Finding a home to rent
This advice applies to Scotland. See advice for See advice for England, See advice for Northern Ireland, See advice for Wales
Get help if you're homeless
If you're homeless or worried about losing your home, you can get help from your local council.
Find out what to do if you’re homeless or at risk of homelessness.
How to apply for a council house
Most local councils have a register or waiting list of people who have applied to rent a house. To get on the register or waiting list, you apply to your local council. You usually have to fill in a housing application form.
You can find your local council on GOV.UK.
When you apply, the local council will check if you qualify. You might not qualify for housing if you’re from abroad or have spent time living away from the UK.
You can check if your immigration status lets you get benefits and help with housing. You have a right to request a review if the local council decides you do not qualify to join its waiting list.
If you need help with your housing application, get advice from a Citizens Advice Bureau.
How the council decides who should be offered a house
When you apply for social housing, you’ll be added to a waiting list. You'll get higher priority on the list if you have urgent housing needs.
Each council has their own rules about how priority is decided. This is called an allocation policy. There are some things they must always take into account. You can check what priority you’ll get on the housing list on Shelter Scotland’s website.
If you’re accepted on a local council waiting list, you might have to wait a long time before you’re offered accommodation. Your local council should be able to tell you roughly how long you’ll have to wait.
You should tell the local council about any changes that affect your application. For example, a change in how many people live in the house. You might also have to renew your application regularly.
If you need help with your housing application, get advice from a Citizens Advice Bureau.
Choice based letting
Some local councils will advertise empty homes in their area so that people on their waiting list can then 'bid' for the property they're interested in. This is called 'choice based letting'. If your local council uses choice based letting, they should give you information on how to bid for accommodation.
When you get an offer, it might be housing owned by the local council or by a housing association. You’ll usually only be able to turn the offer down if it is unsuitable for your needs, for example, if you’re disabled and there is no lift.
You should get advice before refusing an offer. There is usually a limit to the number of offers a local council will make. Find out how to get advice from a Citizens Advice Bureau.
How to apply for a housing association house
Housing associations are 'not-for-profit' organisations that provide housing for rent. Some housing associations provide houses for certain types of people, for example, single parents or disabled people. Others provide general housing in the same way as a local council.
You can rent from a housing association no matter what your immigration status is. Only some housing associations accept direct applications. Most require you to be nominated by the local council. This means you need to apply to go on the local council housing waiting list. In some areas the housing associations and local councils have joint waiting lists. This means you can register with the local council, and housing associations, on the same form.
Read more about applying for social housing on the Shelter Scotland website.
If you need help with your housing application, get advice from a Citizens Advice Bureau.
How to find a private rented home
Private rented homes are usually advertised online. You can rent from a landlord or through a letting agency. The landlord is the owner of the property. Letting agents are companies that landlords hire to manage their property for them.
Read more about finding private rented home on the Shelter Scotland website.
Letting agencies
A letting agency can help you find a house to rent from a private landlord. If you register with an agency you’ll be asked the type of property you’re looking for and how much rent you want to pay. You’ll normally be asked to give details of your job and income. You might need give them references from your employer, bank, and present or previous landlord.
Letting agents in Scotland must register in the Scottish Government's Register of Letting Agents. They must also comply with a Letting Agent Code of Practice.
Find out more about letting agents.
Fees, deposits and rent in advance
Landlords and letting agents can charge a deposit of up to 2 months’ rent.
Landlords and letting agents usually ask you to pay some rent in advance. Most ask for 1 or 2 months’ rent in advance. They can ask for up to 6 months' rent.
It's against the law for a landlord or letting agent to charge you fees for starting or renewing a tenancy. For example:
fees for credit checks or reference checks
other administration fees
holding fees, key money or premiums.
Find out more about illegal fees and deposits.
If you're offered a private rented house
If you’re offered a house to rent by a letting agency or landlord, you should inspect the property before accepting it. You should also check you have full details about:
the name and address of the landlord
whether the landlord is registered. All private landlords in Scotland should be registered with the local authority
the terms of the tenancy agreement
the amount of rent you will have to pay, and whether it includes any services, fuel and water charges
how much rent you need to pay in advance
how much the deposit is
if the deposit will be registered in a tenancy deposit scheme
If you find the property through a letting agency, the agency must tell you what they know about a property. They should also tell you what they become aware of when marketing a property, which could affect your decision to rent a property.
Help with renting costs
You might be able to apply for Universal Credit to help pay your rent. You might also be entitled to other benefits if you’re unemployed or on a low income.
Check what benefits you can get.
Help to pay a deposit
Some local councils, housing associations and charities offer loans to pay a deposit on a private rented home. They’ll usually pay you the money in advance and agree on a payment plan for you to pay it back. There are different schemes in different areas. Each scheme has its own rules about who is eligible.
Check with your council if there is a scheme in your area. Find your local council on mygov.scot.
You might also be able to get help with paying a deposit from Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs). These are payments from your local council to help with your housing costs. You need to be getting the housing costs element of Universal Credit or Housing Benefit to be able to get a DHP.
Find out more about Discretionary Housing Payments.
If a landlord or letting agent discriminates against you
A landlord or letting agent must not discriminate against you because of these protected characteristics:
disability
gender reassignment
pregnancy and maternity
race
sex
sexual orientation
religion.
These protected characteristics are covered by the Equality Act 2010. A landlord or agent might be breaking the law if, because of a protected characteristic, they:
refuse to rent a property to you
charge you higher rent than other tenants
give you worse terms in your tenancy agreement than other tenants
treat you differently from other tenants when you use facilities, such as laundry or a garden
evict or harass you because of a characteristic you have
refuse to do repairs or make reasonable changes that would allow a disabled person to live there.
Find out more about discrimination in housing.
If a landlord or letting agent will not rent to you because you get benefits or have children
A private landlord or letting agent cannot stop you renting a home because you get benefits or have children. This is called ‘rental discrimination’. Rental discrimination is a criminal offence in Scotland.
If you’re a current tenant, your landlord cannot end your tenancy because you get benefits. They cannot ban children from living in or visiting your home.