Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme
This scheme is aimed at households who are homeless and on a low income and would find it difficult to raise the rent deposit which is required by private landlords, prior to the tenancy starting. This may mean that they are unable to rent privately. The Highland Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme (HRDGS) can provide the ‘guarantee’ of a rent deposit to get over this difficulty.
The scheme is managed by The Highland Housing and Community Care Trust and Albyn Housing Society Limited and is funded by The Highland Council.
You can get more information on the scheme from the Albyn Housing Society website - Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme.
Housing Information
You can link below to information on:
- council housing - information for tenants and prospective tenants
- finding housing - what to do to find housing in Highland and the various housing options that exist
- homelessness - what you can do if you are homeless or fear that you will become homeless
- housing development - to see what new affordable housing is being built across Highland
- housing grants - what financial help may be available to enable you to repair or improve your homes
- housing for older people - what help is available to enable you to continue to live independently, as you grow older
- antisocial behaviour - what we can do to resolve neighbourhood complaints and antisocial behaviour
- private sector housing - information for home owners and tenants of private landlords
- gypsy/travellers - including information on unauthorised camping
- wards - housing information for each of the Council's wards
Our vision is that:
- Everyone in Highland has a warm, affordable and secure home, in good repair, in the community where they want to live.
- The design of their homes should meet their needs.
- They should be able to live in pleasant, secure and thriving communities.
- They should have access to high quality services and support, if necessary, so that they can live there independently.
- They should have the ability to access the same opportunities as everyone else so that they are included in society.
Our aim is to make the housing system work so that people in the Highlands, now and in the future, have a decent place to stay that suits their needs, at a price they can afford.
For further information about our aims and how we are going to achieve them go to:
Finally, if you want more information or advice on any of the topics covered, go to:
If you have a housing emergency outside office hours i.e. if you suddenly become homeless or if you are a council tenant who needs to report an emergency repair, you can phone the Housing Emergency Line: 0845 700 2005.
The Council can also give you valuable advice about saving energy (and money) in your home.
We hope you find this part of the Highland Council website useful and informative. If you wish to speak to us regarding any of the content or if you have any suggestions for ways to improve the site, please use our contact form.