Housing associations and co-operatives

Home > Services > Housing > Housing Associations and Co-operatives

What are housing associations?
Housing associations build new homes and improve existing, often older homes to rent to people who need housing. They are not property companies or commercial organisations and they do not make a profit. Housing associations work closely with the council. The council can nominate people for housing association properties.

What are housing co-operatives?
Housing co-operatives are similar to housing associations, in that they offer rented accommodation in urban and rural areas. Like housing associations, they are also known as 'registered social landlords' (RSLs), which means they register with the government housing agency, Communities Scotland. Housing co-operatives are jointly owned and run by their tenants. Tenants take responsibility for arranging repairs, making decisions about rent and who joins or leaves the co-operative.

A table of contact information for the associations operating within Renfrewshire can be found in the Related Content menu on the right.