Helping young people afford a home of their own

We want everyone in Scotland to be able to afford a home of their own. We know that for far too many young people who want to rent or buy a home it’s an ambition that is often beyond their reach. We’re working to change that – here’s how.

Over 70,000 affordable homes have been delivered since the SNP came to office – including 50,000 council or housing association homes. Over the course of this Parliament we are committed to delivering 50,000 affordable homes.

The SNP Scottish Government are investing £195 million in their Help to Buy scheme between 2016-17 and 2018-19. A further £100 million will be invested in the scheme to extend it beyond 2019. More than 12,000 households have been helped into homeownership through Scotland’s help to buy scheme – three quarters of them under the age of 35.

We have passed a new law that will allow councils to create of rent pressure zones in areas with high rents. This new legislation also ensures that rents can only go up once a year and with three months’ notice.

We’ve fully mitigated the Bedroom Tax, helping people stay in their own home. And we’ve provided additional funding through the Scottish Welfare Fund to support 18 to 21 year olds following the Tory decision to remove their Housing Benefit.

To prevent landlords ripping-off their tenants, we’ve introduced a tenancy deposit scheme and ensured that private sector letting agent fees, over and above rent and a deposit, are unlawful.