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Scottish Landlord Registration fiasco

July 2007

As a result of the Anti-social Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004 all landlords renting residential property in Scotland are required to register with the relevant local authority.

It is our view that private landlords are subject to excessive regulation and that the requirement to register represents another unnecessary hindrance to their ability to conduct business. However since passage of the Act we have focussed our efforts on informing our members on how to comply with the legislation and to ensure that they are well equipped to do so.

It is therefore very discouraging to learn that in the 16 months since the regulations came into force only 22% of applications made to local authorities have been processed, despite the fact that registration is a mandatory condition for letting private residential property. In fact a number of Scottish councils have failed to process a single application in more than a year. The NLA have made representations to the Housing Minister, Stewart Maxwell MSP, calling for the new administration to rectify this situation as quickly as possible and to review the requirement for landlord registration without delay.

Rugg Review:
The Independent Review of the Private Rented Sector has been published. See how it affects you.

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